Positive Praxis: 2019

Wednesday, January 9, 2019

Seasonal Affective Disorder and Migraine

Here is a Facebook Live presentation for the Move Against Migraine Facebook Support Group on 1/18/18. It had nearly 6K hits! It was a HIT!

I still use my "happy lite" on a regular basis during our dark Michigan winters. Otherwise, I feel sluggish, as if I just can't accomplish anything.

I added the purple streak in my hair as a nod to migraine awareness and advocacy. When people see it and ask me about it, I am proud to let them know. I fight the stigma of Migraine Disease wherever and whenever I can.

Here's to more light in YOUR life!

Being your Own Best Advocate: FB Live Presentation for Move Against Migraine

My Facebook Live advocacy presentation done on 6/18/18 for the Move Against Migraine Facebook Support Group. It had 2.4K views.

Yes, I had a migraine that day. My brain was running in slo-mo. What we do? We plug along and do the best we can. We push through.

Migraine: Navigating the Emergency Room

Here is a Facebook Live presentation I did for Move Against Migraine called "Navigating the Emergency Room with Migraine." I am posting it here because the Move Against Migraine Facebook group is private, and the information is too important not to share.

This video was created on 7/12/17, and was viewed by 2.2K people on the Move Against Migraine Facebook site.

Here are the slides if you're interested:

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Jill Oglesby Dehlin, RN

I am a nurse, teacher, mom, wife, sister, health educator, and patient advocate. I am also a person who has been disabled by chronic migraine since 2006, but I don't let that define me.

Throughout my career, one of my overarching goals has been to advocate for and empower people to take charge of their health and their lives.

My journey has taken some interesting turns. I became an RN at the age of 19, but returned to school at the age of 35 to become a teacher because it is always what I wanted to do. I earned a bachelor's degree in school health education and a master's degree in health promotion (now called a master's in public health at CMU). I then became an adjunct professor at Central Michigan University where I was encouraged to continue with my education and earn my PhD.

I hit some speed bumps along the way. As my migraine disease progressed, I found it nearly impossible to write my PhD dissertation. The crippling migraine and the medicines I used to combat it had horrible cognitive effects. Because of this, I was stigmatized, patronized, and ostracized. I never gave up, but I ran out of time. I had to give up my dream of becoming a college professor.

I never felt like a failure or a quitter. I never felt as if migraine ruined my life. Don't get me wrong, it was a huge disappointment, but it only changed the trajectory of my life.

It has been my mission to help the public understand what migraine is; to help others with the disease know how to advocate for themselves and others in the community; to improve education about headache disorders in medical and nursing schools; and to have research funding equity for headache disorders to improve understanding of pain disorders so new therapies and medicines can be developed to help people with disabling pain.

Having an invisible disease has taught me a lot about myself and others. I am lucky to have a very supportive husband, family, and friends. Not everyone can say this.

What I CAN say is, don't lose hope. There are plenty of us who have been on this journey. You are not alone.

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Wednesday, January 9, 2019

Seasonal Affective Disorder and Migraine

Here's to more light in YOUR life!

Being your Own Best Advocate: FB Live Presentation for Move Against Migraine

Migraine: Navigating the Emergency Room