York woman takes on 128-foot abseil for people with migraine

Lesley Barlow, who lives just outside York near the York moors, will be taking on the Peel Tower Abseil on 4 March to raise funds for The Migraine Trust, the UK’s leading migraine charity. Lesley was diagnosed with migraine for the first time at the age of 60 and lives with chronic migraine and vestibular migraine. Lesley’s daughter also lives with migraine.

Lesley Barlow, who lives just outside York near the York moors, will be taking on the Peel Tower Abseil on 4 March to raise funds for The Migraine Trust, the UK’s leading migraine charity. Lesley was diagnosed with migraine for the first time at the age of 60 and lives with chronic migraine and vestibular migraine. Lesley’s daughter also lives with migraine.

 Symptoms of a migraine attack can include severe headache, nausea, dizziness and visual disturbances. Chronic migraine involves headache on at least 15 days each month with migraine symptoms on at least eight of those days. Vestibular migraine causes dizziness or vertigo and does not always involve head pain. Both conditions can be incredibly debilitating.   

Explaining why she is raising funds for The Migraine Trust, Lesley said:

“Migraine is not just a headache, it’s a debilitating severe neurological disorder, for me it’s a whole-body experience. 

 “When you mention migraine, most think of extreme head pain and sickness but that’s not the case for me. Five years ago, my chronic migraine diagnosis arrived, I was somewhat relieved, at the same time rather in disbelief - I didn’t have stabbing head pain. 

 “I do have a one-sided head sensation, the biggest impact is fatigue with heightened emotions and brain fog. I also get neck, jaw and ear pain from time to time but my most worrying symptom is that I can fall down, walk into walls, cramp sideways into roads and feel unbalanced. My diagnosis is chronic with vestibular migraine.  

 “The Migraine Trust has educated me on how to live with migraine, taught me how to self-manage my condition, provided a virtual meeting space and offer a listening ear through their helpline.

 “My abseil is a personal challenge, whilst raising much needed funds for this tiny charity that has a big heart. To also create awareness of this most complex disease, that affects over 1 billion people worldwide.” 

 Thanking Lesley for her support, Rob Music, chief executive of The Migraine Trust, said:

“We are in awe and so grateful to Lesley for taking on this challenge to help people affected by migraine. As Lesley knows first-hand, migraine is debilitating and painful and affects many aspects of a person’s life. She is a true inspiration.

“Not only is Lesley raising crucial funds that will help support our work and those affected by migraine, she’s also raising awareness of this often misunderstood brain disease. We wish Lesley all the very best as she takes on her abseil and hope she has a very long rest afterwards.”

If you would like to help people affected by migraine, you can support Lesley’s fundraising for The Migraine Trust through her fundraising page.

If you would like information about migraine and how The Migraine Trust can help you manage it, or how you can support the charity, go to migrainetrust.org.