Be Migraine-Assertive

I had an experience at work last week that reinforced the importance of being assertive about my migraines and migraine potential.

The other day, at work, I came into the conference room and our sales guy
was sitting along the long row of chairs with his back to the window. 
Typically in our "software development planning sessions" we sit
opposite of the sales guy to estimate the work.  This time, I sat down
right next to him.

I was told, "No cheating, you need to sit on
the other side of the table", to which I immediately replied, "No, I'm
feeling a potential migraine coming on and I'm not going to sit facing
the windows."

Guess what?  He moved to the other side of the
table.  No questions, comments, or complaints.  I'm not saying it will
always be this way, but taking an assertive stance in our needs as
migraineurs (if not all of our needs in life) is the right way to go. 
I am going to try my best to remember that in the future.
 
It may be the testosterone in me, but often times I am reluctant to ask for things due to my migraines.  I don't want to appear whiny, weak, or demanding.  It's a constant struggle for me.

The problem is that I am just so damn hypersensitive to so many things: smells, light, etc.  Sometimes I feel like such a complainer just asking for anything, but the problem is usually in how I ask, "um... do you mind, actually, if...".   Even worse, I'll exhibit passive-aggressive behavior to the person until they realize that, say, eating peanut butter or popcorn at the desk next to me is really bothering me.

But it's not just bothering me.  It's a migraine trigger.  I wouldn't consider someone with high blood-pressure that asked for no salt on their fries to be complaining would I?

Still, all too often, I succumb to two unfortunate perceptions.  One is external: migraines are just headaches and we use them as excuses.  The other is internal: that I have to man up--that I should be strong and just get over it.

No more.  This is a self-defeating mode that I intend to be very watchful of.  Because I have the right to work and live in a non-migraine inducing environment.

If we all start standing up for our needs as migraineurs, perhaps the general public will start to understand a little bit of what it's like to live with this debilitating illness.  In my experience, the more the people around us know, the less likely we are to hear a dismissive migraine is just a headache tone.