MIGRAINE has become a way of life for Jayne Ricketts who first started having them when she was five years old.

"At that age, it is very difficult for adults to believe you," said Jane, 28, an information analyst, of Cinnamon Brow, Warrington.

"My very unsympathetic doctor at the time thought I was being sick because I didn't like school" said Jayne.

When the school doctor saw Jayne asleep in the sick room she was referred to Manchester Children's Hospital which diagnosed infantile migraine.

Jayne suffered it on and off, with a couple of years migraine free, around the age of nine, but has had attacks regularly throughout her life.

She said: "I start with flashing lights, then I get very severe headaches which affect my vision. In a severe attack I am quite sick. I also shake and become very tired and find it hard to concentrate on anything

"My hearing can also be affected, as I cannot stand anything too loud and this makes my headache worse. It often becomes so bad that I cannot carry on working and I have no option but to go home to bed."

At the moment Jayne is having attacks about once a week. They normally start late afternoon or evening, but occasionally she wakes up with one.

"I always make sure that I have my tablets with me and I have to eat regularly. My main triggers are going without food, being overtired, strong smells such as perfume, drinking alcohol, particularly red wine and some foods including chocolate, cheese and garlic," she added.

Jayne's medication is Imigran - very strong migraine tablets, available only by prescription. They are the only tablets that work for her.

She says she had tried every available brand of migraine tablets and also beta-blockers, to try to reduce the frequency of attacks.

Her medication takes about an hour to work. If she leaves it too long before taking her tablets, Jayne's only option is to go to bed in dark, cold and quiet surroundings.

"My colleagues are aware that I suffer from migraines and are sympathetic," she said.

"They always send me straight home. My husband, David, and my family are very sympathetic. My mum always knows when I have an attack coming on as soon as she looks at me. It can be very frustrating for David if we have arranged to go out and I get an attack. On the few occasions I have still gone out with a migraine I always have to come home again.

"David worries in case it is something more sinister. However I have learned how to control it over the years and have finally found some medication that works" she said.

Jayne's advice to other people with migraine is not to suffer in silence, but to seek professional advice from their GP.

"Mine is very supportive and always lets me know if there are new treatments coming out. I also believe that talking it through with fellow sufferers can help because you feel you are not alone."

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.