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Health
those affected, regardless of gender. ”However,
inventing excuses or hiding the disease
definitely does not lead to anything, except
for stress and tension. That alone can lead
to migraine attacks – so it is not a solution.
Nevertheless, Mehmet also knows that it
takes a lot of courage to do this. As such, he
wants to encourage other men to be open
about their migraines.
NEW THERAPY BROUGHT RELIEF
In the summer of 2019, his neurologist
started a new treatment for him, the so-called
migraine injection, an antibody therapy.
A real life changer! “The change was really
phenomenal and I'm not exaggerating. Already
after the first injections I started to see
improvements,” says Mehmet. The first five
injections of the antibody therapy were given
to him in the neurological practice, after
which he was able to inject the drug himself
– similar to diabetes.
With this therapy, his pain has decreased
significantly. The pressure and stinging in the
neck as well as the speech disorders are still
there, but the unbearable pain is contained.
The number of days on which he has attacks
has also decreased significantly. Now he
only gets around six to eight attacks a
month. "That is a clear relief for me," he says.
DO MEN NOT SUFFER?
There is a common misconception that one
can’t complain about migraines as to get
through this extreme pain you have
to be "a tough guy", regardless of
gender. “I'm generally a very open
person and personally have no
problems talking about it. I stand
by the migraines,” says Mehmet.
“I also advise other people
affected to deal openly with the
disease. After all, migraines are
serious illnesses that should
be recognized. Men are also
allowed to accept help and proactively
ask for support. Every
step you take forward can be the
right one." (red,mb)
What does the
neurologist say?
Dr. med. Astrid Gendolla,
specialist in neurology with
an additional qualification
in special pain therapy and
psychotherapy with her
own practice in Essen.
www.praxis-gendolla.de
Does migraine appear differently in
men than in women?
„No. In general, the symptoms (such
as headache worsening depending
on movement) and optionally the
accompanying symptoms are the
same in men and women.“
Are men more likely to shy away
from seeking medical help for
migraines?
“There are gender-specific differences
in the extent to which doctors
are consulted. In general, migraines
are still perceived as a “women‘s”
disease – the gender ratio here is 1:3.
Epidemiological data also support
this thesis. In families, mothers
have migraines more often, so the
family ascription is more aimed at
women... When men wake up on Saturdays
with a headache, they first
think of the previous evening as the
cause and less of a „real“ migraine.
But vice versa, some doctors certainly
do not think of the diagnosis
„migraines“ when a man introduces
himself to them as a patient with a
headache.“
CHECK BERLIN/BRANDENBURG #7
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