Name: Klaus Smalls
Residence: Sumter, S.C.
Conditions: Migraine with aura, cluster headache
First Diagnosed: At a Veterans Affairs Hospital after leaving the military in 1997
Q: What is the most frustrating thing about your life?
A: Promising my kids I'll do something, and then a headache comes up and I'm not able to do it. They don't really understand. Even though they know their father has a medical condition, it's still disappointing to them.
Q: What are you most thankful for?
A: Being alive and having good days. And when I do have good days, spending them with my kids.
Q: What’s your greatest achievement?
A: Being able to pass on some of the things I know to my kids. I paint and draw and play music. My kids know I love to do these things, so they all do them, too.
Q: How do you manage your condition?
A: Precariously. Oftentimes my mind tells me I can still do all these different things, but my body doesn't allow me to. So it's almost like there are two people living the same life. The old Klaus wants to run and gun all day, but the new Klaus is like, "No, you're not going to be able to do that." The best advice I've ever gotten: One of the doctors at the Diamond Headache Clinic in Chicago told me, "You'll either grow out of your headaches, or you'll grow into them." I didn't quite understand it at the time, but I do now. There was a time that a three or four on the pain scale would have me bawling like a baby. Now with a three or four, I can do just about anything.
Q: What is your idea of happiness?
A: That's a very simple question. It's being migraine free and spending as much time as I can with my kids.
