Blog #26: The Medicine Gap and migraine disease
Photo credit: The Medicine Gap/Jo Currie
My ultimate goal when I began Migraine Down Under was to create a platform and voice for people in New Zealand living with migraine.
Over the past 18 months I’ve developed some important relationships with overseas migraine organisations and advocates, connected with strong, incredible and brave people in New Zealand living with migraine and aimed to raise awareness of migraine disease.
This week my story about living with migraine features on The Medicine Gap, told by the talented broadcaster and storyteller Rachel Smalley.
Read it here or https://themedicinegap.co.nz/voices/sarah-chronic-migraines/
I hope my story helps others in New Zealand to connect with me, and with others, and to realise how much hope there is for those of us with migraine. But I also hope it highlights areas of migraine care that need to change – and how those of us with migraine disease need to be in the driver’s seat of that change.
I share my story as one person living with migraine to help make our collective voice in New Zealand the loudest it can be.
You can also read a brilliant perspective piece by Dr Fiona Imlach. Dr Imlach and I, together with a couple of other dedicated New Zealanders, have been busy working on establishing New Zealand’s only not-for-profit migraine organisation. I feel incredibly humbled by the enthusiasm these women have shown in working towards this collective goal, with our aim to support all people in Aotearoa New Zealand who live with this debilitating disease.
This work is also why I’ve been a bit quiet on the blog and social media lately. Only so many hours in the day, and when you throw in a few non-productive migraine days, the weeks just fly by!
We’ve still got a few t’s to cross and a few i’s to dot before our organisation is ready to officially launch. We’ve stayed under the radar as we wanted to launch strong, however, through The Medicine Gap we thought it was a good opportunity to let this migraine community know where we’re heading.
Please also visit The Medicine Gap to read about other conditions affected by the medicine funding crisis in New Zealand. You can also follow The Medicine Gap on Facebook and Instagram and sign up to The Medicine Gap newsletter.
And if you haven’t already, you can find me on Facebook, the private New Zealand headache and migraine support group, and Instagram. Or email me: sarah@sayline.co.nz