Welcome to Kerrie Smyres' writings about chronic migraine, headache disorders, chronic illness & depression. Here you'll find coping strategies, resources, news & more to help you live a fabulous life with chronic illness.
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An Almost Normal Life Thanks to an Extremely Unhealthful “Diet”
In April, my migraine frequency and severity finally decreased enough that I began to feel like I had a normal life again for the first time in more than a decade. The pieces have been falling into place for a while: the move to Phoenix, wearing TheraSpecs, starting a high dose of magnesium, taking...Ritalin Side Effects
With my lighthearted approach toward Ritalin, I fear I've diminished the fact that it is a a real drug with potentially serious side effects. Sorting through information on the medication was surprisingly complicated. On one hand, it seems like a relatively mild, safe medication; on the other, there...Effective Migraine Treatments for Me
Keeping up with the ketogenic diet and coordinating a new treatment (more on that soon) are taking all my energy right now. But I wanted to share my response to an email from someone who asked what my migraine attacks were like before I started DAO and what other migraine treatments I have tried....Trying Ritalin for Migraine Prevention… and Loving It
Wait-and-see-if-it-goes-away is my method of dealing with house problems. Not because I want to see if a minor issue will develop into a major problem, but calling someone and meeting with a service person is an exhausting proposition when you have a migraine all the time. So yesterday when Hart...I Have Given Up
"Research is finding new treatments, but nothing is available to help you now," my headache specialist said. "You're the same age as my daughter. I would want her to have relief while she waits for better medicines." This is how the doctor announced that he'd reached his limit of treatments to try...