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Even if we know all the right things to do, we’re still human. We may eat a bunch of chocolate or pull an all-nighter. And that can trigger a migraine.
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Tag: michele jordan
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Being Intentional About Your Mental Health and Migraines
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Figuring out what can trigger a migraine can be a stressful, ongoing process. And, often, stress is a trigger in itself. So what’s a person with migraines to do? “I’ve really had to be intentional with my mental and emotional health,” says WebMD’s migraine blogger Michele Jordan. For her, that includes everything from seeing a therapist to journaling. “I can’t change the fact that I have migraines,” she says. “I try to do things that support joy and happiness.”
Video Transcript
MICHELE JORDAN: Having migraines for as long as I have has impacted my mental health through the years. It is hard. It is a hard thing to deal with. And you sacrifice a lot– a lot of plans, vacations may change, sometimes your work schedule can be unpredictable. And so many things in life that I’ve wanted to do I’ve had to decline. And that can be hard over time.
I think migraines or other health conditions can really shine a light on who your true friends are and those family members that truly support you. I’ve kind of moved through life learning to keep the folks who support me as close as possible. We’ve got to work with a variety of people in this world. And so it’s helpful for me to know who I can count on.
Through the years, I think there’s been more education around migraine, more treatments, more people are open and talking about them. And I think it’s helped society understand that, again, it’s not your typical headache and it really is something that can change your life. I pay attention to the stress meter in my life. And if I feel it’s going up, then I know a migraine might be around the corner and I have to do something to change it. So I’m always on the lookout for ways to manage stress and things that I can do to just decompress and unwind. And so just like with my physical health, I’ve really had to be intentional about my mental and emotional health with migraines.
I see a therapist. I keep a journal. I try to do things that support joy and happiness. I can’t change the fact that I have migraines. There is currently no cure. But I can manage them. And for me, it’s taking the best care that I can of myself.
Everybody deals with something in this world. And for me, it’s migraines. Other people are dealing with conditions that are much more debilitating. And I try to keep that perspective that I have migraines. Migraines don’t have me. And there are so many things that I can be joyful about and thankful for in my life. And that definitely helps me make it through some of the hard days and the low days.
When I want to ask, why me? I look around and I see what I do have and I’m grateful. And that helps.
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Cultivate Serenity: Gardening for Migraine Relief
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WebMD’s migraine blogger Michele Jordan loves to garden. She has turned her yard into a “useful garden” where she grows things like lavender and lemon balm that help her when she has a migraine.
Read more
to find out what other plants she’s growing and how the act of gardening itself helps her reduce stress.
READ:
My Secret Migraine Garden: Herbal Remedies I Use for Pain
Video Transcript
MICHELE JORDAN: I have become very interested in gardening. I can’t say that I have a green thumb yet. Maybe it’s light green. But I’ve been interested in finding ways to grow things that can help with my migraines, so I’m growing lemon balm in the garden, which has some calming properties. I do grow lavender as well, and I’m learning how to harvest and dry lavender, which also has some stress-relieving properties if made into an essential oil.
And so I’ve really been studying and researching that a little bit more because you get the benefit of working in a garden and having some kind of stress-relief through the gardening practice, but also can grow things that may help with migraines. So it’s like a two-for-one.
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Managing Migraine With the Right Recipe of Diet and Exercise
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Diet and exercise are an important part of any health plan, but it can be especially helpful when dealing with migraines. While migraine tries to “take the fun out of life” from Michele Jordan, one of WebMD’s migraine bloggers, she knows that her best bet is sleep, a healthful diet and exercise. But she knows that sometimes you have to live your life. “I’m starting to understand the relationship between food and my body,” she says.
Video Transcript
MICHELE JORDAN: Hi, my name is Michele Jordan. I’m from Los Angeles, California. I have had migraines for over 30 years. And I am a writer.
I’ve figured out that if I don’t get at least 7 and a half hours of sleep, the next day it’s highly likely that I’ll have a migraine. And so like so many things, migraine just takes the fun out of life a lot of times. So while the rest of my friends and family can pull all-nighters getting work done or stay up all night partying, I have realized that it just– it’s not a great idea for me.
Or if I do need to stay up late for whatever reason, I really have to make sure that I’m really nice to myself the next day. And I kind of take a break if I need to.
I really feel that food for me can help or hurt my migraine depending on which path I choose. I find in general that eating healthy, eating more fruits and vegetables, eating lean protein, eating healthy fats has helped limit the frequency of my migraines and sometimes the severity of my migraines.
Of course I’m human. I was raised in the South. I love to cook, and I love to eat. And so there are times when I know that I’m eating things that aren’t so great for my body.
But in the moment, I make that choice. And I often regret it a day or so later, sometimes the same day. But it’s helpful because I’m starting to understand the relationship between food and my body more and more. I think I’m acknowledging that it’s the choices that I make that can determine how I feel the next day or the next week.
One thing that surprised me recently in dealing with migraine symptoms is just how blood sugar and me being hungry can trigger a migraine. I have worked with a nutritionist recently who has helped me understand that going too long without eating really can kick off a migraine for me. I thought it was totally fine just to keep working and writing and going about my day running errands or doing chores if I felt a migraine coming on.
I have since learned that that’s not a good idea, that the body needs fuel. It needs water. And if it’s not happy, one of the reasons it can have a migraine is because you’re just not taking care of yourself.
Exercise has been a very helpful thing to do to address my migraines. I find that when I walk regularly, I don’t know how it works, but the blood is flowing. My mind is relaxed. And it seems to help prevent the frequency of some of my migraines when I stick to my walking program.
When I’m having a migraine, it’s hit or miss. Sometimes if I exercise, it can make it worse. If I catch it early enough, I’ve noticed that sometimes taking a walk or doing something mild like yoga will actually help my migraines.
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