This past week was great! I feel so blessed for modern medicine and healthcare professionals who dedicate their careers to improving peoples' quality of life. Through family friends I was able to get an appointment with Dr. Henry, MD of the Foothill Family Clinic. Although he practices general medicine, he has a special emphasis on migraine disease due to a dramatic personal connection. His youngest daughter committed suicide her senior year of high school after enduring through constant malignant migraines throughout her life. My mom and I were in tears as Dr. Henry told us his story of struggle to find relief for his daughter. It definitely hit home. Ever since this traumatic event, Dr. Henry has made it his personal endeavor to see and assist all migraine sufferers who seek help.
My appointment began with a discussion of my medical history including medications, treatments, procedures, avoided triggers, etc. After dealing with chronic migraines for 20 years now, it seems as if I've tried everything. And with migraines, the frustration of the mystery is half the battle. Dr. Henry then gave me a very long list of medications, treatments, and options I had never heard of or considered. It felt like Christmas! Using a polychronic timetable (yes, I went there), Dr. Henry dedicated over an hour to my appointment, counseling with me and discussing new prevention techniques. He was very compassionate and helpful. Besides leaving with new prescriptions and samples, I had a brighter sense of hope. I had a new found energy to tackle my disease. My situation is definitely not hopeless.
You might be wondering how this experience ties into my field study, well....up until this appointment I have been really scared to go to Tonga. Anxious enough that I was seriously considering dropping out of the program. I wasn't scared of leaving home, or being completely submerged in a new world, I was afraid to deal with these chronic, debilitating migraines all alone without the support of family and friends. My sickness has been at an all-time high lately with at least 3 bedridden migraines a week. Experiencing that pain so frequently made me very nervous for my trip to Tonga. How could I deal with those attacks on my own? Would my host family even understand? Will I have access to medicine? Dr. Henry was an answer to my prayers. He gave me new hope that I'll be okay. I won't let this trial keep me from a once in a lifetime experience. I am so grateful to live in an age of advance medicine. I am very passionate about my project and ready to get out there and make new discoveries. I'm no longer afraid.
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