Migraine awareness, art, and free book offer

betsyb Living With It editor, writer, mother of 3, 40-year migraineur Send Message Subscribe: betsyb

Monday, June 15, 2009
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Last week was National Headache Awareness Week, but the efforts to promote understanding and research for migraine must never end. For many of us, true expression of our experience comes through creative writing and visual art. It's often difficult in everyday conversation to convey how we f...

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So cool!
Teri Robert
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 12:12 PM

This is great, Betsy!

Teri

Untitled Comment
jasminepw
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 09:44 PM

Thanks so much Betsy! Looking forward to it

migraine awareness
suzette
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 01:28 AM

i just discovered you while searching for info about migraines.........i am just saying WOW I am so excited that you wrote a book about this (and in such a creative way).......I hope you do absolutely wonderfully with promoting and selling your work. There is so much to do to help migraine sufferers. if i can help in any way let me know!! i live in the kansas city area. suzette

re: migraine awareness
betsyb
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 01:23 PM

Thanks so much, Suzette!

Regarding the book, of course you can spread the word, tell people about it (Migraine Expressions is a wonderful gift for people impacted in any way by migraine , www.wordmetropress.com), and you can tell your local library about it and ask them to carry it. We have built-in donations with purchases via the Migraine Research Foundation and the National Headache Foundation, and as we sell more books, we want to donate funds to the Alliance for Headache Disorders Advocacy as well! I'm looking for companies who would like to sponsor the purchase of books to be donated to public libraries, also.

Regarding migraine awareness, you can definitely talk about migraine to anyone who is interested, follow up with the advocacy efforts Teri Robert publishes here and any others you may see, e.g. writing to your representatives about the importance of migraine, headache, and pain research. And if anyone else reading this knows of any specific activities/efforts in the Kansas City area, please let us know!

Depending on how ambitious you are or hoe much time you have, you could even organize a local meeting, migraine lecture at your library, support group, fundraising event, and so on! The possibilities are many!

All my best, and please let me know if I can help you in any way,

Betsy

Visual Art and Migraines
Jen C
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 04:34 PM

Hello - Nice to see you post. I am excited about your new book! I have suffered from migraines for over 20 years now and it never seems to end. Just when I think my hormones have calmed down or stress has been reduced or I eat just the right foods, another one comes on and it stays for 2-3 days. I would love to hear more about your creative writing/visual art efforts to combat migraines. I too love to write and paint. Great job!!!!

re: Visual Art and Migraines
betsyb
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 08:03 PM

Oh, Jen - I know exactly what you mean, even after 40 years I am still trying to solve my migraine mystery! And after I've had a few good days, I am even more discouraged with a two- or three-day migraine attack. I am recently finding some relief and have never given up.

I have always been a language arts lover but also want to do and learn more about drawing, painting and photography; and art as therapy has always fascinated me.

How about you? Do you use art for expression in your life or work with it?

The book, Migraine Expressions, is something I wanted to do for years and years and is a collection of awesome art and writing from 125 people whose lives are impacted by migraine around the world, mostly in the U.S. and Canada. It has expressions of the pain and frustration we feel but also of the humor and hope we all have in our lives as well.

You can see some sample pages of the book at wordmetropress, and I'll be adding excerpts and images from it on my blog, migrainejourney.com soon. What I especially like about the book is that it has work from loved ones of migraineurs, too, thereby including their perspectives of life with migraine.

Please let me know if I can give you any more specific information. Thank you!

re: re: Visual Art and Migraines
betsyb
Wednesday, June 17, 2009 at 08:06 PM

Well, Jen, I see you did say you love to write and paint... so have you painted your migraines?

my new blog
chrissygal
Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 03:35 PM

i just found your blog and wanted to share mine. www.throughthewordsofchronicpain@blogspot.com

re: my new blog
chrissygal
Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 03:44 PM

sorry i typed it wrong.

www.throughthewordsofchronicpain.blogspot.com

re: re: my new blog
betsyb
Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 03:48 PM

Hi, Chrissygal! I already found yours, visited quickly, and I'll be back!

Thanks!

Untitled Comment
Nancy Harris Bonk
Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 08:34 PM

Hi Betsy,

It's a very telling, gorgeous book. I love the way art comes together for our cause.

Thank you for all your hard work.

Nancy

re: Untitled Comment
betsyb
Thursday, June 18, 2009 at 10:27 PM

Hi, Nancy!

Thank you for all your hard work! I enjoy your posts and appreciate all the information you provide.

Betsy

Is the book available to buy?
bri83
Thursday, July 09, 2009 at 06:25 PM

How can I get a copy of this book? It doesn't matter to me if I have to pay for it. I am just curious about other migraine sufferers and how they express their pain. I know I like to write it out or sometimes draw. It would be neat to see how others express themselves.

Thank you

re: Is the book available to buy?
betsyb
Thursday, July 09, 2009 at 06:39 PM

Yes, you can purchase it directly from the book Web site, and I would certainly appreciate that! (Contact me from the site if you have any trouble.) You will love the expressions in it and it sounds like if you had known about it in 07, we might have included some of your work, too!

Thanks so much,

Betsy