Chronic Migraines

[LuLu18]

Can chronic migraines be classed as a disability?

I have migraines everyday with next to no breaks from the pain. When they are really bad I cannot concentrate or do anything practical.

[Bananas5]

Are you asking for a specific reason...claiming a benefit?

x

[LuLu18 in reply to Bananas5]

I was going to gather some information about if claiming a benefit for it may be possible

[Bananas5 in reply to LuLu18]

Well if you want to apply for PIP.there are 2 components. Care...it is how you manage day to day tasks eg bathing, dressing, cooking, toilet, meds etc. Mobility..how far you can walk or if you need supervision when out.

It doesn't usually matter what your condition is. But DWP are a lwa unto themselves and PIP isn't easy to claim.

ESA is the out of work benefit for chronically sick and disabled people. So long since I applied I have forgotten the criteria but you can google it!

There are others depending on income etc.

If you look on govuk site under benefits it will tell you more.

Hope this helps a bit

x

[Hidden]

No is the short answer because they aren't something which can't be cured. However, if you're managing to type on a computer or phone, it isn't a migraine, sorry. I used to suffer with them, badly, and couldn't look at normal daylight, let alone a screen. I have a feeling that what you have are cluster headaches or a tension headache but the only person who can diagnose you is a GP.

I suffered with them weekly at one point, couldn't stand light, noise, movement and often vomited with them. The pain was indescribable at times and felt like my head was going to explode (not being overly dramatic there, it really was), that is until I saw a pain specialist for a completely different problem (discs in my neck bulging) and he suggested occipital nerve block injections. That was 6 years ago and I haven't had a migraine since!

[LuLu18 in reply to Hidden]

I have had the symptoms aI get confirmed by my gp and specialists as chronic migraines. I get them at varying degrees everyday, when they are at the worst I cannot bare light of any sort and have to sleep to make the pain go for a while.

[Hidden in reply to LuLu18]

Ah! You didn't say that LOL Ask to see a pain specialist (sorry if you already have), the occipital nerve block worked for me, even though it was for bulging discs in my neck, they have other kinds of treatments too.

Good luck, there is nothing than constant head pain, or any constant pain come to that!

[happytulip]

What do you take for them. Are you having them investigated? Migraines are awful, I get them and just have to lay in a dark room for hours .

[LuLu18 in reply to happytulip]

I am having them investigated by my GP and specialists, I am currently on Topirmate for them and there are talks of having Botox injections to try and relieve the pain.

On the worst days I have to sleep just to try and get a break from the pain.

[Joanne10]

I disagree with JayneGP I too suffer with chronic migraines and have done for the past 16 years. Migraines can come in all shapes and sizes and everyone has different migraines. Not anyone migraine is the same. Unfortunately migraines are not classed as a disability, but they definitely should be because they are very debilitating. The Migraine Society are pushing for migraines to be recognised as a disability, let's hope they do that soon.

[Hidden in reply to Joanne10]

I'm sorry you disagree, according to my GP and pain specialist there isn't anything classed as daily migraine. I know there are different types, mine was classic, with one sided thudding pain, nausea, cold sweats and sensitivity to light and sound. All I could do was try to sleep it off, no amount of medication took it away, until I started having the occipital nerve block injections. I certainly couldn't have come on here during an attack!

[Natural_Natty in reply to Hidden]

There are many forms of migraine, some without even getting a headache! I have chronic vestibular migraine and can manage to type for short amounts at a time. There is no cure but can be managed to a certain extent for the lucky ones. We are all individuals and it can be a lot of trial and error with meds, lifestyle etc. What works for one might not work for another.

I hope that migraine can soon be recognised for the debilitating neurological condition it is as it is so much more than just a headache.

[johnsmith]

See an Alexander Technique teacher. Migraines could be due to head misalignment. They can be due to neck misalignment which is chiropractic territory. They can be due to other things which need a medical doctors advice.

[Hidden in reply to johnsmith]

What are you like with your Alexander Technique? LOL

[johnsmith in reply to Hidden]

Reasonable. Lack of sleep; chronic pain damage to neck interferes with a ability to deliver at the times employment would require one to deliver. So I do the odd short practice within my endurance capability. Long term chronic pain plays havoc with endurance.

I have the innate ability to comprehend muscle behaviour with my hands and release much tight muscle with my hands. I have done much experiment and observation into muscle tightness and movement and emotion and pain and discomfort.

My favourite saying at NHS conferences is "you have lots of quality data which is thoroughly unreliable." Lots of research generalises across a patient population and fails to consider where is the patient on the population curve. A lot of research fails to consider that a set of symptoms from which a diagnosis is made fails to consider what the causes are for the symptoms.

There is evidence based medicine. This evaluates a population of people with a particular diagnosis against a trial drug or treatment. It ignores the many different causes for that particular diagnosis. The patient when they are treated by the drug from evidence based trial is never evaluated for where the patient is on the treatment curve.

[Victoriapain]

I don't think you will qualify for either esa or pip with migraines. The DWP have very strict guidelines these days

[Pilipala18]

I was having a few migraines a week not daily like yours. I’ve been on a gluten free diet for 3 weeks now and haven’t had one since I started 😀😀