'My son took his own life after suffering migraines - it is more than just a headache'
The mum of a "brilliant" young musician who took his own life after suffering for years with terrible migraines says people need to learn that the debilitating condition is "more than just a headache".
Sean Martin, 26, was the lead singer of Indie band The Night Café, which he formed with his friends at Gateacre School, Belle Vale, in 2014. The band released their debut EP, Get Away From The Feeling, in 2017, and their debut album, 0151, in 2019. Their songs racked up more than 50 million streams on Spotify, and hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube, with their most popular track alone - You Change With The Seasons - being listened to more than 11 million times.
But the promising young musician was forced to give up his passion after he began to suffer from chronic migraines which blighted his life and left him unable to function. A migraine is a severe type of headache often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and extreme sensitivity to light and sound. Attacks can last for days at a time, and can have a devastating impact on a sufferer's day-to-day life, their work, relationships and mental health.
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Sean's mum Cath, 58, said: "They started around 2020 and they were really debilitating. It's a myth that it's just a headache and that's what I'm trying to get out there. It is more than a headache without a doubt. It can impact every part of your life.
"Sean was an amazing musician and he just wanted to do his music, and the migraines were getting in the way because they were so severe. It was absolutely chronic. He was under the care of the Walton Centre, he had medication but the medication he wasn't responding to, so they weren't helping him at all. There are days when you can't focus when you have that severe pain. He had to step away from his music, and that was heartbreaking for him because it was all he wanted to do."
Sadly, Sean was found dead at his Parkfield Road home, Aigburth, on November 3 2023. An inquest in Liverpool on April 10 this year found the promising musician, who also suffered from bipolar disorder, had taken his own life.
Now campaigning with The Migraine Trust for Migraine Awareness Week (September 23-29), Cath said: "Sean's migraines were lasting him the most of a month at a time. He wasn't headache-free for more than a few days a month. That's how bad they were. It impacted every aspect. He wanted to continue writing his songs, he wanted to continue to do the things he was so brilliant at, but unfortunately the pain was just so debilitating."
A survey of 2,028 migraine sufferers, conducted by The Migraine Trust, found 89% of participants said their mental health was affected by the condition, with 55% saying the impact was significant. 80% reported participating less in social occasions due to their migraines, 59% said they had lost confidence and 48% felt isolated. As many as 34% said they had thoughts of suicide.
Cath said: "In my heart, for the legacy of my beautiful son, if I can hep one more person not suffer the way he suffered, then that's got to be a good thing. It's so important for people to understand a migraine is more than just a headache. Employers need to understand, doctors need to. Mental health services need to be aware that for people suffering from chronic pain conditions, the pathway needs to be quicker than it is. It's systematic change that's needed for people who suffer from migraines.
"He was such a kind, caring lad who, with his music, was able to help others, and we have had lots of people contact us since he passed away saying how much his song writing has helped them, which was wonderful. But because of that chronic pain, it was hard to go on."