Migraine and Headache Awareness Month Blog Challenge #1

Migraine and Headache Awareness Month #1 - Phantom of the Opera: 
What do you hide behind your Migraine/Headache Disorders mask? What do you let people see?

The first post of the Migraine and Headache Awareness Month Blog Challenge (MHAM) is quite appropriate for me. It's Phantom of the Opera: What do you hide behind your Migraine/Headache Disorders mask? What do you let people see?
Migraine and headache disorders are considered a "invisible" disease which means you cannot "see" the pain. Therefore, many times it's not difficult for me to put on my 'mask' and carry on as if all is well. The reality is my pain level may be very high - but no one is aware of this because my 'mask' is on.

I've always found it difficult to let people know when I'm in pain. I am the oldest of three siblings brought up by a strong Irish mother didn't have the time, tolerance or money for sick children. It wasn't that she didn't love us, she absolutely did and gave us opportunities to things she didn't have when she grew up; music lessons, horseback riding lessons, swimming lessons and basically any lesson that was available, we took it. My father was out of town two to three days a week as a traveling salesman, my grandmother had dementia and lived with us and my mother worked full time. Needless to say my mother's patience for illness was at a minimum. High fevers, broken bones, poor vision and hideous allergies were what got us into the 'Old Iranian' doctor. I was never prone to broken bones or fevers, but did have extremely bad hay fever and vision issues. These were easily taken care of with glasses, contacts, and the seasonal shot of cortisone treat our allergies. Yes, you read that correctly, we all had cortisone shots each spring to keep our hay fever in check!

When I started having menstrual migraines, my mother gave me aspirin with the unspoken message I was to carry on with my day. You just didn't complain about it - you worked through the pain. That's what I've been doing on this migraine and head pain journey, working through it, or in other words, 'hiding behind' it.

It's become second nature to wear my 'mask' and I hardly know it's there most of the time. Only people who are near and dear to me can actually see through my 'mask' and are patient enough to understand and accept it.  

Thank you for reading and have a great month!

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June, Migraine and Headache Awareness Month, is dedicated to Unmasking the Mystery of Chronic Headache Disorders. The Migraine and Headache Awareness Month Blog Challenge is issued by FightingHeadacheDisorders.com