Everyday Extraordinary Migraine Care Made the Difference for Jessica

As a teenager, Jessica suffered from migraine headaches. By the time she started college, the headaches had taken over her life.

“I couldn't do anything,” Jessica said. “I couldn't work. I couldn't study. I couldn't listen to music or watch TV or be in a bright room. I just had to be in the dark and like hibernate.”

The adverse reactions she had to medications were nearly as bad. One gave her heart palpitations; another made her too drowsy to function.

Jessica knew she had to change something, and that's when she went to see headache specialist Maike Blaya, MD, neurologist, at Memorial Neuroscience Institute. There, she found the everyday extraordinary care she needed.

“It felt like I was not talking to a doctor, but someone I know, maybe like an aunt or something,” Jessica said. “And she did a lot more tests. She knew what she was talking about and she made me understand what to do.”

Dr. Blaya didn't make big changes in the medications, but explained to Jessica some things to do to avoid side effects.

“I actually decreased the dose that she was on, and then within a week or 10 days being on the medication, her headaches were much better,” said Dr. Blaya.

According to Jessica, almost 100 percent better.

“It's really working out for me,” she said. “It feels like I'm healed.”

Jessica is now able to focus on her studies and resume a normal life.

“Sometimes it is actually very simple, as simple as decreasing the dose of the medication,” said Dr. Blaya. “In her case, it was as simple as that.”