Rachel Overcomes Chronic Pain with Expert Care

Rachel's life changed during her freshman year of high school when she woke up with a headache that never went away. She later learned that a viral infection most likely caused her to develop New Daily Persistent Headache, a condition defined by constant, unremitting head pain.

The pain Rachel experienced daily was debilitating, causing her to miss most of the remaining school year. Interests that once brought her joy — swim team, photography, quality time with friends — became impossible.

"Ever since the day it started, I've been in pain," Rachel says. "I lost the ability to do basic activities of daily living. There was a period of several months where I struggled to move from my bed to downstairs to the couch."

At the time, Rachel was already a patient of Marc DiSabella, DO, director of our Headache Program, to help her with migraines. Rachel tried rescue and preventative medications, infusions and behavioral management techniques all without improvement, eventually running out of options.

That's when Dr. DiSabella helped advocate for Rachel to be accepted into an inpatient chronic pain rehabilitation program, which helped her gain the skills to function despite her pain.

In addition to the inpatient program, Dr. DiSabella pursued novel options to reduce her daily pain, including onabotulinum toxin injections and eptinezumab infusions. These ultimately became one of the most effective parts of her treatment plan. Rachel was the first patient at Children's National to receive a calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) infusion and the protocol developed for her care is now used for many patients with similar symptoms.

Thanks to the care she received, Rachel returned to school and developed the tools to manage flare-ups independently — milestones that once felt out of reach.

Inspired by her own experiences as a patient, Rachel pursued nursing school and began a career in pediatric critical care. She hopes to one day work in pediatric pain rehabilitation, supporting and advocating for children just like her.

"It's really hard for people who live with invisible illnesses. People don't believe you when you say you’re in pain," Rachel says. "I'm looking forward to being the person kids can count on."

After a decade of care, Dr. DiSabella pinned Rachel at her nursing school graduation. For Rachel, it was a full-circle moment: the physician who helped guide her through her most difficult years stood beside her as she began her journey helping others.