Migraine Headaches Relieved After Years of Suffering

Dana suffered a peripheral nerve injury when she was four years old. As a result she had excruciating Migraine Headaches for her entire life. She tried many different treatments but nothing worked until she met Dr. Tim Tollestrup, a Peripheral Nerve Surgeon. Watch her inspiring story.

Full Transcript:

I used to sleep a lot or try to sleep. I would sleep on ice every night on my head. I was frequent in the ER and to urgent care, trying to get relief because it was so bad. I really just wanted to die. I am a teacher, I teach kindergarten and I used to have to leave to go get sick in the bathroom. I have one daughter and I have a lot of guilt, because I’ve been sick a lot of my marriage and a lot of her growing up.

He has a wonderful way of making you feel at ease. When he said that I was a candidate for that, I was all onboard.

We went in and disconnected the greater occipital nerves, the third occipital nerves. And we actually put a categoric nerve allografts on those. We sewed them to nerve grafts. And the purpose of that is to allow the nerve to grow into the graph, but sort of burn out and prevent formation of a painful neuroma. And at the same time we went in and disconnected the lesser occipital nerves.

And this is the sort of the pleasure and pain of peripheral nerve surgeries. There can be a lot of variation from one person to another, in terms of their actual individual peripheral nerve anatomy. We went in and found a second lesser occipital nerves on both sides and then revised the original nerve as well. And that has really seemed to resolve the remainder of her headache pain.

I have a lot more energy. I’m happier. I went skydiving a couple months after my surgery to celebrate. I feel like I’m more present now and you know, I’m trying to make up for all those lost times.

I just appreciate him so much. Not only does he do this groundbreaking nerve surgery, but I was so impressed because after surgery he gave me his personal cell phone number. He actually texted me and checked on me several times. I just feel like he genuinely cares about his patients.