Every year multiple cities throughout the United States become the host of a Miles for Migraine 5K event. While there are no races being hosted in the cities near me, for the last few years, I have made it a goal to participate in at least one of these events virtually.
My Story
For the last 22 years, I have been one of the millions of people who suffer with Migraine. Like many others, I have fought for answers in hopes of finding a way to thrive while coping with the world’s 3rd most disabling disease.
It took 9 years of fighting through pain before I was properly diagnosed by a neurologist. Originally I was told that because I didn’t have an aura, I was having tension headache and needed to be less “stressed”.
The neurologist was working with 9 years of damage done by a misdiagnosed and mistreated disease. With Migraine, that matters. By the time I reached him, I had evolved into Chronic Migraine.
Chronic Migraine is defined as 15 or more headache days per month with at least 8 of those days having migraine features and for at least 3 months.
At the time, my attacks were roughly 15 days per month and increasing. The neurologist treated me with a variety of medications, all of which made my attacks worse, had horrible side effects, and lessened my quality of life.
I spent the next several years on my own, following the research, learning everything I could, and being an advocate for myself. I worked on constructing a life that had as many controlled variables as possible (sleep, eat, staying hydrated, exercising, reducing stress) so I could lower my threshold for attacks.
As part of this learning process, I discovered that people with migraine have a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases. This pushed me to start running as a way to help cope with pain and potentially offset any cardiovascular diseases. I quickly fell back in love with running and it soon became something more.
Despite being very difficult sometimes and runs being skipped altogether other times, running became something that I could value myself for doing. I learned how strong I was because of what I could do in spite of this disease. It also helped reduce pain and frequency, at least at first.
Then I discovered Miles for Migraine. I could use my love for running and my own coping method, to help bring awareness and advocacy for myself and others who were fighting the same battles as me.
This is far from the end of my story but it was the beginning of my love for the Miles for Migraine events.
My Miles for Migraine Event
This year I am participating in the virtual Chicago Miles for Migraine 5K. Registration and funds raised for this event go to support The Seymour Diamond Fellowship in Headache Medicine.
I will be running this 5K on one of my favorite trail systems, Woldumar Nature Center.
Registration fees also cover a t-shirt and medal. When signing up, participants can opt out of any of the swag items and instead have additional money donated toward the beneficiary for the event.
Participants can also choose to fundraise and earn additional items by reaching different goals.
The Miles for Migraine Organization
Miles for Migraine is a nonprofit organization that wants to improve the lives of people with migraine and other headache disorders by raising awareness and helping to find the cure.
They are focused on raising money for fellowship programs in order to help fill the void of headache specialists across the country.
The first Miles for Migraine event was held in 2008. It was a 5K, 10K, and a 2-mile walk in San Fransico and had about 200 people participate.
Cities to Participate
Throughout the year, Miles for Migraine events occur in major cities around the country, including:
- Tampa, Florida
- Phoenix, Arizona
- Dallas, Texas
- Houston, Texas
- Hartford, Connecticut
- Indianapolis, Indiana
- Kansa City, Missouri
- Buffalo, New York
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Boston, Massachusetts
- Denver, Colorado
- Salt Lake City, Utah
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Chicago, Illinois
- Morgantown, West Virginia
- New York, New York
- Burlington, Vermont
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Washington D.C
- Winston-Salem, North Carolina
- San Francisco, California
- San Diego, California
- Los Angeles, California
- Miami, Florida
Each of these locations offers a 2-mile walk, 5k run, and a virtual option if you can’t attend but wish to support the beneficiary for that event.
Overall
These events are a great way to support the migraine community, give a little back, and help bring awareness to one terrible disease that destroys the joy in life of those who suffer with it or love someone who suffers with it.
If you would like to donate to my fundraising page, visit Help Amie Raise Money for Miles for Migraine or participate in an event in your nearby city or virtually at Miles for Migraine.