Migraines and Stuff

Ever get a migraine? Aren't they awful? I get them occasionally. A few times a year, I think. The first time, I didn't realize that's what it was. Honey and I had gone skiing that day. He took me to Vail. As a preface, and I love you honey, but I'm just going to tell this story one more time. Honey was a big skier when we were dating. He'd boast about skiing 35 times a year, or something ridiculous like that. Totally a bachelor then, obviously. He loved getting up at 4 in the morning and tearing out of town. Breakfast? Who needs that? I had told him that I skied once, in 6th grade. Started at the top of the mountain (which meant a little hill, when talking about Meadowlark Ski in WY), took most of the morning trying to get to the bottom and spent the rest of the day in the lodge. He heard my story differently and will tell you that I bragged about something entirely more impressive. So when he took me to Vail, (on an empty stomach) he hauled me to the tip top of vail mountain and set me lose to find my way down. You gize, it srsly took me over two hours. I was crying. I was mad. I was exhausted and cold and wet. And after I got to the bottom, I was done. Done, done, done. Here's a guy who told me he could never be married to someone who wasn't a skier. No pressure there, right? The POINT of this story is that I ended up with altitude sickness, which turned into a headache that hurt so bad, I had tears running down my face. It felt like my forehead was going to explode.

There were just one or two times over the next few years that I got a migraine. They would hit in the middle of the night. I would wake up in pain. These felt like my hair follicles were on fire. If anyone tells you that your hair can't hurt - they're lying. It really and truly can. Sometimes they make me nauseous, or really cold and I have to take a super-hot shower at 3 in the morning. Light, sound and too much air-movement can be really aggravating. A few years ago, I woke up in the morning with a headache that kept getting worse, and worse and worse. Not a searing fire pain, but this one was very heavy, lot's of pressure-on-my-brain. The next day, the headache was gone, but my head felt strange. Like it was bruised on the inside or something. I don't really know how to explain that.

Then a whole new sort of migraine showed itself. I'd started running, training for my first half-marathon. The day I ran my first consecutive 6 miles, I came home - feeling tired but exhilerated. I started fixing myself some breakfast. As I was cutting up some strawberries, I started squinting, and realized that I couldn't see out of one eye. It dawned on me that some people get that before a migraine. It caught me off guard and I ended up with a terrible headache. Later, a friend pointed out that I probably hadn't had enought water to drink while I was running. So, as long as I stayed hydrated, I could avoid them. I would make sure I was drinking 8-10 every day, guzzle a big gatorade after a run and take Excedrin Migraine just incase.

Things I've learned? Too little sleep too many days in a row can lead to one, as well as not drinking enough water. I very often get one when Honey is traveling because it's hard for me to sleep when he isn't home. I stay up until 1-2 am every night. I read somewhere that over-the-counter Excedrin Migraine is one of the best pain relievers, even above the prescription stuff. So, I always have it on hand and if I take two of them the minute I suspect one coming on - I can keep the pain level somewhere around a 6, instead of a big-fat-searing-on-fire-10. I see colors when I'm in pain. That 10 kind of pain is always bright orange and red.

Today I woke up, fixed the boys some scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast and got them off to school. Sassy and I were sitting on the floor playing with the dog, and I realized that I suddenly couldn't see out of my left eye. It's 2 1/2 hours later and I still can't. But, I took some Ex. M. that minute and I'm running with a headache that's a bit yellow - like a 5 or a 6. The only problem with Ex.M. is that it's loaded with caffeine, so I'm also quite shaky and wired from that. Annoying, but an easy payoff. The thing I discovered with this headache, is that if I close my eyes and cover them with my hand, I can see what resembles a cluster of lightening bolts across that left eye on the inside of my eyelid. Isn't that strange?

So here I sit. Wishing I could get busy because we really need some groceries and I was going to go shopping today. I need to pick up a prescription for Link. I need to get a birthday present for Colin's friend. I also need to do some housework.

It stinks. Hopefully by lunchtime, I'll be functional enough to get a couple of things accomplished. But while my eyesight is all freaked out, I really shouldn't drive. I know. I'm so responsible. :)