Help Abbie raise money

Migraines are more than “just a headache.” There are days where my parents have had to drive me to work because I couldn’t see to drive. Days where I could barely get out of bed without feeling like all the weight of gravity was pushing down on my skull. They are so much more than their symptoms. The pain, light sensitivity, numbness, nausea and blurry vision is just half of it. 

It’s the missed opportunities. It’s not going out with friends. It’s not enjoying a musical. Not being able to spend time with family. It’s heat packs and ice packs and eye masks. It’s sleeping with blackout curtains. Sunglasses in every bag I own. It’s making sure I have migraine medication with me wherever I go. 

It’s having every app on my phone that I can set to dark mode. It’s turning papers in late and missing class. It’s showing up to work regardless of how I feel. Because I’d rather have a migraine there than have one just sitting at home. 

I’ve been told before, “If you have a migraine you can call out you know,” or “you can take a day from school”. But here’s the thing. If I called out, or took a day off for every migraine that I get. I would never leave my house. Even without the quarantine going on I would be isolated on my own accord. 

Life hasn’t been easy. I’ve cut out foods, drank water everyday and stayed hydrated, I’ve gotten chiropractic adjustments, massages, acupuncture, MRI’s, and last year even went to the ER for one that got really bad. I’ve been on medication for them since Freshman year of high school, even though they started before that. 

I’ve spent the last near 7 years of my life with this illness. I’ve been told over and over again, “it’s hormones,” “you’re making it up” “it’s all in your head!” I’ve had teachers tell me that my migraines are no excuse to go to the nurse, or miss class, or turn in an assignment late. But think of it like this. 

If a student broke their arm and said, “My arm is bothering me, can I go see the nurse?” The teacher would say yes. But the usual response when I say, “My migraines just flared up, can I go see the nurse.” was either, “No we are doing something important.” or “You said that last week too.” 

I of course had the teachers that understood. Senior year my second period class was really close to the nurses office. So my teacher and I got in the habit of me dropping my stuff off in the classroom and going to the nurse to warm up my heating pack everyday. Not once did he stop me. Or try to make me wait. He knew that I would be back in time for class and he knew that if I didn’t go heat that up. Then I wouldn’t be able to focus in the white tile, white wall, and fluorescent lighting classroom. 

All I ask is that if someone you know says that they have a migraine, believe them. Don’t belittle it or say that it’s just a headache. Because everyone functions at a different capacity when they have one. It’s why people often don’t believe me. I can function very well, to an extent, at the cost of being in an enormous amount of pain. 

Stay safe out there and be kind to one another.