Love and Loss Thanks to Migraine

By Kerrie Smyres

1 min read

Seattle is where my heart is, but I can't live there because the weather is a migraine trigger. Twelve years after I moved away, I'm still grieving the loss. It's emblematic of so many migraine losses.

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April.Sluder Moderator
I'm so sorry you had to leave the place you love. Have you been back to visit? April - <a href='https://migraine.com' target='_blank'>Migraine.com</a> Team 
1. Kerrie Smyres Moderator & Contributor
 Thanks, <inline-mention username="April.Sluder" user-id="3673371"/>! I try to come back in the summer and am here right now. I’ll always want more time here, but I’m tremendously grateful for the time I do get here.
Melissa Arnold Community Admin
Hugs to you, Kerrie! I think it's important sometimes to have videos and articles that *aren't* tied up in a bow. Life is messy. Migraine is messy. It can feel good to know you're not alone feeling what you feel. My heart goes out to you -- the years I spent away from the place I feel most at home were very hard. I hope you have the best time and can visit often. Enjoy!! 😀 -Melissa, <a href='https://migraine.com' target='_blank'>migraine.com</a> team
1. Kerrie Smyres Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="Melissa.Arnold" user-id="3827796"/> Thank you!
jkrosner Member
I live in Los Angeles, our weather is all over the place, especially lately. What state is a good state to move to if weather is a trigger?
1. Kerrie Smyres Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="jkrosner" user-id="3772638"/> Good question! It really depends on what your weather-related triggers are. I moved to Phoenix because the weather is pretty stable and I also grew up there. But the summer is usually bad for people with migraine because of monsoon season. A community member commented on the Facebook post about this that she had to leave Arizona because the weather there was a trigger. So it's really hard to know what will work for you. There's a website called Weather Spark that has historical weather data trends. It's a great way to look at the trends where you live and compare it to other places that might be a better fit for you. I wish you all the best in sorting out a good location for weather for you. Take care, Kerrie
jkrosner Member
Thank you Kerrie, I'm stuck in LA for the next 10 years but ironically both humidity (which we are oddly having now) and the dry heat are both triggers and cause different kinds of migraines. My parents live in pheonix, I'd love to move there when my son graduates BUT I know I'll be a shut in because of the heat. I need autumn weather year round which is so difficult to find. It's so tough and I do everything I can preventative wise to not get them but the weather is uncontrollable. Thank you so much again. 
1. Kerrie Smyres Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="jkrosner" user-id="3772638"/> I understand the frustration! Year-round autumn weather is incredibly hard to find. Mabe Flagstaff? Not sure if it's cool enough or what the humidity is like, though. In case this helps, I've found that magnesium helps with my weather-triggered migraine attacks. I doubt that would help with the heat (though I've found wearing a cooling vest makes the Phoenix heat much more bearable), but it might help with the humidity.
jkrosner Member
My mom just mentioned the cooling vest to me as well haha. I heard Prescott isn't as hot either. When it comes time I'll look. My heart is actually back east but I'm sure I'll need to be near my parents in 10 years. Oh and altitude triggers them haha I'm such a mess. I need a bubble. 
1. Holly Harding Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="jkrosner" user-id="3772638"/> If you find that bubble, please let the rest of us know how to access it! Warmly, Holly (migraine.com team).
SavageHead Member
Kerrie, I also left Seattle after 33 years due to my health issues, cost of living, and needing support from family. Migraine did not come fully blown until I was the recipient of an auto collision and I actually now live in a higher degree of weather effects with a true 4 seasonal environment. I do know that I function better at higher altitude as I have other vestibular issues for most of my life and the barometric pressure changes are killer for me now that I am in the mid-west. I absolutely understand all of the points you make with the loss and grieving of career, friends, hobbies and natural surroundings; not to mention culture and food options in a broad metropolitan city. The bluest skies in Seattle are the best so I am happy to learn you visit during the months the weather is friendly. Thanks for sharing your story, even through the tears; we all live with a shadow of what we've had to say goodbye to, but find sunny spots in new places too. Hugs to you and p.s. love to see another warrior wearing Axon glasses...aren't' they great.
1. Kerrie Smyres Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="SavageHead" user-id="3878563"/> Beautifully said! Thank you for the support and kind words. I'm sorry that you, too, had to leave this wonderful place. I'm actually wearing TheraSpecs and have to admit my bias—they were created for my and my husband started the company after they helped me find relief! I won't look at a screen without them. 😀 Take care, Kerrie