Try Creating a Liminal Space

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Described as the “waiting areas” between one point in time and space and the next, liminal spaces are transitional or transformative spaces, real or imagined. Because liminal spaces are conceptual, their creation starts in your own mind. It starts with imagining either a physical space like an empty parking lot, a school during summer break or a place in the woods, or a non-physical spaces, such as: a foggy sunrise, moving to a new place, the time between jobs. Ideally, as you think of your own liminal space, you imbue it with safety.

Framing is a powerful technique in dealing with anxiety, and liminal space can be thought of as conceptual framing,  The interesting thing is that we’ve all encountered them in the past. But adding the knowledge that creating liminal spaces can help cope with different problems like anxiety, PTSD, is why this idea really elevates to “experiment” level.

Physical liminal spaces are sometimes created by the structural design of a room, but it’s not the only way it can work. To create a liminal space for yourself without messing with the architectural design of your home you can:

• Brighten certain common areas with natural light giving the feeling of a threshold when going from one room to another or through a hallway.

• Designating a specific quiet room only to take breaks from daily activities, work, etc. simulating what a cafeteria would do at work or school.

• Creating a meditation area where you can relax and focus.

To create a non-physical liminal space, think of positive transitions you’ve experienced in the past. Listening to liminal music or specific songs/genres that you identify with a transition in your life can invoke positive feelings around life changes. Embrace liminal states as a powerful state of becoming.

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Hermann Samano Vignau works at Porch, where he has written about the impact of home design on PTSD and Depression. He lives in Mexico.

Criticism Stopped My Writing For a Decade

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Criticism made me quit writing. Never let that happen to you.

“I read some of your book. It sucked, man,” was the first feedback I got—from a family member—on my self-published book. If someone from the one group that typically propped struggling writers up with emotional support was giving me that feedback already, it really must suck.

“What the hell does he know about parenting? This is stupid.” This was my second review from a coworker’s wife.

This all happened back in 2008 when I decided to take all I had learned about leadership as a Marine and apply it to my new role as a Dad. Not the “scream-in-your-face” stuff that Boot Camp is made of, but the real and deep leadership principles that apply to any position of loving authority. I spent about a year and a half writing stories and collecting quotes to back them up. I designed a cover. I hired an editor to proof-read and make suggestions for improvements.

I was proud of my accomplishment.

Was.

Then I started getting feedback like described above. I got some supportive feedback from family, but that’s what most family does, right? I appreciated the positive response, but it was biased in my favor so it didn’t hold as much weight on my scale of self-judgement. I got nothing positive back from people who didn’t know me.

After a while, as I sold a book or two a month, I imagined that everyone probably thought of me as my first two reviewers had. What did I know about parenting anyway? I wasn’t a family psychiatrist or anything. My only kid at the time I published was 2 years old. Maybe I did know some things about leadership, but what gave me the right to apply that to parenting?

I felt like a fake. Like an imposter. And I felt like on my very first foray into writing, I was immediately identified as a fake. A fake writer who self-published and a fake parent who had no real experience.

I started to become embarrassed that I had even written a book.

When people brought it up I quickly changed the subject.

So I stopped writing. For 10 years.

Then I read something that my friend wrote about relationships. It was beautiful. It moved me. We were similar in how we saw many things in life back then, but especially now that we were “grown-ups” and family men. He could write about the simple beauty that surrounds us with such flowing words that it seemed semantics were no obstacle for his ideas to flow directly to my brain. I was inspired.

Inspired enough to start writing again. So I did, and I’m so glad I did. I have been having an absolute blast. I look forward to writing every day. Some people have said I have even genuinely helped them with my writing. This is priceless to me. It feels like writing was meant to be part of who I am.

I recently wrote about how persistence is so important to writing. And it is. I wish I had persisted through the criticism and Imposter Syndrome 10 years ago. Who knows where I could be now. But regret is a waste of time. Hope is time better spent.

I kind of feel embarrassed as a “tough” Marine that I let a few words from a few people steer my actions for a decade. I was able to defend myself against armed enemy combatants, but words of criticism pierced right through my armor with ease. Criticism of my creation crippled me.

But now I can move forward for many reasons. I realize that in a way, all humans are impostors. We are all new to life relatively speaking. When we just begin to figure it out, we die of old age. Why should we let someone else’s opinion be more valued than our own?

We must impose ourselves upon new areas of life if we want to grow. Stepping into formerly unknown roles generates those impostor feelings. It is natural. It doesn’t mean we don’t belong there. Someone who never feels this way is usually stagnating, like I did for a decade. Anyone who has the courage to create or to do important things at all will run into criticism and feel like an impostor sometimes. These are social growing pains.

So I decided to write this article to encourage you. You who may feel like you have nothing worth hearing. You who feel your words aren’t worth sharing or you have no right to say them. You are wrong. What you have to say is worth hearing. Please keep saying it. I want you to push through.

Don’t make the mistake I did and quit. JUST. PUSH. THROUGH.

Looking back, my book did kind of suck as far as format and writing. And even though that was 10 years ago, I’m only 3 months further into my writing journey, so I’m not that much better yet. But my ideas in the book were good. I was right about leadership and parenting. I shouldn’t have let criticism devalue my belief in those ideas. If I had kept writing, that suck factor in my writing would have decreased. But I didn’t stick around long enough to make that possible.

Persistence seems to be the key when I read advice from the best writers. If you can stick around, ignore negative criticism, welcome constructive criticism and always improve your skills, then you may have a chance. Then, and only then, might you have a shot at being a successful writer.

And even if you do reach success, the feeling of being an imposter is always there and criticism will be there with it. I think maybe all of us who create may always feel these things from time to time.

Maya Angelou said “I have written 11 books, but each time I think, ‘Uh oh, they’re going to find out now! I’ve run a game on everybody, and they’re going to find me out.”

John Steinbeck said before publishing The Grapes of Wrath “I am not a writer. I’ve been fooling myself and other people.” If Maya and John have had this feeling, we all will.

Imposter Syndrome and criticism should be signs of growth to us rather than stop signs.

They stopped me for 10 years.

I’ll never allow that to happen again. I hope you don’t either.

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Max Klein has an MBA, makes wine, and is a veteran. He’s also a writer. This piece originally appeared on Invisible Illness.

Try Zentangling

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Have you ever done art as a form of therapy?

Anyone who has lost track of time while drawing, painting, sculpting, carving, or doing any other artistic medium will know that hours can go by in a second. (Somewhat like what happens when you write!) You enter the ‘zone’. It’s almost like a meditative state.

“The goal of meditation is not to get rid of thoughts or emotions. The goal is to become more aware of your thoughts and emotions and learn how to move through them without getting stuck.” — Dr. P. Goldin

Photo of art created by the author

With the stress of life right now due to COVID-19 this is the ‘zone’ that we need to put ourselves in right now, as much as possible. Art can be used as a form of meditation. The benefits of meditation are too numerous to mention here. Meditating daily for several weeks provides long term improvement in all facets of daily life.

The benefits that we need to focus on right now are for all areas of living that are related to the current pandemic. Even 5 minutes of meditating can help with:

• Decreasing emotional reactivity — helping people disengage from the emotionally upsetting images in all types of media that we are being bombarded with right now. Reduces reactive aggression by redirecting your thoughts.

• Reducing loneliness — the feeling of being disconnected.

• Improving depression and reducing anxiety in the face of stress and distress. Meditation improves your mood and outlook on life and aids with insomnia and runaway thoughts. It works here by decreasing stress inducing inflammatory chemicals called cytokines.

• Reducing the symptoms of stress-triggered medical conditions such as irritable-bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia, post-traumatic stress disorder, increased blood pressure. Meditation helps to relax nerve signals that coordinate heart function, blood vessel tension and ‘fight-or-flight’ responses.

• Increasing attention span — task details are better remembered by workers who meditate compared to those who don’t. Right now we need focused leaders, scientists and health care workers who are going to make critical decisions for us. Meditation helps to reverse brain patterns that cause poor attention, worrying and mind-wandering.

Photo of art created by the author

I loved coloring with my kids. It was quality time spent together, it was fun, and it was relaxing. I didn’t realize how much I missed it until I wasn’t doing it anymore!

Who doesn’t remember the smell of new crayons? Or opening up a brand new coloring book when they were young? I can remember the feeling like it was yesterday. Art was always something that drove me in my younger years — I loved to draw and craft. It wasn’t until after I had my first few bouts of depression that my doctor suggested that I make some time for myself and find something to do out of the house. I had just been to an art demo at our local art gallery and I thought that would be the perfect thing for me to do — take an art class.

So I did.

The benefits were great — doing art regularly definitely helped to ease my depression symptoms, and taking art classes got me out of the house, and meeting new people. Some of these people are my very dear friends. They are more priceless than any famous masterpiece to me.

Fast forward several years, and one of the life-long friends who I met through the art club/gallery stumbled upon a form of art called ‘Zentangle’.

Photo property of Val Enders — used with permission

Now this friend, Val Enders, never does anything halfway — it’s go big or go home with her. Every year she finds a new form of art to do — anything from beading to oil painting to encaustic work to carving. And everything in between. She has accumulated so many art supplies that she could stock an art store. She believes in life long learning — and art is her go to. About five years ago was her ‘Zentangle’ year. She took a few of us to a class and I was hooked!

It is a great form of art therapy. Doing Zentangle art took me way back to my coloring years — I lost track of time while doing it. There are numerous sites for Zentangle instruction. It might look complicated, but the patterns are so easy to learn and range from simple to difficult in how challenging they are to do.

A monkey could do it.

“Art is a guarantee to sanity.” — French-American artist Louise Bourgeois

What is mindfulness-based art therapy? (MBAT)

The concept of combining mindfulness and art therapy was formally introduced by Laury Rappaport, a psychologist and writer. In 2009 she wrote a book called “Mindfulness and the Arts Therapies”. Basically MBAT is self explanatory — a combination of mindfulness training such as meditation within an art therapy framework. Mindfulness enhances your ability to be self aware and increases your capacity to reflect on life experiences.

Art therapy became popular in the 1940’s, when therapists began using ‘art therapy’- in order to help clients create art as a way to identify and release hidden emotions. Art psychotherapy was used for a different purpose. Therapists would analyze art created by clients in order to develop insights into various psychological issues and emotions. Art can:

• be a way to meditate and self-connect

• provide a feeling of flow and freedom

• allow for true self-expression

• help us to become centered and steady.

Let’s focus on ‘art therapy’.

MBAT works by helping you shift focus, and creates a connection between your imagination and your body — it allows you to express your feelings through art — feelings that you can’t express with words. Scientifically proven benefits of the healing effects of mindfulness based art therapy include:

• decreased anxiety

• aiding in the treatment of eating disorders, substance abuse, depressive disorders, stress-related issues and anger-related issues

• improving the physical illnesses that result from stress

Benefits for children include:

• increased self-awareness

• self-compassion

• resilience

Life right now must certainly be considered a traumatic experience for children, and teens. Help them get through this with some easy art therapy.

It is fun, you can do it in your home, and by doing mindfulness-based art therapy for as little as one hour a day, or even a few minutes, there will benefits to your psychological health.

Try the Zentangle form of art — but prepare to get addicted to it. All you need is some printer paper, cardstock, notebooks — really any paper you have laying around and for a writing medium anything with a sharp tip will do. Your whole family can get involved in this really fun activity.

Kids can do this with crayons — or you can do a piece of Zentangle art and let them color it! A masterpiece created by the whole family would be fun to frame — a reminder of how you stayed grounded through this pandemic and how you bonded with your family.

“There are two distinct languages. There is the verbal, which separates people… and the visual that is understood by everybody.” — Thomas Kinkade

Happy Zentangling!

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Corrine Roberts is a wife, mother, avid reader, artist, and aspiring writer. She originally published an earlier version of this piece on Invisible Illness. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta.

Sources: Huffpost, Healthline,  Verywellmind,  Washington Post

Try Tai Chi or Shibashi Qigong

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A couple weeks ago, I heard from an online Tai Chi instruction company named White Crane offering me a free subscription to on their video platform. I’ve been curious about Tai Chi and Qigong as a stress management tool. When I lived in New York, I would walk through Central Park and see groups of people of all ages practicing a slow type martial arts together that I assumed was tai chi.

Anyone can do it, which is something I really like.

I now know that Tai Chi is made up of 5 different styles. White Crane teaches what it describes as: “A rare Tai Chi form known as Shuang Yang Bai He Rou Ruan Quan (or Frost and Sun White Crane Gentle Art ). It originates from the Fujian province in south east China.” There are series of fundamental lessons on the site starting with footwork, though all exercises are also shown both standing and sitting to make sure as many people can take part as possible. Interspersed throughout the course are meditation and breathing exercises and guidance as well as an introduction to Qigong. These mindful movements are great for releasing stress and refocusing your energy without a ton of space or effort needed. Most of the effort is within. Cheesy but true.

This is what the videos themselves look like.

I’ve now been a member for two weeks, and found that I haven’t made a habit of using the site yet, but I would like that to change. I wonder if having an app might make it easier? As of now, the desktop version takes a little more effort than ideal—then again, I’m lazy! I trust that the instructor, Mark, knows his stuff. I do plan to get more in-depth with the exercises over time.

White Crane also sends out a regular newsletter feating information like this about why Tai Chi is great for older people and those of us who experience stress in a physical way.

The cost of an annual subscription to White Crane is $12.99/month or $129/year. This includes an in-depth series of video lessons that build upon each other.

What about you? Have you tried Tai Chi or Quigong? How did it work for you? Please share in the comments below.

Experimenting with Behind the Scenes

The new Beautiful Voyager book, Get Out of My Head, is coming out in May! This is a little visual tour of moments from the making of the book.

How Artificial Intelligence Can Help Depression

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Did you know that there is new type of computer science being incorporated in mental health treatments? Artificial intelligence (also known as machine intelligence) is best known for the development of “smart machines” that can think and act like humans. Studies reveal that it can understand mood disorders and predict if an antidepressant can help to treat depression based on a patient’s brain condition.  

Even newer  studies reveal that artificial intelligence can help doctors to diagnose depression symptoms accurately and suggest treatments accordingly. In the last 25 years, the intake of antidepressants has increased by 65%. This makes it all the more important to understand the various aspects of depression and suggest adequate treatment.

 If you’ve ever hopefully taken an antidepressant, then learned it wasn’t effective, you know how shattering for the experience can be. The hope is beginning to be realized: artificial intelligence can help patients to avoid experimenting with various medications and their side-effects. By using a huge amount of data to understand the brain activity of people and predict which patients will improve with medications, artificial intelligence programs can improve accuracy with less need for trial and error. Moreover, artificial programs can also help to identify the patients who are likely to improve with psychotherapy and brain stimulation instead of medication.

3 Ways Machine Learning Makes Depression Treatment Easier 

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1. Individuals can seek help 24-7 using machine learning apps.

   The best part of artificial intelligence is that it is available 24-7 at a negligible cost. Download apps like Wysa, WoeBot, Tess, Youper to see if they help you. The programs are developed in a way that anyone can use them anytime, anywhere.  The artificial intelligence programs ask questions in order to help understand how to help patients, establishing a therapeutic rapport with them. It takes time for the app to complete the entire process but the result is good as there is better detection. The app can suggest a treatment that may help to fulfill the emotional needs and requirements of an individual. 

   If you want to go for traditional counseling, you have to schedule an appointment with the therapist for 50 minutes or more in a week. This means the therapist needs to find a slot in his/her schedule for you. And, you have to check if you can fit in your busy schedule.  You have to take leave from work or school to attend the session with the psychiatrist or therapist. You have to make all the necessary arrangements with school, college, and office for attending the session. And, this is not all. You have to waste a huge amount of time commuting to the mental health clinic.  The best part of artificial intelligence programs is that you can access mental health resources at your convenience. You can explore them at midnight, during your holidays, or at lunch break in the office. The choice is yours. And, the icing on the cake is that these programs are quite cost-effective. You won’t have to worry about spending too much on them. 

2. Machine learning apps ensure your privacy.

   Technology provides privacy and anonymity, which is a boon for people suffering from major depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, or any other mental health issue. The stigma attached to mental disorders often stops individuals from seeking help. Plus, many individuals feel embarrassed to speak about their problems up front. The apps developed by artificial intelligence programs help individuals to get mental health treatment anonymously. 

   Individuals can get mental health services at their home only. There is no fear of bumping into someone while going to the therapist’s clinic. No one can know that they are receiving mental health care. For some people, sharing emotional vulnerabilities, feelings, hurt, pangs, traumatic experiences, etc. face-to-face is extremely difficult. They feel much more comfortable in sharing their feelings through a screen. 

3. Machine learning apps connect therapists with individuals.

   An integral part of the healing process is striking the right connection with the counselor. Unless there is a great bond between the therapist and the individual, it’s difficult to get effective results. Apps developed by artificial programs are based on a gigantic amount of data and research. These programs help individuals to feel connected. As such, they feel free to express their dilemmas and feelings. The trust factor is there. Without trust, it’s tough to provide emotional support to individuals. There is yet another added advantage of apps run by artificial intelligence programs. People can get connected with mental health resources in the most challenging situations. For instance, in remote locations, it’s tough to get access to mental health care. Even if there are resources, they may not be enough to cater to the demands of the entire population. Technology-based apps can help to bridge that gap even if the individuals are at the farthest corner of the world.

Some Final Thoughts on Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence programs and apps help to break all the barriers to mental health care. Individuals shed their inhibition and seek help from the therapists and psychiatrists. This is a great benefit of artificial intelligence programs. But there are a few limitations: For instance, clinicians are still getting up to speed on how to use these kinds of apps! As are users. We’re just starting this journey, but it will be fascinating to keep an eye Otherwise, they won’t be able to get the benefits and get healed completely.

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Ralph Macey works with the mental health clinic SavantCare. HIs work involves removing the social stigma associated with chronic mental disorders like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, dementia, ADHD, depression, loneliness, and PTSD.

You can connect with him here.

How I Hacked My Thinking to Improve My Mental Health

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Changing your habits can affect other parts of your life

I’m practicing to become a habit-changing maven. In the last eight years, I’ve revamped my fitness and nutrition habits several times to manage various medical conditions. I’ve decided to start using the same strategies I used to teach myself to lift weights at 5:00 every morning, love running, and enjoy eating kale to tackle some other areas.

Here’s a list of the habits I’m working to cultivate right now:

• Make my bed every morning.

• Meditate to start my day.

• Journal each morning.

Three is enough for any given time. If you focus on too many areas at once, you can get overwhelmed. I have several strategies in place to cultivate these personal habits. I write them in my planner, journal about how I’m doing with each one and set reminders on my phone.

Those are all excellent strategies for changing habits, but none of them are going to get you over the fear of making a change. Do do that, you have to talk to yourself differently.

Humans are unwilling to change because of our biology

We are social, and changing our habits can disrupt our social lives. If you’ve always been a person who says they hate to exercise, a lot of your friends probably feel the same way. We identify with people who are like us. Your subconscious is afraid that if you suddenly start training for a 5K, your social ties will weaken.

People like the status quo because it’s comfortable. Changing involves risk and activates our flight or fight response. Spending your evenings numbing out on television is more comfortable than hitting the gym. Hitting the gym will hurt. Couch surfing doesn’t hurt.

Just because you’re human and risk-averse, doesn’t mean you have to allow that to run your life. You also can use reason rather than emotions to make decisions.

Change your internal monologue

Let’s start with making my bed. I’ve always said things like ”making my bed is pointless” or ”I wish I were the type of person who made my bed every morning” or my personal favorite ”I don’t have time to make my bed in the morning.”

Here’s the actual truth.

• Making my bed isn’t pointless because I love slipping into a well-made bed at night. If we look at the data, the national sleep foundation reports that people who make their beds are 19% more likely to get a good night’s sleep. (Humans love data, so don’t be afraid to use some of it to prove your point to yourself.)

• I am the type of person who does anything I decide to do. If I choose to cook crispy duck with orange glaze and caramelized onions, I’ll do it. If I decide to run a marathon, I’ll do it. If I decide not to make my bed, I’ll do that too. I can help myself accomplish anything, or hold myself back.

• I wasn’t prioritizing making my bed in the morning.

The first step to making a habit change is changing your internal monologue. I made a conscious decision to stop myself when I said “I wish I were the type of person who…” and say out loud, into a mirror, ”I make my bed every morning because I enjoy having it ready for me at bedtime.”

Then I make my damn bed. I even timed myself once to quiet that voice that tried to say I didn’t have time. It turns out it takes less than a full minute to make my bed (more data, people like that).

Obviously, I’m picking a somewhat silly example to prove the point. But, you can attack any habit change by first addressing the conversations you have with yourself. You wouldn’t tell your children or your spouse that they weren’t smart enough or strong enough to accomplish something, so why are you saying it to yourself?

What lies are you telling yourself? Make a list, and then turn them into truths

Once you’re talking with yourself in a way that will spur you to take ownership of your current condition and inspire a change, you’re ready for an action plan. Change the way you talk to yourself first: the action plan can come later.

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Maria Chapman is a freelance writer who has contributed to Elephant Journal, bizcatalyst360, and Valnet.

She first published this story on the Beautiful Voyager Medium publication.

If you enjoyed this, subscribe to her newsletter for periodic updates on her work and the work of authors she admires.

I Get More Migraines in Spring, and I Bet I'm Not Alone

Whether or not March comes in like a lion, March comes in like a lion…Photo credit

"Migraine March" is here again, and I'm not loving it.

“I have a terrible headache, I think the demons are trying to get out again.” — Unknown

For you lucky and blessed people who don’t get migraines, the month of March is wonderful, I’m sure. The hint of spring, the melting snow, the beautiful sunshine: Ahhh, spring is here at long last.

“A great wind is blowing, and that gives you either imagination or a headache.” — Catherine the Great

Not so fantastic for us migraine sufferers. After enough years of having migraines throughout most of March I’ve coined it “Migraine March”. Oh the cruelty of the roller coaster barometric pressure changes in March! Even if March doesn’t come in like a lion, the ups and downs are brutal.

“Migraines -the only time taking a hammer to your skull seems like an appropriate solution.” Unknown

This is my chronic migraine month. At other times of the year they taper off but I still have to be vigilant though about what triggers migraines for me.

My Migraine Triggers

• Salty and aged foods including cheeses and processed meats like salami.

• M.S.G. or Monosodium glutamate. A popular preservative in foods you would not even think needed preservatives.

• Foods that contain the additive tyramine.

• Skipping meals

• Drinking alcohol and caffeine. Also eating chocolate — which has caffeine. (sorry ladies — chocolate is your enemy if you get migraines-so is red wine!)

• Artificial sweeteners like aspartame.

• Stimulating lights, loud noises, strong smells- too much sensory stimulation can trigger a migraine. (The bright sunlight of March is a killer for me- it can trigger a migraine or it can exacerbate a migraine.)

• Certain perfumes or fabric softeners. (I have walked past someone with a perfume or cologne that has instantly caused me a headache. It’s not necessarily the smell itself, but a chemical ingredient in the product that you are sensitive to. I’ve had to explain to people that it wasn’t that I didn’t like the smell—it was an ingredient in the product that gave me an instant headache and a sick stomach.

• Second hand smoke.

• Hormonal changes- prior to menstruation, during pregnancy and during menopause. (Yeah- it’s so fun to be a woman!) Changes in estrogen levels can be thanked for these migraines.

• Medications with hormones such as birth control and hormone replacement therapies. (Sometimes these meds can improve migraines however)

• Uncontrolled stress.

• Physical stress including extreme exercise, and physical exertion including sex.

• Poor posture, neck and shoulder tension.

• Jet lag.

• Low blood sugar.

• Dehydration.

• Irregular, too little or too much sleep.

• Changes in barometric pressure and weather changes.

If you live in Edmonton, Alberta and you are prone to migraines you probably have one right now. How can I say that with certainty?

Because I have one and have had an almost freaking constant migraine since March 1!

“And then a throb hits you on the left side of the head so hard that your head bobs to the right…There’s no way that came from inside your head, you think. That’s no metaphysical crisis. God just punched you in the face.” Andrew Levy

All migraines are not the same.

In the United States over 30 million people suffer from migraines.

Did you know that your migraine headache will never be the same as anybody else’s migraine? Mine aren’t even like a headache — on a really bad day they are like someone is tapping into the side of my head, just above my ear, with a pickaxe. It’s grueling and painful.

There are two major categories of migraines. (Yes of course there can’t just be one kind- we migraine sufferers are blessed with two major kinds, plus all of the sub-types of migraines.)

Migraines fall into one of two categories: Aura, or no aura?

The first is “Migraines with Aura, or Complicated Migraines.”

“It was like there were clear cut and sharp crystal prisms of light on the outside edges of my vision.” Photo credit

A kaleidoscope of visual symptoms, such as lines, shapes or flashes, seeing black dots, or tingling numbness on one side of the body happens before any head pain begins . This usually starts about 10–30 minutes before the migraine and usually lasts about an hour. About one in four people get this type of migraine.

When I had my first aura I didn’t know what was happening as I had not heard of a migraine ‘aura’ before. Scared the shit out of me. It was like there were clear cut and sharp crystal prisms of light on the outside edges of my vision.

You can temporarily lose part of your vision, or your total vision with an ‘aura’, and can also have pins and needles in your arms or legs as well as a stiff neck, shoulders or limbs.

If you experience abnormal migraine symptoms such as loss of sensation or difficulties with speech along with visual disturbances or an extremely severe headache do not ignore these symptoms. See a doctor immediately.

The second is migraines without auras, or common migraines.

These types of migraines account for about 70–90% of migraines. Nausea and vomiting accompany these migraines as well as the ‘aura’ migraines. Symptoms can include throbbing pain or pulsing on one side of the head.

There are also sub-types of migraines.

• Chronic migraine: If you have a migraine for more than 15 days in a month.

• Menstrual migraine: A pattern connected to the menstrual cycle.

• Silent migraine: Migraine without head pain. This is classified as a typical aura without headache migraine, and also includes dizziness, nausea and other visual disturbances besides aura.

• Hemiplegic migraine: Causes temporary weakness on one side of the body. A person having this type of migraine may has visual auras and pins and needles. This migraine can almost feel like a stroke.

• Abdominal migraine: A newly recognized one that affects children under the age of 14. The migraine attacks are connected to irregular function in the abdomen and gut. Other symptoms tied to this migraine can include attention deficit problems, clumsiness and delayed development.

• Brainstem aura migraines: Sounds brutal. Visual, sensory or speech and language symptoms plus two of the following: vertigo, slurred speech, tinnitus, unsteadiness, double vision or severe sensitivity to sound.

• Vestibular: A migraine that includes having vertigo. The spinning sensation of the vertigo can last from a few minutes to hours.

• Retinal migraine: When a headache causes temporary vision loss in one eye. This migraine happens to women of childbearing years, causing blindness that can last from a minute to months. Usually this blindness is reversible. For any woman who experiences this type of migraine it is strongly suggested that a specialist is seen to rule out more serious issues.

• Ice Pick Migraines/Headaches: These are the ones that I get. While the stab of pain is fleeting, the duration of these repetitive stabs of pain is killer.

• Cluster Headaches: According to the American Migraine foundation, this type of migraine is sometimes referred to as “suicide headaches”, because the pain is severe and the symptoms are extremely irritating. The symptoms include burning pain that starts above or around your eyes that can move to your temples and to the back of your head. Along with this is a runny nose and red, swollen eyes.

• Cervicogenic headaches: With these headaches the pain is caused from the neck or even possibly a lesion on the your spine. Physical therapy is usually needed along with medication to treat this type of migraine.

• Opthalmoplegic Migraine: This is most likely to occur in children and young adults. This causes intense pain behind the eye along with double vision. Paralysis of the eye muscles can cause a droopy eyelid. Vomiting and seizures can also accompany this migraine, and a doctor will most likely check for an aneurysm because of the severe symptoms.

• Status migrainosus: A very rare and serious type of migraine. These can last for over 72 hours and most often the affected person will need to be hospitalized. Hospitalization is necessary because the prolonged vomiting and nausea will cause dehydration, so intravenous treatments are required.

(I didn’t realize that there were so many different types of migraines when I started doing my research but I had to continue to list them all or I would have an incomplete story! I’ll try to keep the list of treatments shorter.)

Popular Migraine Treatments Including Pain Prevention and Pain Relief

I did not get my first migraine until I was 30. After a weekend of camping, eating chocolate, drinking some red wine and then going out for Chinese food I had my first doozie of a migraine. (And I don’t even like red wine -not sure why I was drinking it!!) I have repeatedly told people that I can’t drink red wine, and I can’t eat too much chocolate, but sure enough I get the usual boxes of chocolates at Christmas, or I am handed a bottle of red wine as a hostess gift. Free regifting items is what they become.

Migraine Pain Prevention:

• Learn to recognize your migraine triggers. Unfortunately the one thing you can’t control is the weather, but you can begin to take medication if you feel a migraine coming on or you can take daily medication if you have chronic migraines.

• Avoid sensory overstimulation -remove yourself from an overstimulating environment.

• Turn off the lights, turn off the tv, turn off the music if you feel a migraine starting.

• Try using ice packs for a numbing effect, and hot packs to relax tense muscles. Use a warm or cold shower the same way. (I once had a migraine where the side of my head got hot. Using ice packs was a must to relieve the pain.)

• In the early stages drinking a small amount of caffeine may help ward off a migraine.

• Unwind at the end of the day -have a relaxing bath, listen to soothing music.

• Eat and exercise regularly.

• Simplify your life to manage stress - adopt some stress management techniques like deep breathing or meditation.

Prescription Drugs for Migraine Prevention:

• Cardiovascular drugs (beta blockers)

• Certain antidepressants

• Anti-seizure drugs

• Injection therapy

• NSAID’S -nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, naproxen (eg. Aleve)

• Botox injections are also used for chronic migraines.

“I’ve taken Midol before. My daughters find that hilarious. I had a headache and cramps, and there were no other pain relievers with caffeine in the house.” Bob Saget

Pain Relievers:

• Over the counter pain relievers such as aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen.

• Prescribed triptans or dihydroergotamine (injection)

• Prescriptions for nausea

• Opiods or glucocorticoids (prednisone)

I take a triptan when the over the counter pain relievers are not working. However there is a very limited dosage allowed to be taken each day, so you need to be cautious if taking a triptan. They also knock me out, so I have to plan to be able to sleep for a bit if I need to take this medication. Plus they don’t always work.

Unfortunately sometimes you just have to suffer the pain of migraines.

“You look fine!” “Yes because migraines are invisible.” Unknown

Migraines suck. It has taken me three days to write this article, and only with taking lots of meds! I am thankful that I don’t often get the extreme nausea or sensitivity to light that can happen with migraines. They are a bitch to cope with.

Learning what your migraine triggers are, trying to stop a potential migraine in it’s tracks, and finding a treatment that works for you will help you get your life back from this debilitating invisible illness.

To all you migraine sufferers, I wish you relief from the pain and I am sending you hugs!

Are you a migraine sufferer? Do you get more migraines in the spring? Share in the comments below.

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Corrine Roberts is a wife, mother, avid reader, artist, and aspiring writer. She originally published an earlier version of this piece on Invisible Illness. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta.

Sources: Mayo Clinic, American Migraine Foundation, WebMd, Healthline, Practical Pain Management, HealthLinkBC