3 Things I Wish I Could Change About Migraine

It’s tough to limit myself to only three wishes about migraine. I suppose asking for unlimited wishes is off the table. In that case, here are the troubling aspects of migraine popping into my head today.

1. I wish people would listen to me when I try to educate them about migraine disease.

I feel like a broken record, repeating the same things to the same people. When people compare a migraine to a headache, I go through my explanation of how a migraine is much more than a headache, and they keep calling it a headache. I even had one person compare a migraine to a hangover. Seriously!?

Then there’s the group of friends who offer me an alcoholic beverage after I’ve told them a hundred times I can’t drink. Adding to the frustration is when they respond with, “You don’t like this? It tastes amazing.” Migraine triggers are not about preference.

I especially love it when a family member gives me scented candles or flowery body lotion at Christmastime. Sometimes it’s the lack of thought that counts. How many times must I tell people these things? A lot, apparently.

Not being heard is frustrating. I try to remind myself that it’s like talking to teenagers. If you keep saying it, eventually some part of the message will break through, and they’ll get it. Fingers crossed.

2. I wish other peoples’ behavior and bad habits would not trigger migraine episodes.

If you know, you know. Walking down a sidewalk and being attacked by a cigarette smoker’s secondhand smoke, sitting in a work cubicle next to someone who bathes in perfume, or a family member inviting you to lunch way past the window of opportunity your illness insists upon. I do my best to manage my illness, but I could use a little help from other people now and then.

I don’t get to decide what my triggers are or how much exposure time it takes to set off an episode. Your decision to smoke or spritz on half a bottle of cologne is a choice you make for yourself and others. You could choose to quit smoking or tone down the perfume. If you prefer to eat a late lunch, that’s great, but maybe you could make an exception if you dine with a migraine warrior.

3. I wish a cure for migraine could be discovered.

The ultimate wish is a cure for migraine. Can you imagine? No more sensitivity to light and sound, no more head pain, no more nausea and vomiting. Well, not from migraine anyway. That would be awesome! I would love to be able to go to a friend’s house no matter how many home fragrance products they use. I’d buy tickets to outdoor concerts, dine with friends any time they want, and I’d be fully present for work, family, and friends. 

A migraine cure would mean freedom to experience life without fear of debilitating pain putting our lives on a shelf. A migraine cure would mean stepping out of the isolation of a dark, quiet room.

I look at my list of three migraine wishes and begin to wonder if these are wishes that could be granted by people instead of a genie in a bottle. People can listen and learn from a migraine warrior. People can alter their behavior for the benefit of those around them. Scientists are studying and discovering more about migraine every day. So who knows?  Maybe someday a cure will happen. This is the one wish that I really hope will come true.

Originally published at WebMD.com on 9/23/24.