Nobody knew how serious it was…

Considering what a major disability migraine is, and cluster is, and headaches are, it’s amazing that they’re so little understood.  And so little talked about.

Oh, sure, we talk about them a lot here!  But in general they’re not given the priority it would seem they need, considering the people that suffer, and the productivity that’s lost.

The World Health Organization, World Headache Alliance, International Headache Society and European Headache Federation want to change all that.  These organizations are working on a project called Lifting The Burden – The Global Campaign to Reduce the Burden of Headache Worldwide.  Their hope is that global awareness can be raised, and solutions can be found.  By November 2005, the WHO hopes to collect information on headache from around the world in order to better understand the impact of these disorders and diseases, and to work on changes from there.

The WHO already has migraine on the top 20 list of disabilities, because it is so widespread and debilitating.  Then there’s cluster, rare but one of the most painful disabilities there is.

Valerie South, CEO of the WHA says,"We all have a role to play in this important initiative.  By working closely with WHO and the International Headache Society we hope to be able to develop a global awareness campaign which will help relieve the burden of headache for sufferers worldwide."