10 December 2008

WTH Moments

I'm having problems with migraines again.

I am really tired of it, too.

I started getting headaches when I was about 10 years old, and complaining about them landed me at the eye doctor's.  I remember being terrified that I needed glasses; I was enough of a social outcast without them, I didn't want to contemplate how much worse it would be with them.

At the time, though, I did not need the glasses that I now wear; my diminishing eyesight is due to the fact that I am getting older, nearly everyone sees some diminishment in their eyesight as time goes on.  

That's not the problem.  The glasses are not causing the headaches.  

The problem is that I don't know what's causing them.  They're increasing in frequency and severity, exponentially.  If they were pain in one particular spot, over and over, I'd be far more concerned that they were indicative of a specific problem, but they're not.  The pain is on the right side of my head.  No, the left.  No, behind my right eye.  No, at the base of my skull.  No, like a ring around the crown of my head.  Wait, what day is it?

Work is stressful, here and there, but not really at a level that I think should be causing this much pain.  It is a slow time of the year for me, so the pressure I'm feeling for upcoming "stuff"is self-inflicted.  I think that it goes without saying that I'm not giving myself migraines.  Or at least, I don't think I am.

The worst part of this is that I can't fix it.  Taking analgesics doesn't really help much, they diminish the pain that comes with the headaches, but the painkillers don't kill 'em off.  I have tried everything.  Freaking EVERYTHING.  Tylenol.  Motrin.  Advil.  Aleve.  Excedrin.  Lavender everything, teas, rubs, baths, soaks.  Tried to get more and better sleep, thinking that might be a factor; used Valerian root, melatonin, chamomile, Ambien, and every over the counter sleep aid available.

Huh.  In this listmaking, as I'm trying to figure out what is new and different, what has changed recently, it occurs to me that there is something I haven't been doing that is normally part of my routine; I haven't been at the gym, on the treadmill, the elliptical, or at my yoga classes for a few weeks.  The yoga classes are in the middle of the day, and as of late, I've been too busy to get to them.  Ugh.  Could be that's the problem right there.

3 comments:

Schadenfreude's a Bitch said...

My mom's been having an uptick in her migraine frequency too. The doc gave her Imitrex and vicodin. Seems to help, but the migraines themselves are SCARY...they make her really loopy. I swear I thought she'd had a stroke a few months ago. She couldn't remember Chris' name, she kept asking me where I was going...Her's are caused by stress, imo, but she always wants to blame it on some food or other. Maybe she's right...I dunno. *hug* I know they suck

Lucy Arin said...

Aww, thanks!

I left the Imitrex off of my list; tried it once, and wow did that made me loopy. And I don't want to even think about adding Vicodin to my daily med habit...it would not be a good thing.

The symptoms your mom is having would scare the beejeebus out of me, too. I haven't ever had a bad reaction to food cause one of the headaches, but that isn't uncommon, surprisingly. I'm glad her doc is aware of what's going on. I don't get confused, but I can't focus for crap when they're escalating or bad. Not much point in trying to work or do much of anything other that lie in a dark room and hope to get rid of it. Driving to Joe's the other day was a big challenge, but he was a significant help.

WrathofDawn said...

Dare I say the M word? I don't know how old you are, but some women begin having migraines(or an increase in frequency and/or severity if they already have a history of migraine) as they begin peri-menopause. Okay, that's the PM word...

Are the headaches in synch with your periods? If so, could be hormonal.

I have a friend who started having 3-day migraines every month just before her period during the last years she was menstruating.

Whatever's causing them, I hope you find something that will give you relief soon.