Category: Strategies

  • The 7 types of rest

    The 7 types of rest

    The other day I woke up after 8 hours of sleep and said to my husband; “I’m STILL tired!” And I don’t mean I spent 8 hours in bed tossing and turning and staring at the ceiling – it was 8 hours of deep sleep. I’m almost always so exhausted…

  • Welcome to my revelation

    Welcome to my revelation

    Every now and then something “clicks” in my mind; thoughts align (or collide) and I think “ah ha”. It doesn’t happen very often when it comes to migraine material (I had my first migraine when I was 11 years old), but with all the reading I’ve been doing, I still…

  • When mindfulness feels risky

    When mindfulness feels risky

    It has become increasingly clear to me that there is no ONE SIZE FITS all approach to overcoming migraines. Migraine pain seems to come from an intensely personal, deep down, place within each of us, and as such, the causes, symptoms and treatment options will be equally individual. There are…

  • How do you respond to pain-ignorance?

    How do you respond to pain-ignorance?

    Living with chronic pain is painful… der… but I don’t mean just the pain-pain, I mean all the other stuff that goes with it. One of those “things” is the way that other people respond to your situation; the way they do (or don’t) accommodate our special needs, and the…

  • ‘Everyday’ trauma and your pain brain

    ‘Everyday’ trauma and your pain brain

    The other day I was waiting to pick up my daughter from a nighttime school event. It was running late, and I was getting a bit huffy and puffy about having to sit around and wait. It wasn’t that I had to be anywhere else, more that I just didn’t…

  • “Good doggy”

    “Good doggy”

    Ok, so today’s post is a bit odd… but stick with me! I was watching a documentary about the neuroscience of dogs (as you do) and there were so many things that felt relevant to my healing journey… again… stick with me. As the mother of two fur-babies, there were…

  • Compassionate communication

    Compassionate communication

    As the mother of two teenage daughters, I feel like I am perpetually putting my foot in my mouth and messing things up. I love my children without measure and would never mean to hurt them… and yet… even I can say things that are less than all-loving. My eldest…

  • Guest post: “Thirty Years with Migraine” by Celine

    Guest post: “Thirty Years with Migraine” by Celine

    Today’s post is written by someone other than me – Celine, founder of Seesaw Health, outlines her experience of living with migraine, how better breathing helped her heal, AND how she then used that learning to set up a business aimed at reducing people’s chronic pain. It’s a very inspirational…

  • Do ear seeds help migraines?

    Do ear seeds help migraines?

    A little while ago I posted notes from an interview I heard with Dr Berk about migraine facts and fiction (here). During the interview, I heard mention of something completely new (to me): “ear seeds”. When I heard the phrase, my mind did a whole “WTF” backflip… I mean, what…