HAWMC Prompt 14: Poem of Misconceptions

I'm participating in WEGO Health's Health Activist Writer's Month Challenge (HAWMC) in April.

Today's challenge is to write a poem (5-10 lines) where every line is a lie or misconception about your health condition.

A migraine is just a bad headache
   that is only experienced by women.
All migraines have the same symptoms,
   and any doctor can diagnose and treat them.
Migraines cannot be dangerous,
   and can only happen in adults, not children.
The cause of migraine is known,
   including mental illness and physical exertion.
There is a cure migraine -
   just rest and take some medication.

These are just some of the misconceptions about Migraine.

HAWMC Prompt 13: Comfort One Another

I'm participating in WEGO Health's Health Activist Writer's Month Challenge (HAWMC) in April.

Today's challenge is a meditation on naming blog posts. Pick up a book and choose a phrase or sentence at random - make that the name of today's blog post. I've had a pretty wicked migraine all day, so I'm not sure how coherent this post will end up (please accept this as my warning... and apology).

"Comfort One Another" - Stories of Prayer for a Healthy Soul, Compiled by Christine Anderson (Phyllis Hobe, page 54)

In a society that increasingly encourages independence, it's important to remember that we're here on this earth to offer companionship, comfort, and encouragement to one another... we need each other.

For those of us that live with chronic illness, we need to remember several things. Comfort and encouragement can be found within one's family or circle of friends; but these dynamics often change, when someone becomes chronically ill. Comfort can be sought from one's local community - through church, support groups, hobby classes, etc...

I've found that, for me, some of the most needed comfort and encouragement, though, has come from the online blogging community. Being able to interact and communicate with others that have chronic pain allows for a special bond to be formed, a bond of understanding that is difficult to form otherwise. Each person is able to give however and whatever they're able to, and feel comfortable asking for comfort and encouragement from others (asking for help can be a bit more difficult, see Help: A Four-Letter Word).

There are so many different avenues to both give and receive comfort and encouragement to others. Even though I'm in my home much of the time, I can do things online, send cards, make phone calls (my migraines limit these), and pray.

"Encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing." - 1 Thessalonians 5:11

HAWMC Prompt 12: Ekphrasis

I'm participating in WEGO Health's Health Activist Writer's Month Challenge (HAWMC) in April.

Today's challenge is to write an Ekphrasis (writing about another art form). It gives life to a piece of art through storytelling. So, I am to find a photograph online that inspires me in some way (positively or negatively), and then free write about it for exactly 15 minutes without stopping. Brave bonus: Publish your free writing without editing!


Photo by ashley rose

This photograph captivates me. It depicts so many different emotions, all in the same photo... in the same person. I often find myself feeling so many different things at one time, or in quick succession.

Crying out, "Why?!" I've asked and pleaded this numerous times. I don't understand why things happen. I know that I'm not meant to, and that God will show me in His time; but I am human and I feel the urge to know "why." Why was I in that car accident? Why did I have to be in that exact place at that exact time? Why did one moment in time cause so much pain and change my life forever? Why can't I come to terms with and accept things as they are now? Why? Why? WHY?!

But, as I cry out to the Lord and string together an endless line of questions, I find myself trying to open up to receive His love and peace. It is in the moments of darkness that I realize how much I need the light. I spread my arms open wide and look up toward the Heavens, toward my Savior. He is the only one that understands. He is the only one that knows the answers that my heart and my soul long for. He is the only one that can offer me true healing and peace. He is what my heart and soul desire.

I long for the freedom to stand out on a bluff near the ocean, with the breeze gently brushing across my face. Just to spend time alone in nature. A brief reprieve from the day-to-day worries, stresses, pain, etc... What I would give to be able to enjoy some time alone, just the breeze and me.

HAWMC Prompt 11: Wikipedia Page

I'm participating in WEGO Health's Health Activist Writer's Month Challenge (HAWMC) in April.

Today's challenge is to revise the Wikipedia page for my condition. I spent quite a while reading through the Wikipedia page for Migraine. There's a lot of detailed information provided, and it seems to be pretty accurate. They also provide a lot of references to back up the information.

If there was something that I would add, it would be additional external links. They provide a few, but I would at least add the following:

• Alliance for Headache Disorders Advocacy
• American Academy of Neurology
• American Headache Society
• American Migraine Foundation
• Help for Headaches and Migraine Disease
• International Headache Society
• Migraine Disease
• Migraine Research Foundation
• MigraineCast (podcast)
• My Migraine Connection
• National Headache Foundation
• National Migraine Association
• Relieve Migraine Headache

HAWMC Prompt 10: Post Secret

I'm participating in WEGO Health's Health Activist Writer's Month Challenge (HAWMC) in April.

Today's challenge is Post Secret: write down a secret that... really isn't a secret. It can be a misconception about your condition, something people would think you'd be too shy to disclose (but you will), or just something you want to shout from the rooftops. Honestly, I wasn't sure what the Post Secret community/blog was until I read this prompt, so this was interesting.

My secret (that really isn't a secret) is: There is NO cure for Migraine!

Even when someone finds a treatment that is working "well" (this is a relative term), this doesn't mean that they're cured. There's NO magic pill or magic treatment that will just take all the pain away forever. Some treatments may prolong the time between migraine attacks, make the migraine attacks shorter, make the migraines less debilitating, allow someone to function more, etc... but that doesn't mean any of them are cures for Migraine.

Let me use my own experience as an example... I had my neurostimulator implanted in December 2010. Suddenly, everyone expected me to have zero migraines. Any time I had any headache or migraine pain, people would ask, "What? The stimulator isn't working anymore?" or "I thought the stimulator was supposed to stop the migraines?" It's not a cure, it's a treatment. The stimulator has helped some, but my body is still trying to adjust to having it implanted. I'm functioning more than I was before I had the device. Even though it's still not "normal," it's an improvement from the daily misery I had before.

HAWMC Prompt 9: Health Activist's Choice

I'm participating in WEGO Health's Health Activist Writer's Month Challenge (HAWMC) in April.

Today's challenge is Health Activist's choice. I think I've been spoiled by having a prompt provided to  me daily because this is actually more difficult. Perhaps it's because I've just been unsure of what else to write about.

I'm really enjoying the challenge. I'm proud of myself that I've almost completed the first third of the month successfully. I've struggled to write some (due to migraines, tingly hands, inability to concentrate, or lack of creative juices). But, I know that much of that comes in waves, so I try to get some posts at least started ahead of time. I enjoy stretching my writing skills beyond what I normally do. Even though these exercises aren't my strengths, it's pretty enjoyable. I guess I really am a writer at heart.