THERE IS SOMETHING YOU CAN DO - Get you MP to sign the EDM, number 1802 ‘GP training in migraine and headache conditions’

Make a difference - email your MP and ask them to sign this.


2ND JUNE 2011

Headache UK, of which The Migraine Trust is a member, is currently engaged in encouraging members of parliament to sign an Early Day Motion (EDM) to draw attention to the number of work and school days lost due to migraine and headache, an alarming 25 million per year.

Given the current economic situation this is an opportunity to appeal to MPs to take action to help not only avoid the suffering of so many but make savings to the economy by keeping migraine sufferers well and able to work.

John Leech MP tabled the EDM, number 1802 ‘GP training in migraine and headache conditions’ which reads:

“That this house expresses its concern that the onset of migraine and headache results in 25 million missed school and work days per year at an estimated cost to the economy of £2.5 billion per year; and calls on the Government to increase and sustain support for GP training to combat this medical condition and thereby avoid this unnecessary cost to the economy.”

The challenge for Headache UK is to make this EDM one that attracts the support of as many MPs as possible. The Migraine Trust would be grateful if you could write to your member of parliament and ask them to sign the EDM. The goal is to have 200 members of parliament sign the EDM so that government and governmental departments take notice of the feeling of the house.

We invite you to contact your MP to ask if he or she has signed EDM 1802. You can contact your MP via the UK Parliament website ( http://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-your-mp/ ) or by writing to them c/o The House Of Commons, London SW1A OAA. You can also check on the Parliament website to see if your MP has already signed the EDM.

Should you like some guidance on the content of your letter or email to your MP, may we suggest you ask them to take your condition seriously, and perhaps provide some comment on the nature of your condition and what sort of services you would like available in the future.

More information is available by contacting The Migraine Trust. http://www.migrainetrust.org/contact

About Early Day Motions (EDMs)

Early Day Motions (EDMs) are formal motions submitted for debate in the House of Commons. Early day motions (EDMs) are tabled by MPs to publicise a particular event or cause, and to gather support among MPs for that event or cause. MPs demonstrate their support for an EDM by signing the motion.

Here is a copy of my email - thought it might help if you have writers block today


Dear Mr Brazier

I was wondering if you seen the above EDM? http://www.parliament.uk/edm/2010-11/1802 And if I could encourage you to sign it?

I am not only a chronic migraine sufferer myself (and have been for 5 yrs) but I also run a migraine forum, (migraintalk.co.uk) and have heard some very sad stories of how patients are treated by doctors, whom do not fully understand the impact that migraine can have on a person.

I also have concerns for my children and any treatment they may need in the future - my son had his first migraine attack at just 5 years old.

Migraine is the most common neurological condition in the developed world. It is more prevalent than diabetes, epilepsy and asthma combined – eight million people in the UK have migraine. It results in 25,000,000 missed school and work days per year at an estimated cost to the economy of 2.5 billion.

Even with these numbers doctors are only given hours training on migraine, this is not enough to understand this debilitating condition, which if not controlled and understood, can go chronic - as I found out.

I had monthly classical migraine as a child, which progressed in to a massive migraine attack at 29, which left me with stroke type symptoms. By the time I hit 35, I had developed chronic migraine - meaning I have a constant head pain and full migraine attacks for 15 or more days per month. This condition totally takes over your life.

Any help we can give to doctors to understand this condition can only go to help suffering and in turn the economy of this country.

Kind regards

Tracey



I am not sure how much you know of this condition, so I have added a few facts below, but I would be happy to provide more information should you require it?



Migraine is a condition of recurring headaches that may be linked with other symptoms, such as sensitivity to light and noise, nausea, vomiting, dizziness and eyesight changes. It can even cause temporary paralysis.


Key facts and figures about migraine:

Among adults of all ages, migraine is one of the top 20 causes of disability expressed as years of healthy life lost to disability (The World Health Report 2001, WHO)

Severe migraine attacks are classified by the World Health Organisation as among the most disabling illnesses, comparable to dementia, quadriplegia and active psychosis (Shapiro & Goadsby, Cephalalgia, September 2007)

Migraine is the least publicly funded of all neurological illnesses relative to its economic impact (Shapiro & Goadsby, Cephalalgia, September 2007)

In the UK, there are an estimated 190,000 migraine attacks every day (Steiner et al, Cephalalgia, 2003)

An estimated 25 million days are lost from work or school because of migraine (Steiner et al, Cephalalgia, 2003)

Just over a third (34.3%) of migraine sufferers face difficulties or discrimination at work because of their condition (The Migraine Trust, 2004)

Over half (54%) of migraineurs experience one or more attacks per month, and 13% claim one or more attacks per week (Steiner et al, Cephalalgia, 2003)

Women are more likely to have migraine attacks than men – 18% of women and 8% of men (Steiner et al, Cephalalgia, 2003)

Children can get migraine attacks too. Attacks can start at any age, but they usually start in children who are in their early to mid teens (Goadsby et al, New England Journal of Medicine, 2002)

A survey of neurologists found that up to one-third of all patients consulted because of headache – more than for any other complaint (WHO, Factsheet 277, March 2004)

Depression is three times more common in people with migraine or severe headaches than in healthy individuals (WHO, Factsheet 277, March 2004)