Over a year now...It feels like my life is over at 16!

Oh hun! I understand how hard this is. I am only 19 but i remember how hard it is to be in school, with that much pain. I started to get migrianes by age 10, but they were just eposodic. By my junior year in high school, about age 16, I was nearly disabled. I went from being and honors student to barely graduating at all. I tried and tried just to make it through high school and everyday felt like a losing battle.

Just don't give up! You will be able to find your own strength to get you through through this. It sounds as though you have some dedicated Dr. s. I have to ask though, have you looked into migriane specialists? I mean true specialists, who treat headaches and only headaches.

I don't know how willing you and your family are to traveling, but there are headache clinics, too. I have been to one in Michigan and now go to one in Chicago. I know that there are so many more than that, too. They would be able to find the type of headache/migraine you have and form a treatment plan.

As hard as it seems now, you will get through this. They just keep getting better and better with treatments. I wish you all the luck in the world and hope you get relief soon! ;)

Hello, and welcome to MyMigraineConnection.com!

I'm not sure what this means - CM1 - is it Chiari Malformation?  

When Migraines don't respond to treatment, they're termed intractable. In such cases, there are several medications that can be administered through IV infusion to get the cycle broken. You can find more information in IV Treatment of Refractory Migraine. 

Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension, IIH (formerly known as Pseudotumor Cerebri - PTC  or false tumor) is a condition where our body either produces too much or doesn't absorb cerebrospinal fluid properly. This creates many symptoms such as intractable headache, neck pain, and most importantly vision issues that may become permanent if not treated. Swelling of the optic nerve, or papilledema, may or may not be present with IIH. MRI's are usually taken to make sure there is no tumor, then a spinal tap can be done to diagnose the condition. Pseudotumor Cerebri (IIH) - The Basics has more information for you. And another important article to read is: The ONLY definitive way to diagnose pseudotumor cerebri .

Thank you for  headache,creating a SharePost. SharePosts are a form of blogging, and there are many things you can do with them. You can share an experience, suggest something that's helped you, use SharePosts as a Migraine and headache journal, and many other things.

We also have a discussion forum that you may want to check out. Especially if you have questions or are looking for information, you may find the interaction on the forum to be quite helpful. To get to the forum, just look for the orange box marked "Manage" and click on the Migraine Forums link. Because our forums are maintained by a third party, you'll need to register for the forum. You can use the same information you used to create your community log-in if you like. If you want to go directly to the forum, you can click HERE.

Along with your personal "My Home" page and the discussion forum, you'll find links to a great deal of helpful information and a spot to sign up for our free newsletter on the main page of our site, http://www.MyMigraineConnection.com.

If you have any questions, please feel free to post them to the forum or send me a message through my profile.

Welcome again,

boy, can i relate to you. i got my first headache when i was ten and now at 33 i have had to quite work and spend most of my time alone at home in pain.  the emotions that i have had over years have gone from being sad to mad to lonely to afraid to going crazy to wanting to die.  but in this i have also learned that i have to take control of my life and fight for the chance to have a pain free day.  i have to take care of myself and not give up.  not giving up!  ya, thats easier said than done.  i lost count of how many times i have given up.  but when i have a migraine, all i want is it to go away.  so when i don't have one i learn as much as i can on ways to fight this monster that has decided to invade my mind.  

so i tell you the same thing.  use this time in your life to learn as much as you can on migraines and the treatments out their.  force yourself to put yourself first.  you have to be the master of your care.  learn your triggers, learn what you can and can not handle.  learn to listen to your body and help it if needed.  also try to teach others about what you go through. have a support system in place and DON'T GIVE UP.

i wish i had done all of this when i was your age. 

remember

STAY STRONG

STAY POSITIVE

STAY CALM

STAY HOPEFULL

Hi Brookie, this is one site were you will be able to connect with others who know exactly what your going through.

I too began having migraines around 10 yrs old, I am now 51! and yes, I still get migraines. I've learned a lot from this site and the wonderful people who share their pain, frustrations and the help with dealing with all the worry and frustrations that come hand in hand with migraines.

Migraines leave us feeling defeated and so darn frustrated, but if you look at others with disabilities that leave them dealing with pain and lonelyness, we sure are not alone...not that helps much sometimes. Migraines are no different than any other desease. It has miserable timming and doesn't seem to let up at times.

Sometimes the fear of not knowing how to deal with our migraines or what is going to happen to us when one takes it's nasty paws to us, makes things worse for us...so I say research, ask questions (no question is silly or not important) and keep on the hunt for answers.

If you don't like the result your getting from your doctor, don't be shy to ask for referrals to specialist who deal with migraines. It's your life and you have to take control of it which in turn will make you feel better.

I too lost my vision completely for a matter of minutes which totally scared the crap out of me. I was riding my bike at the time and the only way I did not fall into traffic was listening to the sound of my husband's bike. I managed to remain calm and was able to stop without anything else happening.

Mind you, I think losing my sight completely was probably one of the darkest moments, excuse the pun. So far, so good, my vision does strange things at times but still have it!

16 is a long way from 51, and I too often wondered how or what will be as I sometimes still wonder what's going to happen next. I think that is only human and that's why it's so important to educate yourself the best you can on migraines then and only then will you find some comfort in understanding what's going on.

I hope your family takes interest in educating themselves and giving you the support you need and deserve.

Take care and always know, you are not alone and you can learn to live with migraines...it just takes trials and errors and willigness to accept some limitations that come with migraines. I've found that my life is better since I stopped trying to live like a person that doesn't have a thing wrong with them, and yet on the other hand by giving myself the breaks I need, the rest that I need, I find life is more enjoyable and less frustrating...even though I still battle migraines on a weekly basis.

Wishing you all the luck and hope things start looking up for you.

Donna ;)