`DESPERATE' FOR RELIEF MARCIA CROSS GOT MIGRAINE HELP, AND YOU CAN, TOO.

Byline: Evan Henerson Staff Writer

A painful migraine can make anyone feel desperate. Even a Desperate Housewife.

``My first one happened when I was 14,'' recalls Marcia Cross, who plays Bree Van De Kamp on ABC's ``Desperate Housewives.''

``I had this excruciating pain. The school nurse told me to call my mother, and I couldn't remember my phone number, which used to happen to me.

``Someone took me home, and I just writhed in pain in my bedroom,'' she continues. ``I didn't know what was going on, but it was horrible.''

Most of us find ways to deal with common headaches, but those who suffer the harsher, debilitating pain classified as migraines often don't realize there's more help available.

In its Ten Year Report Card on the State of Migraine, the National Headache Foundation estimated that 52 percent of the people whose headaches fit the classifications of migraines have never been diagnosed and are not receiving the most appropriate treatment for their symptoms.

Prescription for relief

``I think a lot of people probably feel they don't need to be diagnosed. They can get away with Tylenol or other over-the-counter medication and don't feel they necessarily need prescription medication,'' says Dr. David Kudrow of the California Medical Clinic for Headache in Encino. ``But some have more frequent migraines, and it can start disrupting schedules.

``The key,'' Kudrow continues, ``is that migraines are treatable, and somewhat preventable.''

Cross got the help she needed.

Thirty years after that first migraine, she knows exactly what is going on when she starts to experience classic migraine symptoms, including tingling in her fingers and a cone of light in her peripheral vision -- known as an aura.

When these symptoms come on, Cross says she quickly takes her prescribed medication, retreats to a quiet place and waits for the discomfort to pass. Only once, she says, has a migraine interfered with her work.

``Most people -- and I hear this a lot -- they'll say, `Oh I have a migraine,' and I'll ask if they take medication,'' says Cross. ``It's so easy to ignore it because it just goes away, you forget about it and think you don't have it. I'm not even sure I did until I was diagnosed.''

Hurting the bottom line

When not properly treated, migraines -- which also carry symptoms like nausea, dizziness and sensitivity to sound and light -- can cause far-

reaching problems.

At a June meeting of the American Headache Society, it was estimated that migraine-related absenteeism costs employers $10 billion per year. Children who suffer from severe headaches lose nearly eight school days per year.

A recent survey by the National Headache Foundation also revealed that migraine sufferers are at greater risk for additional ``co-morbidity'' conditions, including fibromyalgia, epilepsy, chronic fatigue, asthma and depression.

Apart from affecting women three times more often than men, migraines don't discriminate -- striking more than 28 million Americans of all ages, ethnicities and social classes.

Bonnie Farwell has experienced migraines for 20 years, both as a sufferer and as a nurse. Having worked with Dr. David Brandes of the Northridge Neurological Center -- who is now her physician -- Farwell knew who to turn to when she realized her symptoms needed medical attention.

Coping strategies 

As the manager of her unit, Farwell says she learned to take strategic breaks and put ice packs on her head when the pain struck, in order to keep working. ``I learned to cope with it and function. I'm very tough.

``To be honest, I'd rather have leg pain, shoulder pain or any other kind of pain than the pain of a headache,'' adds Farwell, who, now taking daily medication, experiences migraines once every two weeks.

``You can't see, you can't concentrate. When you stand up, you feel like your head is going to explode.''

In addition to regularly taking Topamax, Farwell -- who also receives treatment for back pain -- has cut down on caffeine and goes through relaxation techniques to help keep the pain at bay. Other patients cite biofeedback, reducing stress and eliminating ``trigger foods'' (such as alcohol, chocolate, nuts or aged cheese) as effective.

``It's great for your diet,'' says Cross, with a laugh. ``Chocolate or migraines? I'll skip the chocolate. It becomes an easy choice.''

Medicine and meditation

Sari Honig of Granada Hills, another Brandes patient, also takes Topamax, which she uses to treat epilepsy. The nonmedical lifestyle measures -- including meditating and exercise -- have also helped, she says.

``Since my stress level is down, my migraines are much better,'' says Honig. ``I try to take at least five to 10 minutes per day to clear my mind and relax. When I don't do that, or when I stop exercising, I find I get a lot more tension headaches.''

When he interviews new patients, Brandes asks headache sufferers whether there is any family history of migraines. If the answer is an initial negative, Brandes asks whether the patient has any recollection of mom going to bed with ``a sick headache.''

``They'll say, `Oh, yeah, she had those headaches,''' says Brandes. ``Doctors have often treated common migraines as a sinus problem. It's often not properly diagnosed.''

Cross says she has had the condition under control for so long that she can't recall the last time she had a migraine attack she was unable to stave off with medication. The actress, who has had success with Imitrex (sumatriptan), is expecting twins with her husband, Tom Mahoney, and says she won't be taking any medication for the foreseeable future.

For the past year and a half, Cross has been trying to raise awareness about the condition and get people who suffer severe persistent headaches to consult physicians. In a public service announcement, she directs viewers to GlaxoSmithKline's headache assessment quiz (at www.headachequiz.com.), which is printed above.

``When you get in the enviable position when you can become a spokesperson for one thing or another, the first thing they ask you is what products or what medical things or cosmetic things you have a passion for,'' says Cross, an Emmy and two-time Golden Globe nominee. ``I'm pretty healthy except for this.''

Evan Henerson, [phone]

[e-mail]

MIGRAINE FACTS

What they are: Throbbing head pain, usually on one side of the head, often accompanied by nausea or sensitivity to light and sound.

Duration: From 4 to 72 hours.

Who gets them: 28 million Americans. One in every four households has a migraine sufferer.

What causes them: Although the exact cause is not known, scientists believe they are triggered within the brain itself. Pain and migraine symptoms, it is believed, cause an interaction between the trigeminal nerve and blood vessels in the covering of the brain. Inflammation around the blood vessels and irritation of the pain-sensitive structures results in severe headaches.

What triggers them: Hormonal cycles, food, stress, emotion, medications.

Treatment: Doctors can prescribe both preventive medication (to be taken before symptoms hit) and abortive (to treat the symptoms once an attack begins). Nonmedical treatments include hypnosis, biofeedback, proper sleep and diet habits, heat and cold applications, and avoidance of situations that trigger an attack.

Source: National Headache Foundation; www.headaches.org

CAPTION(S):

4 photos, 2 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Headsplitters

Diagnosing and dealing with migraines

(2) Marcia Cross suffered for years before she got help for her migraine headaches. One of her strategies: avoiding chocolate.

Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer

(3 -- 4) no caption (migraines)

Box:

(1) MIGRAINE FACTS (see text)

(2) Take this quiz