Back to school, bring on the stress; psychiatric comorbidities and headache

In my part of the country, there has been a gradual transition from remote learning to hybrid learning to full in-person learning, starting this spring. And as we all experience, there are significant stressors with all this change. Kids are happy to be back at school with their friends, teachers, feeling sort of ‘back to … Continue reading Back to school, bring on the stress; psychiatric comorbidities and headache

Migraine and headache and pain conditions

Ever notice that your patients with migraine and headache often have other medical issues? Well, there are a number of common coexisting medical conditions which are often associated with migraine and headache. Frequently these issues are associated with pain, and are referred to as overlapping pain conditions. Examples of these types of overlapping pain conditions … Continue reading Migraine and headache and pain conditions

Anxiety!!!

Oh my goodness, along with the Covid 19 pandemic, there has been a significant uptick in anxiety, among my patients with headaches, especially the teens and young adults. This has been clear since about mid-October. Historically, there is the usual ramp up of anxiety, worry, lack of coping, that tends to happen around this time … Continue reading Anxiety!!!

Pandemic reflections

Children and teens with headache and migraine have been affected in a variety of ways by these pandemic times. Thinking back, there has been a difference between last spring and this fall and the effect on my patients, particularly in the school environment.  I will refer back to specific chapters in my book ‘Getting ahead … Continue reading Pandemic reflections

Gratitude

So it’s been just 1 year since I started this blog, posting regularly every 2 weeks. That was one of my intentions for 2018 and I am so glad I made it happen.  I have learned a lot more about headache management in the process.  I also learned that I do actually know a lot … Continue reading Gratitude

Migraine case studies

So I feel like we have comprehensively covered pediatric migraine in my previous posts. Let’s look at a few case studies to see migraine management in action in primary care, looking at a variety of typical patients with migraine over the years, childhood to young adolescent to start. I will present 3 patients to consider … Continue reading Migraine case studies

Chronic migraine, what to do?

So your patient has developed chronic migraine, which is defined as 3-4 migraine per week, 15 migraine days per month, and is predictably miserable. Developing chronic migraine does happen in pediatrics, but it happens much more often in older teens and adults.  You’ve done what you could to prevent it from happening: did a course … Continue reading Chronic migraine, what to do?