I am a proud supporter of my school. I love the Tide just like everyone else at UA. I have had a great experience here at the Capstone like hopefully many other of my colleagues have. One of the factors that have made my college life unique is that I have a medical condition. I was in the second grade when I was diagnosed with Hemiplegic Migraines. These aren’t the regular migraines, which already suck. Hemiplegic Migraines impact one hemisphere of the brain. Many side effects that come with Hemiplegic Migraines include temporary paralysis, blindness, confusion, numbness, painful physical sensations, and more. Hemiplegic Migraines can also mimic a stroke. I typically experience these Hemiplegic Migraines a few times a month.
One of the negative outcomes of having Hemiplegic migraines is that I usually can’t drive for ten days after having one. Hemiplegic Migraines are neurological and mess with my fine motor skills. Even a simple thing like driving can be difficult after having a HM attack. Before I lived close to campus where I can walk to class, my brother who is also a UA student would have to drive me to class after an HM attack. The good news is now that I live in walking distance to campus, if I can’t drive, I don’t have to worry about it.
I can’t really ever cram like most students can. Part of the reason, why I always work ahead of time for assignments is that I can’t take the chance of being incapacitated and not having my schoolwork complete before the deadline. There have been occasions where I couldn’t type because of numbness, painful side effects, and the sensation of swelling in my hands. One of the bad things about living with Hemiplegic Migraines is sometimes it can be hard to catch up on schoolwork.
One semester, I had a really bad Hemiplegic Migraine and had to get caught up on 3 weeks of work. I still suffered side effects after having the Hemiplegic Migraine which often even after I have the HM, I can still have on going side effects. Small things like walking were painful. I forced myself to walk to class because I couldn’t get too behind. I had painful sensations in my feet and my body felt fatigued. Besides going to class, I usually spent most of my time indoors because I was still in pain from the side effects. I love being outdoors and going out and doing things, so being cooped up for those couple of weeks made me feel really down. It was a rough few weeks.
I always show my professors proper documentation to show the legitimacy of my condition. For the most part professors are very understanding, and let me make up missed homework assignments and wouldn’t penalize me for a missed absence if it were due to having a Hemiplegic episode. I’m very appreciative of my educators that were and are understanding.
Presentations sometimes were tough because if I had to do one right after having a hemiplegic episode, I often felt mentally and physically tired especially if it was a really bad one. I often felt like my points wouldn’t come off as organized or clear when I would speak because HM not only messes with my fine motor skills, it can mess with me cognitively. However, I just did what anyone can do and tried my best. There are times if I start having side effects like losing my vision, I’ll have to leave class before it gets worse and walk home with some temporary loss of vision.
Mid terms and finals are hard in general, and for almost every final and midterm, I would be suffering with side effects. I would just have to push through. There were times where I would be nervous about having an HM attack and miss a midterm but thankfully that has never happened. There have been points during my college years that I wouldn’t do so well on a test or study as much because I was having Hemiplegic Migraines. I have been discouraged at times but I have told myself to just keep moving forward.
I have medication for HM but many medicines in the past have not worked for me. I have to sleep off my Hemiplegic Migraines and they have to pass. Being a college student is hard enough with homework assignments, tests, etc. so having a medical condition while being in school can be tough. I believe though that having the Hemiplegic Migraines has made me stronger, and a hard worker. Despite the hardships of having HM, I still have enjoyed my college days. I have learned how to manage my medical condition to the best of my ability.
I wanted to share this because Hemiplegic Migraines are not that well known to the public. I was eight years old when I had my first known hemiplegic migraine attack. I was one of the first kids diagnosed with it in Alabama. At that time, there wasn’t much knowledge about it and what caused it. Through the course of time, doctors believe it’s a blood flow issue. My doctors have explained to me that my spine is too tight and my arteries are curved instead of straight, could be causing it.
If you have a medical condition or health problems, don’t give up. Living with a medical condition, isn’t just hard physically but emotionally too. However, don’t give up on your dreams. It may take longer for you than everyone else or you might have to do it differently than some other people but that’s ok. Hardships create endurance and what’s waiting for you at the finish line will be more beautiful because you worked so hard for it.
*For more information about Hemiplegic Migraines, you can visit the official Hemiplegic Migraine Foundation Facebook page.