1% Thursday: The Escape List

by James on 11 March 2010

It’s driving you crazy.  Quite possibly, it’s having a negative impact on your health.  It’s time to escape.

But how?  You feel like you have no options – no way out.  It’s hopeless.

It’s time to sit down – preferably with a close friend if it’s appropriate – and make a list.  A list of what you need to do to get out of the situation.  A list of what you need to do to make a change.

Preferably this should be something that impacts your health – maybe changing bad eating habits, quitting smoking, changing your environment.  It could be something huge (getting out of a job, changing careers) or something small (changing the lighting in your bedroom, fixing that door that squeaks).

If it’s simply something frustrating, that’s all right – it will have an indirect impact on your health.

Is there something in your house or office that doesn’t quite work, but you’ve been putting up with it (and hence wasting a LOT of time!)?  Maybe your in a destructive relationship.  Maybe you have a commitment that seemed like a good idea at the time, but you need to go in a different direction (I’m not suggesting you break a promise of course, but there may be something you’ve continued doing even though the purpose is long gone!).

So think of one thing – just one – right now.  Then sit down and right a specific, do-able, escape list.

Note:  You may not like what you need to do to escape.  But it’s helpful to know you do have options.  And maybe a push from a friend will save you a lot of pain in the future.

This week’s idea came from a lifehack.org post which actually had some other great 1% ideas in it.  Check out 11 Simple Ways To Avoid Burnout

What is 1% Thursday?

1% Thursday

Every Thursday at Headache and Migraine News (weather permitting) we’ll talk about one measurable, practical thing we can do to make our lives just 1% better.  Usually it will be something very easy, sometimes it will be a challenge.  Let us know if you try it, or share an idea of your own – and maybe a year from now we’ll see that things have really changed for the better!

Popularity: 1% [?]

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Winner of the HeadWay 75th Edition Giveaway!

by James on 10 March 2010

Yesterday you read the top 20 entries by HeadWay subscribers to our 75th edition giveaway – read the first 10 here, and the second 10 here.

But of course I’m here to announce the winner!  The winner was chosen from the top 20 randomly, using random.org.  The winner will receive a US$75 gift certificate for either vitacost.com or drugstore.com.  The winner can contact me and let me know which one they would prefer.

This is what the winner wrote about HeadWay:

Headway has shown me how to manage my headaches and still have a LIFE!  Thanks!  I have learned so much – from the types of headaches I have, to recognizing how environment and diet can contribute and trigger them.  I used a food diary and headache/lifestyle journal for about four months and found patterns and reoccurring symptoms.  Now I can stay away from the foods that trigger my migraines and can prepare mentally when I'm beginning to menstruate and have hormonal headaches.  Knowledge is POWER !!  Keep it coming!!  My two kids are also glad!  No longer do they see their mom huddled in a ball in a dark room, moaning!

It was a great entry, and it belonged to Lauren from Middletown, USA!  Way to go Lauren!  Congratulations!

I hope that HeadWay can continue to be a current, helpful and practical resource to every subscriber.  Remember, HeadWay is free!  If you’re not yet a subscriber, you can subscribe right here:

Subscribe to HeadWay

Congrats again, Lauren!  Be sure the contact me as soon as you can to let me know which gift certificate you prefer.

And thanks to everyone who is involved in fighting back against migraine, cluster, and headaches of every kind!

Popularity: 1% [?]

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HeadWay 75th Edition Giveaway – Last 10 Finalists!

by James on 9 March 2010

Here are the last 10 finalists in the HeadWay 75th Edition Giveaway!  The first 10 finalists are here.

Thanks again for your entries!  The winner will be announced tomorrow!

I'd like to say by reading Headway that I found 'the magic cure' for my 20 years of almost daily migraine headaches, but that would not be true.  I have however, found in the pages of Headway so many ideas, hints and new things to try that I have noticed a drastic lessening in the severity and duration of my headaches.  But the biggest and best surprise for me has been the number of days I now go headache free!  My hope is to keep reading and to keep getting better.
~Barbara (Medina, USA)

Headway has shown me how to manage my headaches and still have a LIFE!  Thanks!  I have learned so much – from the types of headaches I have, to recognizing how environment and diet can contribute and trigger them.  I used a food diary and headache/lifestyle journal for about four months and found patterns and reoccurring symptoms.  Now I can stay away from the foods that trigger my migraines and can prepare mentally when I'm beginning to menstruate and have hormonal headaches.  Knowledge is POWER !!  Keep it coming!!My two kids are also glad!  No longer do they see their mom huddled in a ball in a dark room, moaning!
~Lauren (Middletown, USA)

It has help me and my daughter to know what questions to ask the doctors and suggestions to look into.  She has suffered Migraines since grade school and is know a college graduate.  No longer on prescriptions only on supplements and some day hopes to be drug free.  The info over the years has help us to find the right doctor to get to this point.  Thanks for letting us know we where not alone.
~Sherri (Bremen, USA)

HeadWay gives a balanced view of migraine and migraine sufferers.  By not preaching only all-natural methods or only traditional medical advice, HeadWay allows readers to feel that there are many options to migraine relief and that one does not have to feel guilty for trying one way or the other.  HeadWay also has done a fabulous job of representing all types of headache sufferers and causes, helping me, personally, to stop feeling like I was the only one who suffered this way!
~Mary (Cincinnati, USA)

Great information about migraines, not only causes but treatments.  Also how to explain them to family, friends and co-workers who have never had one before.  I have also found useful information in speaking with my doctors and explaining things better.  It has helped me in managing them from a personal but professional prospective as well.  I have shown articles to my Boyfriend and he seems to understand them better and it has helped our relationship a whole lot due to him understanding them better.  The communication with my Doctor's has increased so much better and for that it has helped.  The new idea's and research out there have been great to look into and try to see if they are applicable to me.  It has helped me manage my disease better and has improved my quality of life in my understanding of my disease that I have had for the last 19 years!  Thank You HeadWay :)
~Stacie (Glenn Allen, USA)

Reading headway has given me inspiration that I no longer have to accept that my migraines have to remain untreatable.  I have found Treximet and it has been a life saver along with diet, regular sleep habits and moderate exercise.  Vitamins such as omegas have also helped me.  Thanks Head Way for providing me with valuable resources which enable me to live my best and healthiest life.
~Jennifer (Grand Prairie, USA)

Reading HeadWay keeps me up to date on the newest research and the newest medications that are available or about to become available for headache sufferers.  Sometimes I read about a very simple little thing, perhaps it's only a diet modification, that is helpful.  HeadWay is written in a style that is helpful and easy to understand and I like that too.
~Emily (Humboldt, USA)

Learned about some migraine preventatives that I hadn't known about (e.g. magnesium), learned more about child migraine (I probably had them, and my son may be having them as well).  Perhaps best of all, I saw migraine art for the first time, and so was able to recognize it when a friend showed me her daughter's artwork and helped her diagnose her headaches!
~Christine (Ashland, USA)

HeadWay reminds me about how much progress is being made in the area of migraine research.  HeadWay has also given me tips to lessen the pain such as taking Migralief twice a day and a better understanding of what happens during a migraine attack.  I appreciate knowing that there are other people also looking for ways to deal with their migraines.
~Mary Jo (Wallingford, USA)

HeadWay disseminates valuable information not normally accessible to the average migraine sufferer.  Headway has explored the gamut, from the wide variety of types of migraines (including unusual symptoms that one would not normally associate with a migraine), to prescription and alternative medications, herbs, and supplements–HeadWay has covered in depth all of these topics and more.  I'm impressed that Headway has also explored lifestyle issues, such as exercise and foods that can promote or help mitigate migraines.  This publication has been a lifesaver in countless ways, and I cannot praise it and James Cottrill's dedication enough!
Jo (Pittsburgh, USA)

Thanks again for all your kind comments, and thanks to so many who entered who also had excellent comments though they haven’t been mentioned.  The winner will receive a US$75 gift certificate to either drugstore.com or vitacost.com.  See you tomorrow!

Popularity: 1% [?]

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HeadWay 75th Edition Giveaway – First 10 Finalists!

by James on 9 March 2010

In January we celebrated the 75th issue of the free ezine, HeadWay.  So last month we introduced the HeadWay 75th Edition Giveaway!

Subscribers were asked to share why they appreciate HeadWay, and how it’s been a help to them.  Thanks for all your kind responses!

I’m supposed to choose the 20 best answers, and then choose a winner (using random.org).

Let me tell you, it was hard to choose the top 20!  There were so many excellent responses – thank you to everyone who entered.

But in the end, I had to narrow it down.  So here are the first 10 finalists – since this will be a long post I’ll post the next 10 later tonight.  The winner will be announced tomorrow!  The prize is a US$75 gift certificate to vitacost.com or drugstore.com.

HeadWay has been useful for me because when my headaches make me feel like I just can't go on, like I am the only one who feels like this and that I've lost hope, HeadWay gives me hope.  I read the articles and feel like I am part of a group of people that understand me, how I feel, my frustrations and why I lose hope sometimes.  I have had Migraines since early adulthood as well as chronic tension headaches.  My tension headaches are daily.  They easily escalate to a migraine and frequently do.  I am on a daily preventative for migraines, muscle relaxers, etc., and I have just started biofeedback, because I still have hope.  Maybe I'll read something, or hear about someone who did something that helped them, or maybe I can share something that worked for me.  Regardless, now I know, thanks to HeadWay I am not alone in this.
~ Barb (Elizabeth, USA)

The information is priceless.  I apply anything I can to my struggle with headaches.  I can relate to so much of what is shared that even if I don't come away with some practical application for each issue, it is reassuring just to know that I am not alone and that what I am experiencing is real and not something I am blowing out of proportion like some people can make you feel.  So many times I feel that an article is speaking directly to me.
~Sharon (Riverton, USA)

There was an article in HeadWay concerning "weekend headaches" caused by sleeping late on weekends vs weekdays.  I now awake at the same time every day, and this has helped prevent my weekend headache.  Thanks HeadWay
~Larry (Hatboro, USA)

Most importantly, it reminds me that I'm not alone in this.  While family and friends may be supportive, they've never had a migraine.  HeadWay shows me that others are out there, feeling just like I do.  I also like that a lot of the "homework" has already been done in the articles, and that it's accurate.  That way I can keep current on what's out there and how I can make the best decisions for me with my physician's help.
~Ali (Minneapolis, USA)

For many years I didn't even know that I suffered from migraines.  I went down the whole allergy route, downing allergy pills and nasal surgery and was told it wasn't migraines.  Well, maybe not classic migraine but thanks to HeadWay I now know there are many types and ways to cope and other migrainers out there talking about me!  I'm 54 and still trying to unravel my migraine solution but thanks to HeadWay I have support.  Thank you.
~Bonnie (Pittsburgh, USA)

HeadWay has been a huge encouragement as I walk the migraine pathway.  I've been a migraineur for 15 years (that I realized it) now.  At some point, you start to think "you've heard it all!"  But HeadWay keeps the fresh and the relevant before me – and always in an entertaining format.  This year my 23-year-old daughter was finally diagnosed with migraines, too (something I'd hoped she'd escape, but so be it).  After basic conversation on the shared world, the first resource I sent her to was HeadWay!!!!  I knew it would be a wonderful place for her to start – and stay!  Thank you so much for helping my family live triumphantly.
~Kay (Mobile, USA)

HeadWay has been a wonderful tool in helping my son on his journey through the land of migraines.  Finding answers and camaraderie for a teen migraneur has made us feel a little less alone.  It has also educated me on my own increasing migraines, allowing me took ask more questions of the both our doctors.  Thank you HeadWay!
~Sandy (Orchard Park, USA)

Headway is a lifeline in the dark times and a source of inspiration in the brighter ones.  It’s well informed and well written articles are linked to all the source information in one click.  A great resource!
~Kath (Shrewsbury, UK)

It's been able to help me pinpoint what affects my migraines so I can better manage them through various means. They've improved greatly over the last few months- and I'm so thankful for that!
~Kate (Lafayette, USA)

I love HeadWay!  It has been very informative and made me more aware of how I can help myself and no longer be in denial of my migraines which makes me better manage my pain and my disease which seems to have lead to fewer migraines and less intense pain overall.  I really look forward to each issue and the added links to see what I can learn.  I sooo appreciate James for all the work he does to bring this to me and for making my life better because of it.  Thank you!
~Kimberly (San Jose, USA)

Popularity: 1% [?]

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1% Thursday: Tradition

by James on 4 March 2010

This week start a new (non-mandatory) tradition.

It’s really amazing what a little rhythm can do for your life.  We’re rhythmic creatures, of course – be it music, the weekend, sleeping patterns – when the rhythm is right, life is better.

I’m not talking about monotony, of course – but a musical kind of rhythm that changes, pauses, and does the unexpected.  Nothing would be unexpected, if it wasn’t for the rhythm.

I’m convinced that starting a new, enjoyable tradition can make that 1% difference for someone who is dealing with an often very non-rhythmic chronic illness.  It could be something big – once a year I’ll vacation in Italy.  Well, maybe not that big.

How about going to a favourite restaurant with someone once a month?  Or a picnic in the park?  Or maybe you’ll take the kids to the zoo once a month.

Go for coffee with a best friend once a week (all right, skip the caffeine – try one of those fresh-squeezed juices!).  Would you believe roller skating?  A concert?

Maybe just a walk.  Or a once-a-week cookie bake.  Every Tuesday evening I’ll read a favourite novel.  Or go rent a funny movie.  Buy a flower.  Get a magazine.  Play tennis with a friend.

The possibilities are endless, of course.

Two rules:

  1. Make it enjoyable.  If it ceases to be enjoyable, change it.
  2. Make it non-compulsory.  People with chronic illness know, you don’t need something else to be guilty of "missing".  Make it something you can do when you can, but it won’t be a problem if you miss it.

What is 1% Thursday?

1% Thursday

Every Thursday at Headache and Migraine News (weather permitting) we’ll talk about one measurable, practical thing we can do to make our lives just 1% better.  Usually it will be something very easy, sometimes it will be a challenge.  Let us know if you try it, or share an idea of your own – and maybe a year from now we’ll see that things have really changed for the better!

Popularity: 1% [?]

{ 0 comments }

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