Marcellus's Status Updates

Hi - thanks so much for sharing how faith and spirituality play a role in managing your wellness. It's always wonderful to hear what helps people continue to push forward.

Hope to see you around the community more, as it's clear that you have a lot of valuable information to share about your lived experience with migraines.

Best, - Cody (Team Member)

, thank you for your kind words. The kind of ongoing support this community is known for. For which I'm most grateful indeed. I pray your own journey may be marked by hope and grace. Take care … Marcus

What beautiful words - compassionate healing and full of love. We are so blessed you are with us. I couldn't agree more about being off of social media. I've adopted the same mindset. I think chronic migraine lends itself to a more introverted (perhaps reclusive) way of life. We have to be quiet and often isolated in order to labor through the severe pain and complex neurological symptoms of migraine. Simplifying our lives becomes key as the migraine storm is complicated enough. A life that involves chronic pain asks that we dig deep - and hopefully through faith or whatever works for us - that journey lands us in gratitude, acceptance, and with compassion and love for others. That comes through in your every word. So glad you're with us. Warmly - Holly (team member)

, thank you for your kind words. And sharing of your own journey into greater isolation from everyday life, so as to cope with the complexities of your life with migraine. And at the same time to remain engaged enough with fellow travelers, so as to lighten their own challenges.

We're most grateful for your ongoing participation within this community. I can assure you that you make an important difference in the daily lives of countless individuals. They may at first come here for information, yet they find something of eventual greater importance. Hope! And this is the critical contribution you, along with your fellow team members, make. Thank you for thus remaining engaged while tackling your own form of migraine.
Please take care … Marcus

My goodness- aren't you especially kind and thoughtful to share such supportive feedback to our team? It is very meaningful to receive your words. I will take them in like nourishment today as I'm laboring through a tough attack.
I find this community to be deeply fortifying because of people like you - and due to the way it connects me with people in all the various stages of migraine.
Indeed, I find it to be very similar to the stages of grief. Some people are in shock or denial- others are angry - and asking "why me?" - Still others are bargaining- "if I just change this- I'm sure it will all be fixed." We hear those who are deeply depressed about all that migraine has taken from them - understandably so. It's all so understandable. And I have been in every one of these stages. Indeed- it is not a linear process, right? We sort of wander from one to another and then back two stages. Then we find those who have found acceptance. They have made peace with the fact that they have this condition- even what it has given to them. Does this resonate with you? If so, where do you find yourself today?
I learn from people at every single stage. Every encounter is a gift to learn - to lift - an opportunity to offer information, of course- but more to give compassion. And here you are - just pouring utter kindness and appreciation into your messages. Giving compassion and gratitude. A real uplift to receive. Thank you, Marcellus. Grateful for you. Warmly - Holly (team member)

, so sorry to hear of the difficult migraine day you had. Yet in its midst, you still find strength to provide hope for weary ones. You truly are blessed to have the means to do both!

I loved your application of the stages of grieving to our lives coping with this serious and enigmatic disease. And I concur fully that whether grieving loss of a loved one or coping with a life altering disease such as migraine is not simply a linear process. Rather it is cyclical, and sometimes with more than one emotion—'stage' affecting us at any point in time.

I hope you don't mind my suggesting an additional approach to living with chronic pain. Another fruitful way of understanding and coping in our lives with migraine. I'm referring to the "Quality of Life Scale" from the American Chronic Pain Association (image attached). I have found it valuable in helping me to measure function in my life with chronic migraine. I stumbled into it about 3 years ago. I found it so useful that eventually I added it as another calculation in a spreadsheet I put together some 15 years ago to help track my daily experience with 'New Daily Persistent Headache/Migraine.' Plus it gives me another way to inform my providers as to improvement or worsening in the management of my form of chronic migraine.

Which is part of what I value in our migraine.com community. We find kindness and supportive fellow travelers. Additionally, we come across different ways of communicating about our experiences in coping with migraine. The human experience constantly searches for ways to explore and express both the joys and the woes which make up our lives. Some of these ways are things like the: • the 10-point pain scale
• the 5 stages of grief
• the quality of life scale


Here's wishing you, Holly, a pain free day. Or the strength to cope with whatever migraine dishes out to you. Along with kindness, so you know you are not alone! Grateful … Marcellus

Hi there- thank you so much for sharing this resource with us. I've never seen this before. I agree that any additional way to help us better describe this challenging life of navigating this complex neurological condition is welcomed. Indeed, I wonder if you'd be willing or interested in posting this (perhaps if there's a way to make it larger or link it to an external page where it's bigger/easier to read) along with your thoughts on how/why it's worked for you on our stories page: https://migraine.com/stories. This is a landing page where community members can share wisdom earned, lessons learned, and resources. I think this resource would be helpful for our larger community to have.
If you're interested in/open to doing so - have at it- or, if you have any questions about how to go about it - please let us know. If not, no pressure! We are so happy you are with us.
Again, thank you for your support, kindness, and insights. Warmly - Holly (team member)

I agree that in this case it would probably be be best to post a link to the website where the chart is found. I wish it were easier to resize images here! Our platform was built from scratch by our tech team, and they are developing new features all the time. Hopefully we'll get that soon!

I, too, deeply appreciate the thought and effort you put into everything you share here. Clearly you get it, and I'm sure your words are relevant and comforting to many reading along. Glad you're here with us!! -Melissa, team member

, thank you again for your kind and generous words. I'll work on an entry at our Stories section, with a link to the Quality of Life Scale. Hopefully in the next few days. Thank you for your encouragement.
... Marcellus

Wonderful! Thank you for being willing to contribute to the site in this additional way. I look forward to seeing your post. Warmly - Holly (team member)