Dawnn's Story

By jdajwils

2 min read

I have suffered from migraines since I was about 11 or 12. I can remember as a teenager going to my PCP and begging them to do something to make the headaches stop. They would tell me to just take some Tylenol for it and ask my mother if there was a reason I was always getting sore throats. I would tell them it was from all the throwing up and they would act like I had an eating disorder.

They would tell me if I did not start gaining some weight that I would have to be put in the hospital for eating disorders. By the time my senior year came around I had gained 75 lbs and then they told me I was bulimic. Never once did they do anything about my headaches.After I turned 18 I went to a new doctor and went through my history with her and explained that I did not have an eating disorder and I only threw up when I had headaches and she put me on Midrin. I loved it! It was a life saver for me. I still got migraines, but now I had something to stop them when they started.When I was 33 I was surprised with a pregnancy and from the moment I was 6 weeks until now I have had constant headaches. That was 6 years ago. I now live with daily headaches, bad periods where my head feels as if it is being pushed in or going to explode, and tension headaches. I am in constant pain everyday.I have an 18 year old daughter and a 5 year old son to take care of and there are some days where getting up and out of bed are a big chore for me. I have chosen life. I will not let this beat me. I will fight until there is nothing left in me to fight with to make sure my son has the life he deserves. My daughter was lucky she did not have to grow up with a mom who couldn't do anything because of a headache, but my son has known nothing but that. I try my hardest to give him a normal life, but I can see he is suffering. He will tell his friends "My mommy has a headache today" and it just kills me. I take 3 different daily meds and I have my preventative, but its not enough. I just hope that one day they will just decide to go away as easily as they showed up.

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melindas Member
making time for yourself is first and most important...i learned the hard way. i have suffered with migraines since age 5 and now at 35, i make migraine prevention the most important thing in my daily life. i have a 13 yr old and most of her life has been about the "not now, mommy has a headache" rule, so i understand. i have been to so many doctors i have lost track and more meds than i can remember. i have been headache free for over a year now and my 13 yr old doesn't know how to deal with a mom who is present all the time, it's new for us both. i suggest that you keep looking for a doctor who specializes in the migraine field and be prepared when you make a doctors visit. take your headache diary with you for backup..it should have your headaches listed (when, how long, meds taken, symptoms, level of pain) and your daily diet (list everything you've eaten, even the small things like candy or a hand full of nuts) because these are all important to diagnose your regimen of care for the future. also, do your homework on migraines...read everything you can find. i found a great book that changed my life, but everyone is different. my magic helper was the book "the migraine brain", by carolyn bernstein, MD. after reading this book, my life changed for the better, because it gave a better understanding of what was happening and why. remember that you aren't alone and taking to others may give you more relief than you could imagine. good luck with your search for the happiness i know you deserve.
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omg this story is so my story I'm crying as I read this I'm 32vhave a 14 year old and a 3 year old my 14 year old didn't have to deal with it as bad as my 3 year old dooes she goes around telling everyone they have to be quiet cause mommy has a headache today which is almost everyday occurance for me this just isn't any solution ive tried everything currently I'm on depocote to prevent which really I feel does nothing then for the attack I'm take relpax currently I have had a migraine since Friday Morning and finally went to the ER today to just be pumped full of pain meds and sent home and was told to go home and sleep and I woke up to the same pain they even did an cat scan and found nothing.
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I went to work one night four years ago with a really bad headache to find out I had a sdh. I had surgery and two burr holes later and a plate in my head, I now suffer with severe migraines. The pain is constant and worse at times than others. I cannot move some days. Movement, light and sound start me vomitting. My kids constantly remind me of what a poor mother I have become. I no longer can tolerate basketball games and Winter concerts without severe pain and the probability of vomitting after a few minutes. I always hear, be quite mommy has another headache, or I guess we won't be going to...cause mommy has a headache. I wake up every morning and pray that my head doesn't hurt and every day my prayers go unanswered. Migraines have ruined my life. I have taken almost every medication ever made and nothing makes it better. At this point, I feel like God must really hate me cause I can barely function. I am a Master's prepared nurse and the mother of five and my whole life has gone to crap as I am unable to function most of the time. At this point I just cry and wish for a miracle.
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I so know how you feel; I started getting migraines at 16 and I would get a few every year and each year the worse they got. At age 24 I became pregnant and had a migraine everyday of my pregnancy; plus I ended up in the maternity ward many times, so they could give me medicine for my pain and monitor the baby.My BP would go through the roof and they were afraid that I would have a stroke. After my son was born they continued to come more frequently and more intensely. Unfortunately my son remembers growing up with mom being sick and in bed a lot. He is now 17 and understands that I have to stay in a blacked out bedroom for many days on end. I am on my 3rd round of Botox and it has decreased my migraines by over 90%. I still days though when my meds can't take away the pain and my son has to take me to the ER. I feel like I have robbed him of a mom and a great childhood because of my migraines, the only positive thing I can say is I know that my son is a very compassionate young man and takes great care of me when I am down.