Arrgg!!!

Yesterday morning at about 3:15am I suffered another migraine. I have been getting these migraines for about a year now. They are horrible. Each time I have one I think that my head will literally explode. I’m not able to function at all. I just lye in bed and force myself to sleep. I need complete darkness and zero noise (which is not possible). I don’t want to be bothered by anybody, not even Ben. It’s kind of weird because my body treats the migraine as a poison and I think that it tries to rid it anyway that it can. This is the part I hate most about migraines. Imagine having a pain in your head that feels like your brain just got run over by a Mack truck. Then you are experiencing all the joys of vomiting while trying your best not to move your head, neck or face. I become a blubbering mess and a total helpless baby (who doesn’t want help from anyone). I feel like I totally lost a day out of my life. I lost a day of work, a day of studying, a day of socializing, a day of spending time with my husband and friends. These migraines are a monthly visitor but I was really excited because I haven’t had one since December. Then this one snuck up on me. I’m just grateful that they happen in the mornings when I’m still at home. I have been to see my doctor a number of times and he even sent me to a neurologist to have an MRI and an MRA because I have family history of brain aneurysms. I thank my Heavenly Father that all I have are migraines. My doctor also told me that as soon as I get pregnant that the migraines should subside. This is also a reason that I can't be on medication. He said that if I plan on having children within the next 6 months that he didn't want me to be on any prescriptions. He also said that most people suffer from headaches but think that it’s a migraine. When you have a migraine you will know the difference. I found this little questionnaire online to determine if you are really suffering migraines or just a bad headache. I experience all listed symptoms every time I have a migraine. NO FAIR!

Is My Headache A Migraine?

Below are the most common symptoms of a migraine headache. If you answer “yes” to 3 or more any of them – odds are it’s a true migraine and not something else.

• Your headache feels like someone stabbed your brain with an ice pick

• Pain is usually one sided

• Your headache doesn’t respond to regular over-the-counter painkillers

• Pain is pulsating, pounding, or throbbing

• Light and sound bother you a lot

• Pain worsens when you move or bend over

• Pain becomes so intense that you throw up or become nauseated

• You get dizzy just by turning your head or when lying in bed

• You feel you have to lie down, go to bed, or withdraw to a quiet dark room

• Vision may be blurred, like a curtain coming down over your eyes

• You experience visual “auras” (zig-zag or geometric lines) before the headache strikes

• The headache lasts from several hours to several days (or even weeks)

The Bottom Line: If you have to stay home and lock yourself in the bedroom, then you probably have a migraine.