UHealth Neurologist Says Migraine More Than Just Headache

Migraine Patient Grateful for Treatment to Get Her Life Back

Dr. Teshamae Monteith, M.D., is a Professor of Neurology and Headache Specialist at UHealth, the University of Miami Health System. For more information on migraine treatments and services, click here or visit the UHealth Collective.

MEET ASHLEY FENNEMA:

At age 17, Ashley Fennema was diagnosed with chronic migraine.

ā€œYou have all the lights in your house off, you have all the shutters closed, youā€™re in complete silence, and it still hurts,ā€ says Ashley.

Teshamae Monteith, M.D., a neurologist and headache specialist at UHealth, says migraine is more than just head pain, itā€™s a chronic brain disorder that affects all aspects of a personā€™s life.

ā€œItā€™s a multi-phasic disorder. They may have cognitive impairment, they may have stiffness of the neck, they may have light sensitivity. This is a warning sign that a migraine is happening. Some people may have aura, most commonly visual aura. And then thereā€™s that head pain phase. Patients may experience avoidance of certain behaviors or activities because youā€™re afraid youā€™re going to get a migraine. Missing someoneā€™s graduation or a family function, and these things over time really add up,ā€ Dr. Monteith says.

Dr. Monteith says because migraine is an invisible disorder thereā€™s often stigma associated with it. Ashley credits the UHealth team for making her feel seen and heard for the first time and is now spreading a message of hope.

ā€œMigraine is an invisible illness that makes patients feel invisible as well. The hope lies in the fact that we are not alone,ā€ Ashley says.

Ashley, whose migraines were so bad she had to be hospitalized, is now raising awareness.

ā€œWe tell her, ā€œLive your life, go for it. Go for the best because youā€™re at a beautiful time in your life and you really need that.ā€ And doing that I think is also therapeutic,ā€ says Dr. Monteith.

Dr. Monteith put Ashley on a new treatment plan that included CGRP blocking infusions.

ā€œItā€™s calcitonin gene-related peptide, so CGRP. Targeting this or its receptor are some of the newer treatments that are available to our patients that really can help really improve patientsā€™ quality of life,ā€ Dr. Monteith says.

Ashley is now back to living her life ā€“ including running through a field of her favorite flowers!

ā€œWe went through all the sunflowers. It was being able to not lose that hope,ā€ says Ashley.

She credits Dr. Monteith and the UHealth team for getting her out of the darkness and into the light.

ā€œIā€™m so grateful and I love her so much,ā€ Ashley says.

FOCUSING ON YOU

Focusing on You: Innovations in Modern Medicineis a series of healthcare-related stories airing regularly on WPLG Local 10. For more stories like this one, visit YouTube channels for UHealth, the University of Miami Health System.

Above content provided by UHealth, the University of Miami Health System


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