More than meets the eye

Imagine your brain in revolt: pulsing pain, nausea, blurred vision, and the world suddenly too loud, too bright, too much. That’s migraine. Not “just a headache,” but a serious neurological disorder. When these attacks occur frequently – fifteen or more days each month, with at least eight being migraines – the condition is classified as chronic migraine.

Photo Credit: Martina Cilia

Unfortunately, I fall under this category, and I have been living with it since I was 15 – which means the years I've lived with migraine now outnumber the years I lived without it. While I have never hidden my condition, and some may feel that LinkedIn is not the typical platform for such discussions, I believe it is precisely the right place to raise awareness.

Chronic illness undeniably impacts careers, affects performance, and challenges conventional definitions of professionalism, and advancing truly inclusive workplaces begins with acknowledging the often unseen realities many manage every day.

In the professional world, we often celebrate resilience, grit, and performance. But what happens when your biggest achievement of the day is simply showing up, because your body feels like it’s been hijacked by a pain no one else can see?

That’s the reality for many chronic migraine sufferers.

Despite being one of the top ten leading causes of disability worldwide [1], migraine remains under-recognized, under-funded, and under-treated. There is no cure. In some countries, even the available pain treatments are not always reimbursed – turning this condition into both a medical and financial burden.

But here’s what many people don’t realize: the hardest part is not always the pain itself. It’s the invisibility of it.

It’s spending full days in offices where windows can’t be opened [for safety reasons], while your body begs for air, quiet, and rest.

It’s commuting – no matter the weather (cold and humidity can make it worse, and so can extreme heat).

It’s staying still through a conference keynote while all you want is to lay your head down.

It’s sitting in back-to-back meetings pretending the neon lights aren’t slicing through your temples.

It’s being on a business trip with little sleep, knowing full well that lack of sleep is a major trigger, but being unable to avoid it.

It’s attending networking events where the only non-alcoholic option is a glass of water.

It’s standing on a terrace after work, surrounded by cigarette smoke you can’t escape, knowing it might cost you the next day.

It’s worrying about being perceived as unreliable when in fact, you are constantly managing an invisible crisis with extraordinary effort.

It’s working through the side effects of the only medication that helps, a class of drugs called triptans, which often cause dizziness or extreme drowsiness. I work in an office, and I consider that a privilege when I think of those operating machinery, or driving, or working in environments where being alert is critical – not just for their own safety, but for those around them.

And if you’re wondering what a migraine – even a mild one – feels like: imagine having a deep bruise on your temple, and someone is repeatedly hitting it with a hammer. Not just for an hour, but for days and nights, in a loop.

While there’s nothing you can do to ease someone’s pain during a migraine attack, you can try to be understanding.

So why do I speak up? Because silence perpetuates stigma.

And stigma often wears the mask of well-meaning advice.

“Have you tried yoga?”

“Have you seen a neurologist? A cardiologist? A phlebologist?”

“You should cut out gluten. Or dairy. Or sugar. Or coffee.”

Well, the truth is: we’ve tried them all. We've seen specialists, undergone treatments, changed diets, routines, and lifestyles. Some things help, sometimes. But none of them cure. Because there is no cure.

What helps most is awareness. Compassion. Flexibility.

So, to the HR professionals, people managers, teachers, and professionals in general: if someone logs in or arrives a bit later than 9:00 sharp, please don’t jump to conclusions. They might have spent the night battling symptoms you’ll never see – but still chose to show up instead of calling in sick.

Chronic illness doesn’t always look like what we expect. It can wear a blazer, hit deadlines, lead meetings – and still be carrying an invisible weight.

This Migraine Awareness Month – but not only – I hope we can look around us with a bit more awareness, a bit more kindness, and a lot more curiosity.

While this article is written through the lens of migraine, it’s worth remembering there are many other chronic conditions that remain hidden in plain sight. Just because they aren’t officially classified as disabilities doesn’t mean they can’t be profoundly limiting – physically, emotionally, or professionally.

And if you’re someone silently navigating this yourself: your strength is not in hiding it.

Your strength is in showing up, exactly as you are.

[1] Steiner, T.J., Stovner, L.J., Jensen, R. et al., Migraine remains second among the world’s causes of disability, and first among young women: findings from GBD2019, The Journal of Headache and Pain, December 2020.

[This article was originally published on LinkedIn].