Hope for Migraine Sufferers

"If you lose hope, somehow you lose the vitality that keeps life moving, you lose that courage to be, that quality that helps you go on in spite of it all. And so today I still have a dream."

-- Martin Luther King Jr.

Having unsuccessfully tried multiple medical or alternative options for pain relief, many migraine sufferers have all but lost hope that their quality of life will ever improve. However, once you can discover the inner resources that allow you to access hope again, you can start on the path that will enable you

A) to regain control of your life, and

B) to limit your migraine-related suffering.

Observers of the human condition notice that people have different degrees of hopefulness. A curious and wise physician, Dr. Jerome Groopman, has observed advanced cancer patients over the course of his long career, and can respond to these two questions:

1. Why are some patients able to find hope, but others cannot?


2. Can hope help change the course of an illness?

Although Groopmans work is based on people in extreme circumstances, his findings are applicable to those of us who suffer from migraines. Often it is hard to cling to hope in the face of unpredictable but regular migraine symptoms. Nevertheless, I strongly believe that you can find hope again.

In his ground-breaking book, "The Anatomy of Hope", Dr. Groopman supplies a 3 part definition of True Hope:

• It is an emotion which emerges when you both understand and feel that there can be a better future.


• True hope goes beyond optimism, because hope without knowing the full truth may not be sustainable when setbacks occur. True hope is realistic optimism.


• While true hope acknowledges the significant possibility of failure and the difficulties ahead, it gives us both the courage to confront our circumstances and the resilience to rise above setbacks.

Groopmans book unfolds as a series of vignettes about his patients. He learned from his patients and who they were as people. He divides hope into two elements - belief and expectation.

In order to have hope, you must first believe that you have control over what will happen. If you are convinced you are a victim, it is hard to believe in a controllable future; but a person who feels they can still make a difference has hope. As a migraine sufferer, once you know about other migraineurs (myself included) who live successful lives and you have the support of a migraine coach, you are on your way to regaining control.

Hope even allows a person to demonstrate unreasonable behaviour in the face of seemingly impossible odds -- as Groopman describes, even the remote possibility of finding a cure for their condition will keep a patient fighting to survive. Similarly, there are many tales of rescuers finding a child alive who was buried by an earthquake, after long days spent searching. Human beings have a very strong will to survive - and to improve their lot in life. Do you want to continue to be subject to the whim of your migraine condition for the remainder of your life, or seize an opportunity to ease your suffering?

There is much scientific evidence that the expectation of improvement in health, whether through medication, an operation or some other method, can itself bring on that improvement. The relief comes from brain chemicals such as endorphins, enkephalins and dopamine. That is why placebos work (many scientific experiments have proved this!). Groopman describes how the initiation of hope releases these chemicals and starts to break the cycle of pain.

I urge you not to wait until near the end of your life before finding out whether you are a truly hopeful person! Lets find the switch that will give you true hope again, and work together from there to reduce your suffering from migraine pain.

Gerry Fryer is a professional coach who specializes in working with chronic migraine sufferers. Please visit his dedicated website at http://migraineindependence.weebly.com to learn more and receive the free report, "A Dozen Migraine Strategies", as soon as you subscribe.
The Migraine Independence website gives you access to the introductory webinar "Beyond Migraine Pain -- How to Rise Above Your Suffering", which explains the distinction between migraine pain and suffering, and how coaching can help you reduce your suffering.