Coping with migraine: religion and spirituality
Hi everyone,
Thanks so much for taking the time to check out our forum topic on religion and spirituality. I am curious to hear more about your own experience, and how you've used religion and spirituality to cope with the numerous challenges you face while living with migraine.
All religious denominations and perspectives are welcome here, and I hope that this can be a space for people of all backgrounds to share. Even if you don't identify with a specific religion, we want to hear from you.
Warmly,
- Cody (Team Member)
this is such an interesting topic, thank you for sharing it here in the forum. I am truly excited to read others comments on their experiences.
For me, my faith plays a big role in managing my health. I live with both migraine and multiple sclerosis. While I am grateful to be doing relatively well with both of them, there are days where I get frustrated or discouraged because of the pain from migraine or the fatigue from MS. It's during those times when I feel like I need strength either physically or emotionally and that's when I lean on my faith most.
I know that in the midst of even my hardest days that God hears my prayers, and even if he doesn't take away a symptom, I find comfort in knowing that He is in it with me.
Another side of faith that has helped with a chronic illness is that I have become part of a church community that we can all pray for one another. That feels good to be on both the giving and receiving end.
- Alene, moderator
I am so glad that you have God and a church community to give you support. That is so very important. Having a chronic illness is very hard and especially hard without the help and support of others. I know that it is exceptionally hard for me to accept the help from others and tend to push them away thinking that they don't want to help me, I am too much trouble, just a daily struggle for me....
Anyway, thank you for your comments, you are a big inspiration and encouragement to me. Please take care!😀thanks for taking the time to share this thoughtful note. Having a relationship with God does bring a lot of comfort in the many challenging situations that we experience in life.
To your point though, it's also very important that we ask for help when we need it. That said, I certainly understand and can relate very much to the struggle in doing so.
Thanks as always for being such an active member of this community.
- Alene, moderator
Thank you for bringing this topic up! As for me, I could not do this life at all without the help and support of God! There are times that I don't want to go on, and feel like I cannot handle this another day, and yet he gives me the strength to keep enduring.
I love this comment that you made here, "Having the support of family and friends is great, but when that is coupled with my faith and the grace I receive daily from my relationship with God, I am empowered across the board!" That is beautiful and so powerful! Thanks for sharing your faith with us.
- Alene, moderatorthis is beautiful, thanks so much for sharing your faith and your story. That's an incredibly powerful testimonial of your wife's healing. Yes, keep running your race!
- Alene, moderator
I truly believe that God wants me healed, healthy and whole. So I pray, take my medication and trust that God will keep me. In my weakest moments He’s there. When the pain intensifies He comforts me. I find sweet rest in Him.
I sing on the Worship Team so I can’t just stay home all the time. I pray, my dear friends pray and most importantly, I’m migraine free as I worship!
PS: I had been migraine free for years! Now this! But? This too shall pass.
Lesleythat's wonderful to hear that you've enjoyed such a long stretch of good health and freedom from pain. What a blessing! You're certainly putting your health to good use by serving on the worship team.
I also love how you shared that you include God in your healing plan and you also do your part by taking the medication. It's a beautiful combination and one that I do my best to follow as well.
- Alene, moderatorfreedom is indeed a great word for it! I love my worship time too 😀
- Alene, moderator
i do believe in God but i haven't stepped foot in a church that doesn't have any cliques is what turned me away, i can remember walking up to a huge church in gladstone, oregon because the starter went out after getting a tank full of propane, yes, you read it right.. anyways, my husband of 27 years(together for 35 years) made a call that had a swithboard and left messages to them all, but this church we walked up a big hill to ask for some help, they told us that they'd call the cops if we didn't leave.. so we left, went back to our car, we didn't have any money for food or drink soda and we went without, but the church he called the youth pastor helped us get a starter and something to eat which was a god send but it wasn't too bad really.. but with all of that, it turned us to be agnostic(look it up on google) but i couldn't have done and gone through it without my husbandthanks for sharing your experience. It's disappointing when people don't represent the church or faith well. This group and the interaction that you had with them certainly are not reflections of God or the church as a whole. That said, I certainly can understand why you walked away thinking and feeling that way. You were not treated well the way you should as we are told to love thy neighbor. They certainly failed to do so that night. In the end I'm glad to hear that the youth pastor was able to extend some kindness you.I hope that both you and your husband are doing well and thanks for sharing such an honest and relatable story here.
- Alene, moderator
