fiona@migrainefoundation.org.nz

Fiona Imlach is a public health physician with a PhD in epidemiology. She completed her medical degree at Auckland University and worked for several years as a hospital doctor and general practitioner before training in public health. She has worked as a researcher in various settings and on a range of topics, including primary health care, inequalities, child poverty, mental well-being, alcohol and cancer.

Fiona has had migraine attacks since a child but these became frequent and severe in her mid-late twenties. Having tried many different therapies, she currently manages her migraine disease through a strong commitment to sleep, healthy eating, exercise and connecting to loved ones and nature; migraine attacks remain frequent but less severe. In 2020/21, she tested out the impact of walking Te Araroa (New Zealand’s ‘long pathway’ from Cape Reinga to Bluff) on migraine, discovering it was possible to walk 3,000km with migraine disease, but walking wasn’t a cure.

Fiona lives in Wellington with her partner Tony and can often be found on weekends in the Remutaka Forest Park, doing pest control and monitoring wildlife.