Miles for Migraine Experience

I had the honor of taking part in the Tampa area Miles for Migraine awareness event just recently.

It was a wonderful experience, and it was so nice to see so many migraineurs, doctors, and other supporters joined to raise awareness of migraine disease. There were many sponsors there as well, showing their support and what they offered to the community to help manage migraine.

They had a two-mile walk or a five-kilometer run for the participants. My wife, daughter and I chose the walking option as too much physical activity gets my migraine flaring up. The event was hosted by the doctors at the University of South Florida Headache Center. It was awesome to see the doctors from the center there with their families showing their support.

Water, snacks, shelter, and support

One nice feature of the event was that they had a tent set up for anyone who was experiencing migraine symptoms. It was a quiet, sheltered area that you could just sit in a calm space. There was water and snacks located all around the event area which made it nice.

For those of us who made the walk or run it was a beautiful trip around the university campus. There were people along the route that would cheer us on and provide water for the participants. We were able to share our migraine journeys with other people there which always reminds me that we are truly not alone in this fight.

Why migraine advocacy is important

When I participate in migraine awareness events it always shows me how resilient we are as migraineurs. There are plenty of opportunities that I have missed to help raise awareness about migraine disease, but I do my best to put myself out there when I am able to be an advocate.

While I understand these organized events are quite important to our migraine community I also know that trying to be your own advocate every day is also very important. You may not always be able to make an event, but you can advocate for yourself and those around you daily. I advocate by educating those around me including my doctors outside of my specialists. There is still so much that can be done to bring migraine disease into the place that it belongs.

Migraine should not be left in the dark. Migraine affects millions of people worldwide and continues to rank as one of the world's most disabling diseases. I encourage you if you have a chance or ability to do so to seek out a migraine awareness event near you and take an active part in making others aware of this horrible disease.