Living with Migraines

I’ve got to do some work this weekend, but since it’s raining (yea!) it will be a good weekend to wear comfy clothes, make some tea or cocoa and curl up with my computer to write some reports.  (OK, so the last part isn’t really an ideal way to spend a rainy Saturday, but I’ve got to do it.)  I want to hang out and do some reading with DD today too.  We both have new books.  I got Eat, Pray, Love at the suggestion of a good friend and have just started it.  So far I’m liking it.

Wednesday and Thursday saw me feeling pretty so-so, but yesterday was a good day and I feel pretty decent this morning.  I slept in about an extra hour or so.  I had one of those moments where I woke up about 15 minutes after my usual time, realized that my alarm hadn’t gone off and had to figure out what day it was and whether or not I should be scrambling out of bed!  So glad it is Saturday.

I felt better yesterday and am back to normal today, thankfully.  I’ve been thinking more about the headache clinic.  I used to go to it, and then it shut down.  When it finally reopened (money problems, I think) I never went back.  Now that I’m working in the same town that it’s located in, it’s actually quite convenient for me to go there.  So what’s holding me back from calling them up, explaining that I’m a former patient and asking to be seen again?  I don’t know.  I need to just call them.  Right now, I’m doing all I can to keep things under control, but sometimes, it would be nice to have some sort of abortive medicine on hand instead of just hoping for the best.

In work news, I’m back to being busy this week, and I’m glad.  I don’t like to be too busy, but having just enough going on to keep my mind occupied and engaged is a good thing.

no sooner do I write things like “I’ve been feeling pretty good” than I start feeling bad.
We did some volunteer landscaping work this morning, and for some reason around 11:30 I started getting that achy neck feeling.  Had lunch, and by 12:30 or 1 I was ready to head straight to bed.  I’m feeling a bit better now, though not good by any means.

I really need to get back to a doctor and back to some prescription meds like Maxalt, for these days.

It’s Saturday morning, and the whole weekend is stretched out before me.  Actually it started last night because I had my ballet class.  I like doing something fun on Fridays - makes a nice break between work and the weekend.  DH and I are going to start painting the exterior of the house today.  What fun.  But, it needs to be done.

I’ve been feeling pretty good this week, knock on wood.  I could have slept in more this morning, but my dad was here and needed to get going early so I got up to say goodbye.  It’s probably just as well, with the whole try to get regular sleep advice.  But it feels so good to be warm and snuggly under all the covers!

Have a good weekend, everyone.

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be a person without migraines.  I have had them for so long and missed out on so many days of life because of them that they are a part of me.  Decisions about what to eat, when to sleep, what to drink are all affected.  Even little things like being in the glare of the sun or figuring out how long I’ll have to sit without being able to get up and walk around are things that I have to think about.  I can’t imagine a life where none of these would matter so much.

Any woman with hormonal migraines knows that estrogen plays a part in migraine.  The fact that so many more women than men get migraines ought to clue us in that estrogen plays a role.  A new study confirms the connection between estrogen withdrawal and migraine.

There is a relationship between changing levels of estrogen during the menstrual cycle and the incidence of migraine, and if timed correctly transdermal estrogen therapy can prevent such migraines, a new study shows.

…As a result of the study, we’ve learnt that estrogen supplements are effective and if we continue them for several days into the next cycle, we can avoid the problem of deferring attacks,” Dr. MacGregor told Reuters Health. “We now routinely recommend this as a strategy for our patients with menstrual migraine.”

According to this news article out of Chicago, a new study is currently enrolling participants to study nerve stimulation for migraine relief.

Freitag is teaming up with Dr. Sandeep Amin at Rush University Medical Center to study nerve stimulation for migraine relief.

“You are stimulating large nerve fibers, which have the ability to block the sensation of pain,” said Dr. Sandeep Amin, anesthesiologist.

When implanted, this device sends electrical impulses to the occipital nerves in the head. The occipital nerves are a set of nerves in the back of the head that arise from the upper part of the cervical spine. Stimulation of this particular set of nerves is an exploration of whether blocking nerve impulses will block the sensation of pain in patients who have migraines.

It’s an interesting idea.  I know for me, sometimes if I press on just the right spot at  just the right time with just the right amount of pressure, I can sometimes get temporary relief from the pain, as though I’m blocking off the pain.

Rebound headaches are the result of over-using pain medications to deal with headaches.  Get a headache, take medication, rebound, take more medication, and so on, creating a vicious cycle.  This article talks more about the rebound phenomenon.

Adds Dr Larry Newman, director of the Headache Institute at Roosevelt Hospital in New York City: “As the drug wears out of the system, it causes a vasodilation [dilation of the blood vessels], which sets off a headache cycle and you re-dose and it’s a never-ending cycle of chasing your tail.”

Towards the end of the article are several suggestions for alternative treatments, and it’s worth a read if you’re new to researching ways to cope with migraine.