Barrow Helps Mother of Two Suffering from Migraine Get Her Life Back

Barrow Helps Mother of Two Suffering from Migraine Get Her Life Back

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Krysta Salcido had experienced migraine throughout her life, but the attacks were always few and far between. However, after the birth of her second child, the migraine attacks not only became more frequent, but the pain was also more intense. As a stay-at-home mom with two young children, Krysta’s migraine started to really affect her life. When the attacks would come on, she needed to immediately find a quiet, dark place to lay down until they passed. Because of this, Krysta had a difficult time keeping up with her children and felt like she couldn’t spend the amount or quality of time that she wanted with them. Things became even more challenging when her children went to school and she returned to work. Finally, Krysta had enough of migraine disrupting her life and began to seek answers.

Krysta’s doctor referred her to a neurologist, who found that she had a cyst in the pineal gland of her brain. After doing some additional testing, the neurologist ruled out the cyst as a possible cause of her migraine. Still, the pain persisted and Krysta wasn’t getting any answers. “After that, the neurologist basically told me I was fine and just to forget about it,” she says. “I really didn’t feel like my concerns were being carried out.”

Krysta decided to take things into her own hands and started to do research on headache clinics. During her search, Krysta read about the Lewis Headache Center at Barrow Neurological Institute and asked her doctor for a referral. That’s when she met Shane Root, MD, and everything changed for the better.

Shortly after beginning to see Dr. Root, Krysta realized that when she had a headache her eye would become puffy and red, and the side of her face would start swelling. She told this to Dr. Root, who quickly discovered that she was experiencing both migraine and cluster headache. He immediately began working with her to treat both conditions. Over the last year, Krysta has tried several different treatments, with some working for a short period of time, but eventually losing their effect. This did not deter Dr. Root, however, who was determined to find Krysta relief and was always ready with another treatment option. He inspired Krysta to not give up hope. She shares, “Dr. Root is very communicative, which I appreciate so much. I feel like he really cares about me as a person. He will even call me personally if I’ve had a bad episode or one that’s lasted a long time.”

Even when Krysta experienced a particularly intense migraine attack last summer and had to go to the emergency room, Dr. Root was right there by her side, checking on her and making sure that she was getting the care that she needed. He also ensured that Krysta got all the proper follow-up testing. “Throughout everything, Dr. Root has just been phenomenal. He’s continued working with me and we’ve even found some treatments that are helping with both conditions,” she says. “Now, I’m having fewer migraines and not missing out on as much on life anymore. By far, he is the best doctor I’ve ever had.”

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