Coping, Mental Health

An Ideal Day, Migraine-Free or Not

National Migraine Awareness Month Blog Challenge, Day 9: “Daydream Believer.” Describe your dream day — without a migraine to hold you back.

Describing an ideal migraine-free day is empowering for many people, bolstering their hope and motivation. For me it is distressing, as it threatens the acceptance of my illness that I’ve fought so hard for. Part of accepting that I have chronic migraine and chronic daily headache has been understanding that I may never again have a headache-free moment. I do not strive to be pain-free, but to live as well as possible given my circumstances. This doesn’t mean I’ve given up my search for relief — I will be overjoyed if treatments ultimately result in the cessation of my headaches and migraines — but that I can be happy even though I have migraine and chronic daily headache.

I try to make each day as perfect as possible. If a migraine attack dominates the day, “perfect” may be getting settled on the couch with a good book. On other days, I seek to do what I need or want to do in the time I feel well enough to do so. If I waited to be migraine-free to enjoy my ideal day, I would stew in resentment until it arrived. I try to make every day, however mundane, as daydream-worthy as possible. That’s one of the beautiful, torturous lessons of chronic illness.

National Migraine Awareness Month is initiated by the National Headache Foundation. The Blogger’s Challenge is initiated by Fighting Headache Disorders.

4 thoughts on “An Ideal Day, Migraine-Free or Not”

  1. I’ve only been chronic since December, so it has been a huge learning curve. I really like this entry. I’ve been working with a therapist who teaches mindfulness and meditation to chronic pain patients. I am learning to practice what Buddhists believe is “right thinking,” which is to be present in the moment fully and embrace what is happening. I think our attitude towards the pain makes all the difference. Thanks for sharing your perspective on this–it needs to be said. I think our culture doesn’t talk about pain enough, and it is seen as something intrinsically negative. I doesn’t have to be. Warm wishes to you, and hope today is another dream day. I know mine will be, the best I can make it!

  2. Kerrie, I think you are completely right on this. My wife has had migraines her entire life and for the past couple of years they have been getting worse and worse to the point now she feels bad more then she feels good. We have started to try and take advantage of each day no matter what the circumstances and make sure we make it the best day possible. Going through this with my wife has even made me realize even more what is important and what is not.

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