My migraines first started at uni, though they’ve become noticeably worse since I started working full time. I think this is probably down to concentrating on one thing all day, whether it’s a computer or a piece of work. If I catch it early, I’m usually okay, but being busy at work means its not always possible; as a result, they usually last around 24 hours, plus another day to recuperate.

I tend to manage my migraines with painkillers from the supermarket. The only trouble is how nauseous they can leave me feeling – this is a tell-tale sign that I’m experiencing a migraine. When I get one, the only thing that makes it better is getting into a dark, quiet room and sleeping…unfortunately, this isn’t something I can do in the office when I have deadlines. I also find it difficult to talk to people when I’m having a migraine, which is annoying.

The thing I find most frustrating about having migraines is the time I have to take off work. Because people don’t tend to understand the severity of migraine symptoms, I often feel a bit pathetic for needing time off. The flipside of this is that people who also suffer from migraines are incredibly understanding, which is invaluable. The worst time was having to miss a free three course dinner, with drinks, because of a migraine. Thanks a lot!

Generally, I manage with my migraines fairly well. I’m planning on speaking to my doctor about alternative treatments that can get around the nausea caused by migraines – fingers crossed I find something that works for me.

I had never had a migraine in my life until 8 years ago - I got a headache that just wouldn't shift. There seemed no rhyme or reason as to why this started - but I haven't had a single day since where, to a greater or lesser degree, I haven't had a headache - or chronic migraine as now I have the official diagnosis. It's hard not to feel sad. There's sadness when I stop coping for a minute, and just consider my chronic migraine.

I feel sad for the days, weeks, months of my life that I've lost just being on a sofa in excruciating pain...
; unable to ease it no matter what drug I took - and I've taken the lot!

Sad that every time I try a new treatment, whether it's occipital nerve blocks, muscle paralysing injections, or even alternative and holistic therapies, they don't work - my desperate hopes are dashed again.

But most of all I'm sad about the person my chronic migraine has made me - I'm still me, of course - but a half-light version of myself. When I am blessed with the rare day of a low level headache, I start to feel like the old me, like my real self, and my joy starts to bubble to the top. Then, when the pain inevitably returns again, I go back to coping, not living once more. My temper is shorter, my humour less, all the room in my brain for creativity and inspiration is taken up by my fighting the drills I can feel boring into my temples.

I still believe that one day the right treatment will come along to lift this from me - or maybe it'll just go away as mysteriously as it started. I just hope I don't have to wait another 8 years.

I started having migraines 15 years ago when I hit puberty – as if it wasn’t rough enough. I get them once or twice a month, lasting anywhere between four hours to two days.

In the last year, I’ve worked out that my migraines are related to my menstrual cycle. Realising this has been a huge help in managing my migraines. I’ve also come to realise that specific things can relieve my symptoms, such as getting fresh air, exercising to release tension in my shoulders and limiting caffeine intake. Even though I can’t stop migraines from coming, it’s good to know there are things I can do that help alleviate my symptoms.

Having migraines affects me most at work as, like most of us, I spend the majority of the day looking at a screen. I often find talking to people on the phone can be much harder when I’m having a migraine. I do my best to plough through until half past five, taking regular breaks from the screen, and then I go straight home to sit in a dark room and do absolutely nothing until it has passed.

Even though my colleagues are sympathetic, they can’t really empathise. I actually find that telling people about my migraines weighs me down, so I often tend to keep it to myself when I’m suffering with one at work. When I think back to my life before migraines, I remember being unable to understand what migraines were like – and now I know all too well. This is probably the most frustrating thing about having migraines: people don’t really understand just how bad they can be, and that they’re more than ‘just’ a headache.