Montreal neurologist on a mission to have migraines taken seriously

Working women get more migraines than anyone else, and it's causing irrevocable damage to their lives, according to Dr. Elizabeth Leroux, a headache neurologist and the chair of Migraine Canada.

"The research is very clear that it is a condition that affects three to four women for one man," she explains. "It [starts] in childhood. It's 10 per cent of little children, and then once puberty arrives, the women start having more of it. So, migraine really affects people between 10 to 15 [years old] and then up to 50 [years old]."

It is an extremely prevalent neurological disease that impacts one in seven people in the world, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Leroux notes that the number changes to one in 10 to 15 for severe cases, and two to four per cent of the population live with it chronically.

Despite years of research, she argues there is a stigma against migraine sufferers, with many people brushing it off as "just a headache."

Leroux's sentiments are echoed by the authors of The Migraine Stigma Kaleidoscope View, who state people face "enormous misunderstanding" from family, friends, health care professionals and employers.

"There is a widespread conviction in society that migraine is just a plain headache and that those of us who suffer from migraine have very little resistance or are using it as an excuse," co-author Elena Ruiz de la Torre writes. "There is currently no cure for migraine; its treatment is symptomatic, and we are now beginning to see new preventive treatments."

Leroux notes that, though migraines are not always caused by hormonal changes or the menstrual cycle, the prevalence of the illness does diminish around the same time women enter menopause.

The gender gap at work

According to the publication Migraine in the Workplace, "migraine is a leading cause of disability in the world, especially for people during their peak productive years in the workforce."

"It's a disorder that affects adults in their full productive years," Leroux tells CTV News, adding many of her patients are long-time sufferers but only come see her when they are in their 40s. "It starts young, and then it just continues and affects you for years and decades."

Leroux indicates the common neurological medical condition can be particularly damaging when it comes to women's careers.

Studies have already proven women have a more challenging time than men managing work, life, kids and more; throw in a debilitating disease and the whole scale tips.

"You take a condition that does not kill, that's invisible, and that affects women, and it gets very easy to say, 'Oh, it's only a migraine, and your CT scan is normal,'" said Leroux, adding companies need to implement better policies to help their employees. "It's not ethical anymore to deny care to people with migraine."

Ignored and misunderstood

Leroux argues patients often feel ignored, poorly treated and misunderstood.

"In certain provinces, there's up to four years wait to see a neurologist for migraine because it's not killing you, and it's not considered a serious disease," she said. "There are very sad stories where people are asking to be referred, asking for care and they're not getting it, sometimes for a lack of knowledge, sometimes for a lack of interest."

Leroux laments migraine is still not considered a chronic disease in Canada despite its recognition by WHO.

"If epilepsy and asthma and obesity are chronic conditions, migraine should be, because it's lifelong," she said.

Though there is still a long way to go when it comes to educating policy workers, health care professionals, employers and even friends and family about the plight of migraine sufferers, Leroux says she feels optimistic with all the success stories coming out of her clinic.

"I've heard things like, 'You gave me back my life,' people cry in my office, they're like, 'I can play sports now,' 'my kids are happy to have their mom back,'" she said. "I wanted to help because there are so many, they're so affected, they're not believed," she said. "And then when you try to help them, they actually get better, which is nice."