Day 1 migraine no more?

[Hopeful83]

Here's my story...
I'm almost 32 and have had migraines for 16 years and been truly been suffering from them for about 9 years.
My first migraine was when I was 16. At first it was about 1-2 a year and in my twenties it increased from 1 a week to 2-3 a week with 4-5 times a week at it's worst since I got married and had 2 children.
I've tried everything from prophylactic daily medications to Botox to acupuncture, Chinese herbs...you name it.
I'm done.
I finally went to an amazing reflexologist who suggested I try a mind-body approach and referred me to TMS wiki.
I am intrigued. There is a place deep inside of me that truly wants to believe that I can be in control of my own pain and can rid myself of migraines for good. I have been reading up and am ready to start. I know it will be a lot of work but I really want to put my all into it.
Full disclosure: I can't help but have doubts. I am a real science/medical person and was raised that way, as my parents are too. Also, I have a very strong family history of migraines as my Dad gets them as often as I do (but has had relief with daily beta blockers) and my Mom gets them often as well.
All of us respond well to triptans and usually get relief within 1-2 hours....but still, the frequency, the unpredictability, the fear, the tole it takes on myself and my husband and children....not to mention the amount of medication, side effects...I'm here, ready to try a new approach.
Any encouragement or advice for how to be effective from a perspective of headaches is welcomed.

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

Hi, Hopeful. I have a few suggestions regarding migraines. They may run in the family, but I think we each generate the reasons for our migraines.
I think they are caused by TMS, repressed emotions and/or a perfectionist or "goodist" personality, maybe over-doing it in wanting to help others and for them to like us and approve of everything we do or say. Being married and having two kids can be stressful in itself.

I think meditation is better than medication, and suggest you try deep breathing to relax and to send more oxygen to the brain.

Also, I've read a lot lately about a deficiency of the mineral magnesium is one of the causes of migraines. Look up magnesium on Youtube to see videos about how many or most of us are deficient in magnesium which regulates more than 300 parts of the body. I use a magnesium spray on my arms and legs and it's immediately calming and relaxing. Every few days I also soak my feet in a pan of warm water with a cup of Epsom salts which is another way of getting magnesium into the system. Magnesium also is a natural pain-killer.

I think migraines and all headaches are our mind's way of telling us to relax. The Structured Educational Program helps us to discover the emotional causes of our migraines or other pain. Good luck in healing. You've come to the right place. Here's a recent post on how TMS helped one of us:

Kevin healed 95 % from SEP

Welcome to the SEP and to the path of recovery. I am on my final two days of the program and I can say with complete confidence that I am a changed man. I started after 6 months of nasty low-back/butt/leg pain, could hardly walk, stand, etc. was in physical therapy, chiropractor, acupuncture, pain medications, etc.. the usual. My MRI showed 3 disk bulges/herniations touching nerves, so that is what I believe it to be....that is until I read Dr. Sarno and found this site.

I encourage you to really get involved, follow the instructions, do the journaling, take time to read all the suggested readings, and watch the videos. I'd say I'm 95% cured. There is still some very light lingering "annoyance", but I still have some work to do. I've been walking miles with hardly any pain these last few weeks. But even more, if the pain comes on now, it just doesn't bother me like it used to, I sorta just see it, acknowledge it, and go about my business. It took working the program to get to that point, but 6 weeks compared to 6 months is nothing! I made more progress in the first week than I did from two months of PT!!! It's going to challenge you and your "beliefs" in medicine, but you have nothing to lose. We generally wind up here when all else fails.

So give it a shot, especially before considering anything invasive like surgery. If you put the work in, you will get better. Have you read Dr. Sarno yet? I assume you have since you're here, but in case you haven't, definitely read Healing Back Pain. Again, it will challenge everything you've believed about your pain, and backs in general. You'll be encouraged to resume life as normal, i.e. stop ALL "therapies" (PT, chiro, etc.), stop taking medications, and most importantly, stop thinking STRUCTURAL problems are the cause of your pain and shift to psychological as the reason.....again, this can be difficult and takes some time to sink in, so be patient and kind to yourself.

It was a process for me. A few of the bigger moves in my case were: I ripped up and threw out my MRI test results (I found myself obsessively reading over them and comparing them to other results I could find on the web and even here on the TMSwiki site...); I got back to the gym and stopped using a weight belt; and I even cancelled an appointment I had made with a TMS doctor because it was more than a month away and it was hindering my recovery (that is, my 100% belief in TMS was lagging because I had this pending appointment, but as soon as I cancelled it, my recovery sped up significantly). Everyone's journey is unique to their situation, but I've found that really committing to the program and brining what I learn from it into my daily life has had profound results. Also, sharing along the way here in these forums has been extremely helpful - there's something about knowing that you're not alone in your TMS recovery that really helps. I encourage you to look through my past posts for some insight into my experience with SEP. Like I said, I'm just now finishing, tomorrow is my final day, and I feel like a changed person. It's amazing. And I feel as though it is something that one carries on with, not just like a one time 6 week thing and that's that...it has helped me to get to know myself and taught me tools to "deal" with my emotions. Learning and accepting TMS is a life changer for sure.

 

[North Star]

Hi Hopeful, (And Walt! - long time, no see!) I am very excited for you! I think you've taken an instrumental first step on your path to healing. I often think of the saying, When the student is ready, the teacher will appear. And it sounds to me like your referral from your reflexologest seems timely.

Another huge thing I see is your willingness to consider other causes behind your migraines. I can't understate how huge this is and how it is key to healing. Having a family history of migraines is a pretty powerful story to lay down. Sort of like the person who can't let go of their back pain because they saw the MRI and the herniated discs. (Part of my story!)

You can absolutely heal of migraines. While my headaches weren't of the migraine variety, they would drag on for WEEKS at a time and wear me down to a nub.
I can't remember the last time I had one of those "marathon headaches" as I used to call them.

You're in a wonderful place here. Friendly folks and encouraging stories. I recommend you start with the success stories. They're arranged according to symptoms and you can look them up.

Welcome to the forum and be sure to stay awhile!

 

[Walt Oleksy (RIP 2021)]

Hi, Noth Star. Nice to hear from you again. All is well. I've written two books since Easter!
In a very creative time for me! Hope all is well with you.

 

[North Star]

Walt, you are awesome. I already knew that...but I just had to say it again. I'm stalled out on my latest book project and here you've written two more. I am in awe! I'll catch up with you on another thread so I don't hijack this one.

I have miss you though, my friend! xo

 

[Ellen]

Here's my story...
I'm almost 32 and have had migraines for 16 years and been truly been suffering from them for about 9 years.
My first migraine was when I was 16. At first it was about 1-2 a year and in my twenties it increased from 1 a week to 2-3 a week with 4-5 times a week at it's worst since I got married and had 2 children.
I've tried everything from prophylactic daily medications to Botox to acupuncture, Chinese herbs...you name it.
I'm done.
I finally went to an amazing reflexologist who suggested I try a mind-body approach and referred me to TMS wiki.
I am intrigued. There is a place deep inside of me that truly wants to believe that I can be in control of my own pain and can rid myself of migraines for good. I have been reading up and am ready to start. I know it will be a lot of work but I really want to put my all into it.
Full disclosure: I can't help but have doubts. I am a real science/medical person and was raised that way, as my parents are too. Also, I have a very strong family history of migraines as my Dad gets them as often as I do (but has had relief with daily beta blockers) and my Mom gets them often as well.
All of us respond well to triptans and usually get relief within 1-2 hours....but still, the frequency, the unpredictability, the fear, the tole it takes on myself and my husband and children....not to mention the amount of medication, side effects...I'm here, ready to try a new approach.
Any encouragement or advice for how to be effective from a perspective of headaches is welcomed.

Hi Hopeful,
You've come to the right place! You can heal from migraines using TMS healing techniques. I had migraines for over 50 years, sometimes daily, and I am now completely free of them. You can read my success story by clicking on my photo and reading it on my profile page or in the Success Stories sub-forum. You can do this!

Welcome to the Forum!

 

[beckyMA]

I'm so glad to read this thread. I am 36 years old and had my first migraine at age 22. I now have 2 young kids, a husband, a full time job, and have progressed to chronic tension headaches and migraines that have not responded to preventive medications, acupuncture, and seeing a neurologist for the last two years. I'm currently reading dr. Sarno's book the mind body prescription for the second time and I am finally ready to believe in the tms diagnosis. I want to get rid of the fear of these headaches controlling my life and I have hope that this program will do it for me. This is my first day on this site and this forum so I look forward to any advice, support, and success stories that are out there!

 

[Hopeful83]

Hi Becky,
I wish you much success! I've been doing much better since i started to take this TMS dx seriously and had a few months where I had very few migraines.
I actually am pregnant now so the migraines have been up and down but I'm giving myself room for that given the various hormonal, vascular and physical changes associated with pregnancy (and all the vomiting!)
Let's be in touch and do this together! I generally don't get migraines in my second and third trimesters but once the baby comes, I'm sure I'll need your support too!
Anyone out there have any thoughts about TMS and pregnancy, I've been curious if my approach has been a good one. (see above). I feel like there is this tension between the usual TMS approach I have been taking (pre-pregnancy) and the obvious physical side effects of pregnancy--but I've wondered about the TMS all along...if it wasn't TMS then why migraines? Other "classic" physical symptoms of pregnancy are to be expected, but why the migraines again?

 

[beckyMA]

Yes, let's keep in touch and support each other through the process. Just knowing you're not alone makes a big difference! Both times I was pregnant I had no migraines, but after giving birth each time, they came back worse and more frequent than ever. Kids add s whole new level of stress into our lives, that's for sure!
Congratulations on your pregnancy and hopefully migraines will stay away. I wonder if the few you have been having could be expressions of anxiety or unconscious fear of all the changes that are happening and of the future? There's so much excitement and anticipation during pregnancy but that also translates into much more stress, both physical and mental, on your body. Maybe try writing down some of your possible thoughts or fears that might be triggering migraines for you during pregnancy?

 

[Hopeful83]

Could be...but those things don't change in the second and third trimesters when I am migraine free, so I can't figure it out from a TMS perspective...