migraine meanderings
Feb. 6th, 2004 01:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pantryslutEven more than malaise, I hate post-deadline migraines. Though yesterday's wasn't so bad, as these things go.
In fact, as migraines go, mine are pretty mild. It took me years to figure out that yep, these were migraines, uh-huh. Partly because I used to get really bad migraines just pre-adolescence -- complete with vertigo, nausea, everything but the pretty lights -- and these were ever so much easier to bear. But my mother and my sister both suffer from chronic headaches (Mom's about to be re-diagnosed out of migraine land), so they jointly clued me into the fact that I had all the usual symptoms, like sensitivity to lights and smells and motion.
Which was a good thing, because it meant I knew what to do. Caffeine. Excedrin. Light pressure on the eyes. Darkness. Lying flat. Remember to eat on a schedule. Relax your neck. In an emergency (like, say, a half hour before the doors open at Perverts Put Out!), four Excedrin, some protein, and a can of Coke can work wonders.
And as long as I'm lying down in a dark room, I'm fine. Really. I am pain-free, I can carry on a conversation, all is well. At that point, the biggest problem is boredom. Boredom! Because I can't read (too bright), I can't listen to music (too loud), and I can't move.
I can stare at the ceiling and watch the rivulets (hello, visual distortion) run through the ceiling paint, though. Usually after the headache per se is gone. That's right, on top of everything else, I get the visual distortion after the headache instead of before -- I have reverse migraines. Even my symptoms are perverse.
But the best part is the inevitable adrenalin shakes in the aftermath. I feel like a junkie with no excuse.
In fact, as migraines go, mine are pretty mild. It took me years to figure out that yep, these were migraines, uh-huh. Partly because I used to get really bad migraines just pre-adolescence -- complete with vertigo, nausea, everything but the pretty lights -- and these were ever so much easier to bear. But my mother and my sister both suffer from chronic headaches (Mom's about to be re-diagnosed out of migraine land), so they jointly clued me into the fact that I had all the usual symptoms, like sensitivity to lights and smells and motion.
Which was a good thing, because it meant I knew what to do. Caffeine. Excedrin. Light pressure on the eyes. Darkness. Lying flat. Remember to eat on a schedule. Relax your neck. In an emergency (like, say, a half hour before the doors open at Perverts Put Out!), four Excedrin, some protein, and a can of Coke can work wonders.
And as long as I'm lying down in a dark room, I'm fine. Really. I am pain-free, I can carry on a conversation, all is well. At that point, the biggest problem is boredom. Boredom! Because I can't read (too bright), I can't listen to music (too loud), and I can't move.
I can stare at the ceiling and watch the rivulets (hello, visual distortion) run through the ceiling paint, though. Usually after the headache per se is gone. That's right, on top of everything else, I get the visual distortion after the headache instead of before -- I have reverse migraines. Even my symptoms are perverse.
But the best part is the inevitable adrenalin shakes in the aftermath. I feel like a junkie with no excuse.
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no subject
Date: 2004-02-07 07:00 am (UTC)Re:
Date: 2004-02-07 07:39 pm (UTC)