In the United States, approximately 2-3 million people suffer from chronic migraine headaches. And while the causes and triggers are different for every person, the experience is often the same.
From spending hours to days in a quiet and dark room to learning to live with the pain, there are 10 distinct feelings every sufferer experiences.
1. You get headaches so often, you've learned to live with them
It seems rare that a day doesn't go by where you don't feel some degree of throbbing, aching, or even mild pain radiating down your scalp and behind your eyeballs. Headaches have become so commonplace, you learned to carry on with your daily life regardless of the vice around your head.
2. Most people don't understand what you mean when you say "I have a headache"
To most people, a "headache" is a mild and dull pain that lasts a few hours or until they take their favorite pain medicine. For you, a headache comes on without warning and is caused by a myriad of triggers. Most of the time they're quiet enough that you can ignore them, but sometimes they can be completely debilitating.
3. You fall asleep with a headache and wonder how bad it will be in the morning
Some nights, you go to bed after suffering from a headache all day. You've popped some Ibuprofen and lay down in your cool and dark bedroom hoping for some reprieve. You pray that with a little sleep, you can wake up refreshed and headache-free.
4. You wake up with a headache and calculate how long you can lay in bed waiting for it to get better
Alas, morning has come and the ibuprofen and sleep were all for not. You have 2 hours until you have to start getting ready for work which leaves you two hours to take more pain medicine and lay in bed waiting for the headache to go away. This has become a regular part of your morning routine.
5. Sometimes, you avoid taking Ibuprofen just to give your liver a break
You get headaches so often, that sometimes you choose to suffer the pain just to avoid putting your liver through more stress. Whether it's a cold compress, scalp and neck massage, or just avoiding contact with the outside world, you will do anything possible but pop one more NSAID.
6. You avoid Googling the cause of your headaches out of fear of learning you have a brain tumor
You know you should see a doctor, that's for sure. Whether you lack health insurance, time, or the money to make an appointment, it's not always easy to get the medical care you need. So, you've taken to doing your own research to find out what's causing all these headaches. But upon a simple Google search, you find that brain tumors can cause frequent headaches and now you're Googling the nearest urgent care and the cost of a brain scan to rule out imminent death.
7. If you get tensions headaches, you've perfected massage techniques to ease the pain
If you happen to suffer from tension headaches, you have often been able to find the source of the pain. Tense muscles related to stress can lead to some of the worst headache pain you have ever experienced and a simple massage can often ease the symptoms or at least make the pain more bearable.
8. You're sensitive to smells, sounds, light, and other sensory triggers
Whether you're in the midst of a full-blown migraine or you're beginning to feel a severe headache coming on, certain sensations can make matters worse. The most common triggers are strong smells, loud sounds, and bright lights. When you feel a headache start to come on, find ways to avoid your trigger or take actions to alleviate the pain before it becomes too much to bear.9. You enjoy laying in cool, quiet, and dark places when nothing else works
One of the best treatments for headaches and migraines? Laying in a quiet, cool, and dark room and focusing on relaxing your brain and your body. When nothing else works, giving your body a rest can often lead to a quicker recovery.
10. In fact, a day without a headache is something to celebrate
You look forward to the days when a headache or a migraine goes away on its own or you don't have one to deal with at all. You plan a full day of activities and may even go on a run or even spend some time in the sun! Go out and enjoy a pain-free day, you've suffered and survived.
