Hey Migraine Mentees 👋 

Today’s newsletter takes another 5 minutes to read, but if you’ve only got 60 seconds, here’s what you need to know:

• Over half of people that have regular migraines also have anxiety. This is due to a number of factors but mostly anticipation of the next attacks

• Studies show a similar correlation with migraine and depression. The numbers are a bit scattered, but if you feel down because of migraine, you’re not alone

• Breathing exercises, meditation, and CBT are effective, safe ways to reduce stress. They help frame things appropriately and externalize the inner chatter.

• The 2 biggest things that make event stressful are: a sense of unpredictability and a sense that the event is not under your control. By this definition, migraine is CRAZY stressful!

• Having a stronger sense of control is an easy and effective way to reduce the overall mental burden of migraine.

• Be kind to yourself and try not to over-identify with your symptoms. They’re a part of you, but they’re not the only part.

We hope this week’s newsletter can make that dream a reality for you!

🧠 The Migraine Mentors

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In This Week’s Edition…

• 🥡 Weekly Take-Out

  • Meme of The Week - 🌡️ ANXIETYYYYYY

• 📸 Weekly TikToks

  • Self Love and Acceptance

  • Vagal Nerve Stimulation

• 🔈️ The Migraine Mentors Minicast - Podcast Series

  • Mental Health and Migraine

• 📜 This Week’s Top Article

  • Mental Health and Migraine: How To Cope and Function

• 🍴 Migraine-Friendly Recipe of the Week

  • Pear Crisp

🥡 WEEKLY TAKE-OUT

Meme of The Week

🥡 WEEKLY TIKTOKS

Self Love & Acceptance

Vagal Nerve Stimulators

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🗞️ MIGRAINE MINICAST

Mental Health and Migraine

🎛️ In this week’s podcast episode, we’re diving into what aspects of mental health are affected by migraine

the constant worrying about when the next attack will be, the ignorant co-workers and unsupportive spouses.

🧠 These things can take a serious toll, and we want you to know you’re not alone and there are things you can do about it.

🎙️ Tune in to hear us break down:

• Research on mental health and migraine

• Different aspects of mental health and how migraine affects them

• Tips and strategies to reduce the burden of migraine on mental health

⛈️ This is the episode if you’re overwhelmed and need a new perspective

👇️ Click the link below to check it out! 👇️ 

📜 TOP ARTICLE

Mental Health & Migraine

We’ve been treating migraine for almost 2 decades and we can confidently say, without a doubt, that it’s a condition that can absolutely drain you emotionally 🫠 

It’s unrelenting

The unpredictability, the missed work and social events, the stigma of having to explain “it’s not actually a headache” to idiots that have never come close to having a migraine once in their whole life.

🌡️ What Does The Research Say?

If you take a look at the research around mental health and migraine, you’ll find some interesting stuff. To save you some time, I’ve summarized them below.

• People with migraine are 5x more likely to develop depression than those without 🖐️ 

• Over 50% of people with migraine also have anxiety 😰 

• One study found people with migraine were 25x more likely to feel nervous or anxious than those without migraine 😨 

• 89% of people report their migraines have a negative impact on their mental health 😥 

Why Does Migraine Affect Mental Health? 🧠 

Control & Predictability

One of the biggest reasons why migraine affects mental health has to do with what makes up a stressful event.

Studies have identified a number of different things that make events more stressful than others.

2 of the things that make events the MOST stressful are…

1: A sense that you have no control over it 🙅 

2: A sense of unpredictability 🤷‍♀️ 

In this context, migraine is one of the more stressful conditions out there because you don’t know when the next one will happen and a lot of people only have medications to rely on when they begin. If the medications aren’t working or stop working over time, this leaves you feeling helpless.

This is the main reason we try and equip you with as many tools as possible to manage your migraines on your own. 

If you feel them come on and you feel as if you can manage them yourself, it lowers the perceived stress of having attacks.

Stomach Issues 🥕 

One common thread in a lot of stubborn migraine cases is dysregulation in the stomach 🤮 

A lot of people will have tried a series of medications, which tend to disrupt the natural balance of good and bad bacteria in the stomach 🦠 

This leads to a lot of other issues we’ll cover in later episodes, but the main issue that often leads to mood disturbances is the ability for the stomach to make serotonin 🧪 

Serotonin is not only important for feeling good, but it’s also one of the body’s main ways to block out pain 🤕 

It’s no wonder why many of the medications used to treat migraine work through the serotonin system 💊 

If you’ve been on years of medication and never had a preventative strategy to maintain good stomach health, there’s a good chance your stomach issues are contributing to your anxiety, depression, and overall ability to function.

Stigma

A long time ago I was part of why having migraine sucks so bad 😡 

I was one of the people who assumed we all get headaches, and if one of my headaches gets so bad it makes me nauseous, it’s labeled a migraine 🤕 

It wasn’t until I really began to study migraine that I realized people like me are one reason why migraine is such a terrible disorder.

It’s SO exhausting to deal with spouses, friends, bosses and co-workers who lump your attacks in with the mild headaches they get 😩 

Comments like “I get headaches all the time”, or “can’t you just power through it” end with either another explanation that it’s not actually a headache, or you just stuff it down and it builds up into resentment 😠 

The stigma of migraine is one of the main drivers of depression like issues, and for good reason. You spend your whole life trying to explain yourself, and eventually it just doesn’t seem worth it.

✅ Resources & Tips

Below are some helpful resources you can begin using to help reduce some of the mental strain from migraine.

-Talk Therapy 👩‍⚕️ This can be helpful to get all the chatter on the inside into a safe space to process. Migraine is a heavy budren, and letting someone else carry some of it with you is a great way to improve your mental health in relation to migraine

-Collect Holistic Therapies 📜 This is one of the pillars in how we treat people with chronic migraine. It’s a bit of a paradigm shift, but the goal is to find a lot of things that help a little that add over time. This helps you feel more in control and helps fill in the gaps traditional medicine doesn’t address.

-Support Groups 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 There are plenty of migraine support groups that allows you to relate and compare notes with other people in the same situation. My advice is to connect with people 1:1 and not get lost in the sad stories you’ll find. Try and find supportive, uplifting communities and not groups that are overly negative.

-Keep a Journal 📘 Logging when you have attacks and looking at your patterns from an outside perspective is often a really helpful way to identify trends. The more data you have to look at, the better you can track how things work and start to see patterns in your attacks.

-Breathe and Activate You Vagus Nerve 🧠 Deep breathing, meditation, and vagal nerve stimulation are all amazing ways to improve your mental health. They all aim to reduce stress through different channels, and can help combat some of the built up stress and tension.

As you’ve seen, at The Migraine Mentors, we’re here to help you decode the patterns, find the root causes, and take back control of your health.

💡 Want help figuring out your next step?

Explore our past newsletters, sign up for online coaching, or forward this email to a friend who needs answers…

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And as always—hit reply and tell us what you want covered next!

🧠 The Migraine Mentors

🍴MIGRAINE-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Pear Crisp

🥣 Ingredients

- 4 ripe pears, sliced (preferably fresh)

- 1 cup rolled oats (gluten-free if necessary)

- 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

- 1/3 cup maple syrup (or to taste)

- 1 tsp cinnamon (optional, depending on tolerance)

- A pinch of salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).

2. In a mixing bowl, combine the sliced pears with a tablespoon of maple syrup (if desired) and a pinch of salt. Spread the pears in a baking dish.

3. In another bowl, mix the rolled oats, melted coconut oil, maple syrup, and cinnamon (if using) until well combined.

4. Evenly distribute the oat mixture over the sliced pears in the baking dish.

5. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the pears are tender.

6. Let it cool slightly before serving. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

Why This Recipe is Migraine-Friendly and Histamine-Friendly

1. Low Histamine Ingredients:

   - Pears: Pears are considered low in histamines and are often well-tolerated by individuals with histamine intolerance. They are a good substitute for higher-histamine fruits.

   - Oats: Rolled oats are generally low in histamines and are gluten-free, making them a safe choice for many people.

   - Coconut Oil: This oil is low in histamines and is a great alternative to butter or other oils that might trigger migraines or histamine reactions.

   - Maple Syrup: This natural sweetener is also low in histamines and is less likely to provoke a migraine compared to refined sugars or artificial sweeteners.

2. No Common Triggers:

   - The recipe avoids common migraine triggers such as chocolate, aged cheeses, processed meats, fermented foods, and certain spices that might induce migraine attacks.

3. Simple Ingredients:

   - The recipe consists of whole, unprocessed foods, which are generally easier on the digestive system and less likely to cause inflammation or adverse reactions.

4. Low Sugar:

   - By using a natural sweetener like maple syrup in moderation, the recipe avoids spikes in blood sugar that can trigger migraines. 

5. Gluten-Free Option:

   - If gluten is a trigger for someone, using gluten-free oats ensures that the dish remains safe for those individuals.