CROSS: I really think that having done a lot of work on my inside has really helped, too ... as you get older, you sort of take life with a little more ease. So, any sort of work you do to just kind of be at peace with your own day and your own situation is helpful. Having that threat around really keeps things modulated because, is it really worth it when you start getting tense or uptight about something? I think that really has made a difference. Keep things in perspective. A lot of it has to do with how we view whatever’s going on with us. One can work oneself up into that amount of stress. Nobody is really doing it to you. You can look at a situation in a completely different way that takes that [stress] out of the picture. I do yoga, love to hike, just let things go.
ABOUT: I know you’re involved in a campaign encouraging people with “frequent bad headaches” to see their doctors for diagnosis. In your own words, why is this so important?
CROSS: I guess because it’s been so awful for me, it was so terrible. It’s been such a painful journey, especially in the beginning when I didn’t know what was happening, and I would have those early symptoms of my fingers tingling or that weird peripheral vision thing. I remember not being able to remember my friends’ names or phone numbers when I was with them. It’s absolutely terrifying. You feel like you’re having a stroke or something. I think finding out about it, getting medication, learning to take care of myself -- it puts you in an entirely different place from being a victim of something that’s happening to you.
ABOUT: I love so much of what you’re saying because we no longer have to be controlled by this disease. We can control it, instead of it controlling us. Have you found that attitudes people have about migraines are changing?
CROSS: I hope so. I hope people are getting much more educated today about the difference between a migraine and a headache, and the fact that there are things you can do. Certainly when I was younger, I didn’t know what it was. I didn’t know anything about it. I didn’t know to get diagnosed. I didn’t know there was anything I could do about it. Hopefully, just the information getting out there and people taking care of it sooner, then that will help.
ABOUT: So it was a colleague you worked with on "Melrose Place" who told you about the abortive medications?
CROSS: Yes, and it was right after that I went to the doctor, and I started taking the pills. So that was a life changer. You really want to try to not even get to that point because it’s just better not to.
ABOUT: I’ve read that your husband is really understanding, that you told him about your migraines early on, and he’s super hubby. He’s supportive and takes care of you.
CROSS: He said to me, “What does a headache feel like?” because he’s never had a headache. Forget about a migraine, he’s never had a headache.
ABOUT: It also sounds like you’ve had fairly good luck with doctors, with them taking you seriously.
CROSS: Yes, but it took me a long time to get to one. I also have a very classic case with migraines with the aura, so it was easily diagnosed.
ABOUT: Do you actually go ahead and start your treatment when you notice the aura instead of waiting for the headache?
CROSS: Absolutely immediately, yes.
ABOUT: What is the worst symptom of the migraine for you? Is it the headache?
CROSS: Well, certainly that’s the most painful, but the most frightening really used to be the loss of my short-term memory or the ability to think. They don’t start that severely any more. They just start with the aura, but it used to be that would just terrify me. It’s a different kind of pain, and there’s the fear and that terror that you’re losing your mind.
ABOUT: If you were to speak directly to our readers, is there anything else you would say to them?
CROSS: I would just say not to be a victim and to be your own health advocate, and to take it into your own hands. You actually can affect the number of migraines you have and your quality of life, and it’s worth the effort. It will increase your entire healthy lifestyle and reduce your migraines, so it’s a win-win situation, I think.
ABOUT: Thank you again for your time and being so open with us.
CROSS: Oh, you’re welcome.
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Be sure to read Marcia's holiday tips in Navigating Holidays with Migraines.
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Today, Marcia is possibly best known for her television role as Bree in "Desperate Housewives." About has some great content on Marcia and the show. Check out
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