By Pia Ersfeld
. My mother calls. I have a migraine. Bad combination. We talk anyway. Well, she talks. But whatever. Her hairdresser has a friend whose sister-in-law also has migraines. And the sister-in-law of my mother's hairdresser's friend got rid of them with an apple diet (the migraine, not the hairdresser). Shouldn't I try that too, instead of all the medication? I love that undertone. And unsolicited therapy suggestions.
Almost every day someone tells me about pain therapy. Snake venom has even been suggested – then I'd be dead, but at least nothing would hurt anymore. Chakra dancing – anywhere. Or mantra chanting. Try doing that in a rented apartment! You'd be committed immediately.
What good will that do?
So, today it's the apple diet. Sounds more appetizing than the Mayr migraine cure with its dry bread rolls. Apple pie, applesauce, apple juice. Delicious! I don't quite understand how it works, though. Doesn't that just lead to a good case of diarrhea? Presumably, the idea is that the migraine will disappear into the sewer system thanks to the suction of the irritated intestines.
“Mom, I had brain tumor surgery. This isn’t a normal migraine for me.” “Oh, child,” says Mom. In my second-favorite tone. “I’ll get you the book about it.”
I take a deep breath in and slowly exhale. She only wants what's best for me.
I'm almost there, honestly, when it comes to founding a library for pain therapy.
If you constantly have headaches, you learn that happiness is the absence of pain. And of well-meaning lectures.
Good advice everywhere
“Head?” a woman yelled at me two days later as I sat on the tram, looking pained. Her hearing aid was probably lounging on her sofa at home. I nodded. “Uuuh,” she threw her hands up in the air. “I know that feeling.” Please, no, I thought. “I can’t stand anything loud.” Me neither.
She leaned forward and raised the volume by 30 decibels. “Healing stones, I tell you.” My remaining facial expression was skeptical. “They look strange, but they work! Just put two in a carafe. You can refill it whenever you want.” Knowing myself, I'll drink them too. Then I'll have one more problem: bladder stones or something.
What exactly is written on my forehead when I have a migraine? “Please give me the rest by describing your pain experiences to me in detail right here and now. Leave nothing out! Also, quote articles from 'Woman Without a Heart'. In full – including the stairlift advertisement, please.”
Perhaps I should get the following tattooed on my forehead: “Thank you so much for every tip – that you keep from me.”
With kind permission of Pia Ersfeld
More wonderful experiences can be found on her blog “Frau E. noted…”
Very humorous and nicely written... (-; I think that if you can listen to advice, it's from people who have had positive experiences themselves. I just heard from a young woman a few days ago that singing helped her with migraines Helps! Like many other complaints, it's probably that everyone has their own path and has to find out for themselves what works for them. So never stop trying.
Dear Anika,
unfortunately it hasn't occurred to me for a long time to check here again to see if there are any new comments.. ;-)
I apologize for the late response!
It is really relieving to read that “internal” people also experience negative things in the system and with unwise advice.
As a non-medical person, you are always left stunned by incompetent doctors who don't admit their lack of knowledge, but prefer to send you home with the burden of a demonstrably ineffective treatment option.
You are welcome to link to the text or my blog at any time.
I'm happy for everyone who finds out about our problems with migraines in everyday life! Greetings to the big city from
Pia Ersfeld
Thank you for this article!!!
He speaks from my heart and I just laughed out loud.
I will also print it out or link it to a friend if I may?
I am “lucky” that both of my parents have migraines, although not as frequently per month as I do (heredity sends their regards).
As a result, I never received similar advice from my immediate family. I have a lot of friends who work in the medical field, so this isn't coming from them.
However, I can tell you a thing or two about advice from the very wide circle of friends of mine and my mother.
From the Indian faith healer in London, acupressure from a nun (which we even tried - in front of the pain clinic :) ), homeopathy from THE ONE HEALER - for others it's completely different, a low-carb diet recommendation from a well-known German migraine practice With several practitioners and our own clinic, almost everything was included.
What I actually find bitter is that these dubious ADVICE are not only given by “well-meaning” laypeople, but also by “experts” such as neurologists and psychologists.
Yes, I am a “destroyer” – in recent years I have been horrified by how incompetent, etc. many of my colleagues are.
If I didn't work in the medical field myself (albeit in a different role and specialty), I would have been guilty of malpractice and fraud in recent years (false diagnoses in order to be able to prescribe out-of-label use medications without possibly giving any justification to them to have to write to the statutory health insurance company etc., incorrect assessment of NW keyword drug-induced depression) and and and have been done
- this is now slowly going too far - I have written myself into a rage!
With many warm greetings from a big city in Germany,
Anika G.
Dear Mr. Müller, dear Beate and dear Mr. Wirz,
I am very pleased that you enjoyed my text and that you are even passing it on!!
We people with chronic pain don't have a voice: we can't see our suffering, especially since we can't even be seen when we're suffering. Because in these hours and days we lie alone in a darkened room.
When my trigeminal nerve rages in my forehead for so many days without a short break, like it is now in the hot and humid weather, I no longer notice any of my humor.
But I think he'll show up again at some point.. ;-)
Until then, you all have pain-free or even pain-free days!!
Kind regards from Pia Ersfeld
Good day,
This article speaks from my heart. Even as a pain doctor, you are constantly confronted with the most absurd therapy suggestions. I will print out the article to display in our hospital's pain clinic. Well-intentioned is not always good. Many greetings and all the best S. Wirz
Dear Ms. Ersfeld,
I think it's wonderful that you don't lose your sense of humor despite the often unbearable pain.
I don't have a migraine but hemicrania continua but that's no less funny. Because you are in constant pain. The great art is to hope for understanding of the environment, because you often don't see how much you are suffering. Either I like to hide it or I don't like to wear it outside. I wish you peaceful and pain-free or low-pain days,
Your Beate
Hello Ms. Ersfeld,
thank you very much, I had to laugh so much because I have the same tattoo on my forehead.
I'll pass your story on to a few friendly tipsters. I'm curious to see if they can laugh about it too. Kind regards
V. Müller
Dear Mr. Judge,
Now your email touches me!
Thank you for your kind words!
You are certainly also affected; if you are here, then you know our suffering.
I wish you many pain-free days without stupid comments from outside!!
Warm greetings from
Pia Ersfeld
Dear Ms. Ersfeld,
viewed with humor – of course, whenever and wherever possible.
I had to smile while reading it - and that's always a good thing, there's far too little laughter anyway!
Then I wanted to read your article to someone and realized that I was so moved by your words that I was probably going to cry while reading it.
So I have now printed out the article and will pass it on for you to read. Your article is moving! Thanks for that :-)
Hello, dear Ms. F.,
I'm glad that the text was able to distract you from the migraines a little!! ;-)
There is no book yet, but in the small, clear moments that migraines and mastocytosis still allow me, I will continue to write my blog.
Get well soon to you!
Wonderful... despite the migraine (which was fading) I was able to laugh, and for that (small) moment the pain was really more bearable... does that mean I just need Ms. Ersfeld's book, the blog or her herself with cheering “stories”? I'll start the blog...