Before migraine, life was good for Cannon Tekstar. She had a big career with travel, people reporting to her, and invitations to parties. But when migraine struck, it all turned silent, including support from her so-called friends. In this episode, Cannon shares how living with hemiplegic migraine forced her to re-set her career and how she uses social media to support others living with migraine. 

Among the highlights in this episode:

1:40 : Cannon describes her worst migraine attacks

4:50 : Role of hospital emergency rooms for people with migraine

5:56 : Cannon describes migraine auras, hers being more motor and sensory

7:35 : “The most common aura is a visual aura, having 20 to 30 minutes of zigzags if it's in the sensory section of the brain,” says Dr. Peter McAlister, Director of the New England Center for Neurology

8:36 : Auras can be multifaceted

9:45 : Cannon discusses the loss of her big career filled with travel due to migraine

13:35 : There are only 700 headache specialists for the 35-40 million people diagnosed with migraine in the U.S.

13:58 : “It is so unfair that so many people don't have access to medications they need,” says Cannon

15:45 : Joe recalls how his insurance company continued to deny simple treatment

19:22 : Importance of a headache specialist

20:40 : Dr. McAlister describes why migraine attacks often get misdiagnosed as sinus infections or sinus headaches

23:09 : Cannon opened a TikTok account to help educate people about migraine and counter misinformation

27:47 : People forget how genetic migraine is

Contact Our Host

Joe Coe, Director, Education and Digital Strategy at GHLF: jcoe@ghlf.org

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