Chronic Migraine Awareness

Chronic Migraine Awareness would like to thank Nathalie Warren for sharing

My name is Nathalie and I am diagnosed with Chronic Intractable Migraine with Status Migrainosis. 

Myth: It is always very obvious when someone is experiencing a migraine 

Fact: Migraine is an invisible disease and many diagnosed with Migraine mask their symptoms. This is especially true for people like myself who are diagnosed with Chronic Migraine. Since I am in some level of pain almost every day I often mask my symptoms to the point where you would never know that I am in crippling levels of pain or how badly I am suffering. This in turn adds to the stigma and belief that my pain ‘isn’t that bad’ or that I must be exaggerating. My husband often says to people “I sometimes think it would be easier for Nathalie if she had an axe sticking out of her head – maybe then the world would see and believe how severe her pain is.”

Action: I try to educate my friends and family as much as possible regarding chronic migraine but I would like to educate as many as possible by being more vocal on my social media platforms and sharing as many facts and educational materials as possible. 

Both pictures of me with a severe migraine: 

If you would like to share your story please email it to kristen@cmaware.org