Migraine, that pick ax pain penetrating my forehead followed by nausea, dizziness, and that overall "rotten feeling." It's the kind of body experience that takes over your entire being. And it came rolling into my head like a runaway freight train early Saturday morning.
I actually had pretty much convinced myself that the intense 3 day Migraines occurring 9-12 days or more per month may be a thing of the past. I hadn't experience a knock down drag out one for over a month. That is not to say I didn't have one during that month, they were just manageable. I had started acupuncture sessions and was feeling confident that they were helping (I still believe-I'm just a bit disillusioned at this point). I also had been maintaining a healthy regimented exercise program as well, complete with cardio, strength training, pilates, and yoga. Of course on "dizzy days" those activities may not occur, but I try my best to maintain those routines. The dogs typically accompany me on my walks so we all stay healthy.
So back to Saturday...not only did I have a headache increasing in intensity as the day went on, but we had planned on picking up a puppy on this day. A young puppy was to join our mature bunch of canines-ages 15.5 years, 7.9 years, and 3.8 years-what am I, nuts? The answer is...yes, you guessed it.
With head pounding we drove 40 miles to pick up our charge, and she carried on inconsolably all the way home. I continued to try to remain calm throughout the day as stress only increases the headache discomfort. I did well for the most part; I kept my patience, reminded others, human and furry that she needed time to adjust, and was able to monitor crowd control, but my head pounded and I was actually...miserable. But we made it through that day and night with the puppy. She actually slept through the entire night, I wish I could say the same for me. Toss and turn, dizziness, head pain, absolute torture throughout the night and then morning comes...ick! What a feeling! It all becomes worse on the second day.
I decided to go the extra-strength Excedrin route, but I had to eat something first or it would burn my stomach. Now how does one eat when one is nauseous? Verrrrry carefully. While the Excedrin brought some relief it was not enough to squelch my miserableness inside. But I did persevere with the help of my husband, and the "crew" managed. Ice packs from head to neck and back again, exerting pressure on the painful sites of my head, and squeezing the back of my neck all are rituals of the dreaded Migraine "dance." Did I mention I was also suppose to read during worship service Sunday? You know that didn't happen. And there you have an emotional side of Migraine-how does one commit to anything when the possibility and surprise of Migraine may occur? I admit I've gotten better about the guilt of canceling, but it still is quite troublesome-I HATE to commit and then go back on my word. Perhaps it is a flaw in my character but it just makes me feel plain awful!
Monday morning found me very very nauseous and dizzy, and guess what? I needed to travel 35 miles to see a specialist that day. I had injured my knee a week ago and while it had improved somewhat, it wasn't doing as well as hoped sought out a second opinion. Well fortunately by the time we had to leave for the appointment the dizziness and nausea had settled enough to get me there. Did I mention when it rains it pours?
The results of the "knee visit" are yet to be determined. I'll keep you posted. As for the Migraine, while better today, its effects linger-a little nausea, a little dizziness, and a little exhaustion from lack of restful sleep, but we'll manage and hopefully as the day goes on, it will all be better.
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