Seymour Diamond, MD
Executive Chairman and Founder
National Headache Foundation
Director Emeritus and Founder
Diamond Headache Clinic
Chicago, IL
Mary A. Franklin
Director of Operations
National Headache Foundation
Chicago, IL
IN HIS 1974 BOOK, CREATIVE MALADY,
PICKERING DESCRIBES A GROUP OF
INDIVIDUALS WHO THRIVE CREATIVELY
ALTHOUGH THEY ARE DEBILITATED BY
CHRONIC ILLNESS.
O
ne of this group is the renowned biologist, Charles
Darwin (1809 to 1882). Darwin persevered in his
scientific writings although he was plagued by migraine
since his early twenties.
Reportedly, Darwin suffered a severe headache only
a few days prior to his marriage to his cousin, Emma
Wedgewood. He said that it was not the upcoming
marriage that precipitated the headache but rather the
actual nuptials, “As the excruciating moment drew close,
Charles’ usual symptoms appeared.” He wrote to his
fiancee, “My last two days in London, when I wanted to
have most leisure, were rendered very uncomfortable by a
bad headache, which continued two days and two nights,
so that I doubted whether it ever meant to go and allow
me to be married.”
For those experiencing migraine, this scenario is truly
believable. How often has a migraine attack appeared
immediately before a stressful event, such as an exam or a
significant ceremony (ie graduation)? For example, Charles
Darwin was not able to attend his own father’s funeral
because of a severe headache. The fear of an impending
attack will impact a happy event, such as a child’s wedding.
Many migraine sufferers will report that they made it
through the event only to be sidelined later with a severe
headache.
Throughout Darwin’s adult life, he would experience a
migraine attack that was triggered by a deviation in his
normal routine. His family, including his wife and 10
children, learned to adapt to life with a migraineur – “a pall
settled over his family. The children played in a depressed
hush.” Seven of his children lived to adulthood, and
three inherited his headaches – something he feared for
them. Darwin described his migraines as his “hereditary
weakness.” As we know, up to 70 percent of migraineurs
will report a family history of similar headaches. Research
continues into the identification of genomes associated
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