The Path to Self-Advocacy While Living with Migraine

How Halie Paige reclaimed her voice and found relief through community, persistence, and CEFALY.

Migraine doesn’t just cause pain — it often silences people who are suffering. When the world doesn’t see your symptoms, doesn’t believe your story, or tells you “it’s just a headache,” self-advocacy becomes more than a skill. It becomes a lifeline.

This is something Halie Paige understands intimately. A childhood cancer survivor, Halie is no stranger to navigating the healthcare system. But nothing prepared her for the emotional complexity of living with chronic migraine, vestibular migraine, and later, dysautonomia.

For years, she questioned her own experience and even felt she was being dramatic. Finally, her vestibular symptoms pushed her to see a doctor.

“And it turns out that was the best step I could have taken because I did in fact need some help. I needed some treatment. I couldn’t just manage it by drinking water and laying down. It was more complex than that.

Halie’s journey from doubt to determination is a powerful example of what it means to advocate for yourself while living with migraine. Here’s how she found her voice — and how you can, too.

Step 1: Acknowledging that migraine deserves medical attention

Like many people with chronic illness, Halie normalized her pain for far too long.

She remembers experiencing headache pain so intense she could feel it with every step. But she brushed it off. Took over-the-counter meds. Waited it out. Told herself she was overreacting. It wasn’t until 2021, after years of pushing through, that she was formally diagnosed with chronic migraine.

Shortly after, another layer was added: vestibular migraine, a condition that brought dizziness, instability, and confusion. That’s when she stopped minimizing her symptoms and decided to seek treatment.

One of the most powerful steps in self-advocacy is this: admit that your pain is real — and that you’re worthy of support.

Step 2: Navigating a healthcare system that doesn’t always listen to migraine patients

Once Halie sought help, her battle wasn’t over. It had just shifted.

She met with providers. Tried Qulipta^®, Ubrelvy^®, Emgality^®, and Botox^®. Each treatment offered a sliver of hope, but none brought consistent, lasting relief. And when she tried to share that with doctors, she often felt dismissed.

“Doctors are telling me, ‘Nothing’s wrong, nothing’s wrong.’ I know something’s wrong. …  I really struggled with that, and that made it hard for me to advocate for myself with specialists because I was like, well, they know better than me. They’re doctors.”

That’s when Halie realized: no one was going to fight harder for her health than she could.

She started tracking her symptoms. Asking more questions. Pushing for answers. And when one specialist said, “There’s nothing else we can do,” she looked for another.

Self-advocacy is exhausting — but it’s necessary. It’s how you move from surviving to participating in your own care.

Step 3: Exploring relief beyond medication

Determined to find something sustainable, Halie expanded her migraine toolkit. She turned to social media and discovered stories from others like her — people who were blending traditional medicine with holistic, drug-free relief.

That’s when she found CEFALY, an eTNS device for migraine.

“I had seen someone else describe the sensation of CEFALY as kind of similar to a TENS unit. And I grew up using a TENS unit all the time.”

Halie started using the CEFALY Enhanced device in early 2023. The first session felt familiar — not painful, just tingly and gentle. And the results were better than she’d hoped.

“I always just feel like I have a weight on my head. Like sometimes it just feels like an elephant, sitting on my brain. And when I used the CEFALY for the first time, I felt like I could just relax and breathe a little bit. It felt like lifting the weight.”

For Halie, this wasn’t only about relieving migraine pain. It was about having something she could control. Something she could reach for when everything else failed.

Step 4: Upgrading her migraine treatments and tracking her symptoms

By 2025, Halie was ready for more. She upgraded to the CEFALY Connected device, which syncs with the CeCe Migraine Management app to track intensity levels, log sessions, and export migraine data — a huge win for her ongoing doctor visits.

“I downloaded my PDF the other day… and I have a follow-up with my neurologist soon. So I plan on taking that to her because it lays out all your treatments, and it’s a really easy way to track things.”

She now uses the PREVENT Program most evenings, fitting it into her nighttime routine — and leaning on it especially during seasonal shifts when her vestibular symptoms flare.

💡 Already using an older CEFALY device? You can trade it in for up to $125 off the new CEFALY Connected. Learn more and upgrade your device.

Step 5: Sharing her story — and building a community

Through it all, Halie started sharing her story online — not for attention, but for connection.

“One of the most important lessons I’ve learned over the last few years of dealing with chronic illness is that community is so important. … Finding community online is one of the biggest things that has helped me because I can see I’m not alone. Even though I feel very alone, I’m not alone. There’s other people who understand, and it’s validating.”

Her Instagram, @haliepaige_, is now a place where she talks openly about medication trials, device use, therapy, and the mental health toll of invisible illness.

She reminds her followers — and herself — that self-advocacy is a practice, not a perfect science. And it’s okay if it looks different from day to day.

What Halie wants you to know

If you’re struggling to be heard, Halie has this to say:

“Self-advocacy when you have a chronic illness is so important, because you’re the best advocate that you have for yourself.” 

And if you’re trying to build your own relief toolkit?

“You are doing a good job, even if you are feeling stuck and you feel like you haven’t found what works and you’re frustrated… There’s not going to be a magic medication that will take away your pain and your symptoms, especially if you are super complex or you have a lot of comorbidities. Try different things, like CEFALY.” 

The path to self-advocacy starts with you

Halie’s story reminds us that migraine management isn’t just about symptoms — it’s about reclaiming power. When your body feels out of control, having tools, tracking, and community gives you something solid to hold onto.

CEFALY can be a part of that path. It’s both an acute migraine treatment and a daily prevention practice that you control.

Ready to take the next step?
Trade in your old CEFALY and get up to $125 off the Connected device. Upgrade now.