Understand and Interrupt Your Migraine Cycle: So You Can Stop Living in Fear and Start Trusting Your Body Again.
With Susi Hately, BSc. Kin, C-IAYT, Maria Hykin, Yoga Teacher
On Demand
If you have migraines, you may recognize the following
For most people I work with, migraines don’t just hurt, they disrupt everything.
They strike without warning.
They hijack your day, your plans, your focus, your confidence.
And even when the pain fades, you’re left waiting for the next one.
“I never know when it’s going to hit.”
“I can’t plan anything.”
“I cancel at the last minute.”
“I feel fine one minute, and then I’m down for days.”
“Everything looks fine on the scans, so why do I still hurt?”
That uncertainty feeds tension, vigilance, and doubt
and those very reactions make it harder to rest, to recover, to trust your own body again.
You’re not imagining it.
You’re not weak.
You’re caught in a feedback loop your body didn’t choose but can absolutely change.
What if there was another option?
What if you could learn to calm the tension, vigilance, and doubt?
What if the onset of a migraine wasn’t a mystery, but a message you could understand?
I’ve seen what becomes possible when that shift happens.
For almost three decades, I’ve combined my B.Sc. Kinesiology with Therapeutic Yoga to helping people reduce and resolve pain. Not by chasing symptoms, but by helping them understand how their bodies actually work.
My work blends movement, breath, and stillness to help people uncover the patterns that drive pain. I also train professionals through my Functional Synergy Certification and C-IAYT Accredited Yoga Therapy programs to do the same.
So when I talk about migraines, I’m not sharing theory.
I’m sharing what I’ve seen again and again, in clients and in the professionals I train, when awareness replaces fear and the nervous system finally gets the signal that it’s safe to rest.
Maria, one of my grads, lived with migraines since childhood.
For decades she woke with pain, reached for medication, and carried on, until the pills stopped working.
When she began exploring her movement patterns, breath, and nervous-system responses, something remarkable changed.
The pain softened. The neck tension that always came first disappeared.
And for years, she experienced life without migraines.
Jen, another grad, worked with her husband Chris, who had migraines for more than forty years.
Through gentle movement, guided rest, and a different relationship with his body, the migraines stopped completely.
Even his sleep, posture, and energy returned in ways no one expected.
What began as survival became freedom.
These are not miracles. They’re mechanisms . . . repeatable, learnable, human.
These are just two stories . . but they’re not exceptions.
They reveal what’s possible when we combine movement, awareness, and rest in a specific way that quiets the nervous system and helps you find steadiness again.
Because of what’s possible
Maria and I are now leading a new program:
Decoding Migraine – A Two-Part Online Experience
Together, we’ll guide you through the same principles that helped her reclaim a pain-free life and that guided Jen as she helped her husband.
Join us
for Decoding Migraine – a two-session, three-hour online program that helps you interrupt your migraine cycle and rebuild trust in your body.
Each live session combines guided awareness, simple movement, and deep rest
so you can calm the tension, lower the vigilance, and reduce pain before it takes over.
It’s designed for real life.
You can join from home, no travel, no intensity just clear guidance and practices you can use immediately.
Each session builds on the last, so you’ll stay engaged, feel progress after the first hour, and finish with tools you can return to anytime.
Photo by Matteo Vistocco
You’ll leave with:
A clearer understanding of what actually contributes to your migraines so you can stop guessing and start seeing the pattern.
A way to interrupt the tension vigilance loop so you can restore calm instead of reacting to pain.
Confidence in how to respond when symptoms start so you can move through your days without fear of the next attack.
Two sessions. Three hours.
A lifetime of knowing your body differently and the quiet confidence that you can meet each moment with steadiness, not survival.
If you’ve been waiting for something that feels both practical and profound, this is it.
Testimonials
Inside the Experience
This is what you’ll learn and practice … the same process that helped Chris move from fear and pain to calm and freedom.
Calming the nervous system
“He’s no longer afraid of the migraines… now there is an apprehension, but the fear isn’t as intense because he feels that he has the ability to acknowledge the sensations.”
In the sessions, you’ll learn simple ways to ease the nervous system — to notice sensations, breathe through them, and stop the cycle of fear that often fuels pain.
Because when fear quiets, the body can finally listen.
Awareness before action
“The way that this started was with meditation… the movements came a little later… you have to love, love the migraine away. You can’t force it.”
You’ll begin to recognize your own early signals … the moments when tension builds … and learn how to respond before the migraine takes over.
It’s not about control. It’s about choice.
Movement and meditation as regulators
“The way that this started was with meditation… the movements came a little later… you have to love, love the migraine away. You can’t force it.”
You’ll experience gentle movement and guided rest that work together to calm your system and create ease.
No forcing, no pushing just steady, compassionate exploration.
This is medicine without the side effects: awareness, breath, and time.
Play, curiosity, no force
“We would just play. There was no expectation there for me, and therefore there was no expectation there for him. That’s how we started to play with it.”
You’ll be guided to move with curiosity exploring what helps, what hinders, and what allows more comfort without needing to get it “right.”
Curiosity heals faster than control ever could.
Embodied reorganization
“He just looks more present in his body instead of trying to avoid it.”
As you calm, move, and rest, you’ll start to feel more present in your own body — less guarded, more grounded, and more at ease.
Presence is the opposite of pain.
Long-term change trust and regulation
“The biggest thing for him was thinking that he could force it… and now that has completely reversed.”
“He now has a full sleep cycle, and that hasn’t happened for years.”
With practice, you’ll notice that your system begins to regulate on its own.
Sleep improves, energy steadies, and confidence returns.
This is what sustainable relief looks like not fighting the body, but working with it.
Program Details
No yoga or movement experience is required.
Bring a mat, a blanket, and your curiosity.
- On Demand
- 💰 Tuition: $79
- 🕒 Two sessions · 3 hours total
If you’ve been chasing triggers, managing pain, or waiting for the next migraine to hit this is your pause button.
Your recalibration point.
Your chance to experience your body as an ally again.
Every migraine has a pattern.
You can learn to see it, sense it, and shift it before it takes over.
This isn’t about fighting your body.
It’s about finally listening to it.
About noticing the signals that used to feel random and realizing they were never random at all.
The pain isn’t the enemy.
It’s information.
And once you can read that information, everything changes.
No more guessing.
No more waiting for the next hit.
Just steady awareness, small shifts, and a nervous system that learns it’s safe again.
Join us for Decoding Migraine …. November 17 and 19.
Two sessions. Three hours.
A new relationship with your body that can last a lifetime.
From pain to possibility … it’s closer than you think.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I get access to this course?
You’ll have ongoing access to the recordings and materials for the lifetime of this version of the course – typically two to three years or longer.
As our understanding and research evolve, we occasionally update the program, and we’ll let you know when a new version becomes available.
Will it be Susi herself teaching the course, or someone else?
Yes, I will teaching alongside Maria Hykin, one of my Certification graduates who has personally experienced significant migraine reduction through this work.
Who is this course designed for?
This program is ideal for:
- Yoga teachers, yoga therapists, and movement practitioners who want up-to-date science and clear methods to apply it in their work.
- People who experience migraines and want to better understand and reduce their symptoms through awareness, movement, yoga, mindfulness, and body-brain connection.
What if I can’t make a live call? Is this recorded?
All calls are recorded and posted in your course space at classroom.functionalsynergy.com
You can watch as often as you like and you can revisit everything as needed.
Can I apply this work with clients who have migraines?
Yes. While this course doesn’t replace a full therapeutic training, it gives you powerful tools to support your clients.
Does this course get me Continuing Education Credits?
Yes. We’re currently in the process of securing accreditation for this program with IAYT. .Many participants have also used our on demand course certificates to obtain CEUs with Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy boards, as well as Pilates associations.We regularly apply for CEUs across our on-demand programs, so if you have a specific organization in mind, let us know and we’ll do our best to support you.
How do I access everything?
The recorded course material lives on classroom.functionalsynergy.com
How is this different from the Therapeutic Yoga Intensive or Susi’s Certification Programs?
This course provides foundational principles, tools and techniques that work very well.
The Therapeutic Yoga Intensive goes deeper into clinical work and hands-on application.
The Certification adds another layer – focused on therapeutic mastery and building a sustainable yoga therapy business.
Do I have to watch at certain times?
Nope. You can watch the replays whenever it works for you.
How much is the course?
The course is $79.
