Mar

29

Migraine Blindness - Are We Having FUN Yet?

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Migraine headaches are as different as the people who get them.  Where one migraine will offer nausea as its strongest symptom another will bring near blindness or severe pain as its particular personality trait.  It is hard to know when a migraine is beginning where it will take you.  I love and crave adventure but would not say that these particular wanderings peak my interest.  More recently throwing up during my migraines seems to have dropped off and blindness has come to the forefront of my suffering.  Where once I was only blind partially in one eye for the duration of my pain I am currently enjoying partial blindness in at least one eye and often both for up to five or six days after the migraine pain has passed.  This blindness is wielding a wide range of devastations on my life.  For instance when speaking to people I cannot focus very well on their faces and when I do they have big blacked out areas where I can see nothing but a fuzzy dark haze.  Also sudden bursts of light that no one else would notice like a passing car’s windshield that catches the sun and reflects it in my direction or a fluorescent ceiling light overhead at the grocery store.  These random lights not only strike me with a disorienting temporary blindness but also feel equivalent to be slapped full on across the face.  The pain drives through my eyes and deep into my head.  Functioning with this situation has become a daily challenge to maintain my dignity and not scare people by acting like a total freak.

So if you run across a woman that will not look you in the eye, runs into chairs and people, and will occasionally without cause clutch her head and gasp because someone opened the shades nearby, try not to judge her.  She may not be crazy, just blind and miserable before the age of thirty.  Throw some pennies in her cap for she has a long road ahead of her, just be sure you tell her they are there since she likely can’t see them.

So much for my synthroid theory.  The search continues…….

Jan

23

Migraine and Headache Support Newsletter

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Hey everyone, thanks for all the responses and support.  I really feel that emotional support is a huge key to living with and recovering from migraines.  I have gotten inspired and created a newsletter that I am very proud of and that I think you will enjoy.  These newsletters are not typical and are intended to be a ‘pick me up’ with helpful hints and ideas on how to live with and manage head ache pain.  If you want my free newsletter just go to www.headache-pain-relief.com and sign up, I think you will really enjoy it.    Take care and thanks again!

GG

Jan

19

Migraine and Imitrex - My Scary True Story!

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My name is Geri and this is a story everyone needs to hear.

Migraines come suddenly, I rarely have more than a fifteen minute window when my partial blindness alerts me to the wave of pain that is coming.  Before I had children I took over the counter drugs with little or no effect.  I remember one migraine was so painful I told myself at that time that I could never have kids because if the house was on fire I would not be able to get them out with that much pain pinning me to the bed and only able to make out the outlines of everything around me.

 I did of course have my wonderful boys later, and I live aware that if a migraine cannot be contained I may have to call someone to help me or if I’m driving pull over and wait for my sight to return.  I carried Imitrex with me for eight months before I had to use it.  I was at Chuckee Cheeses with my husband and kids when the flashing lights from the games disappeared and the laughter from kids turned into ringing in my ears.  These are my tell tale migraine alerts and I ran to the car and took the Imitrex immediately.  It worked great, minimized pain, no nausea and my sight came back within half an hour.

 The next afternoon at home I was surprised by another attack of blindness, my entire right eye went dark and my left was more shadows then light.  I took another Imitrex immediately as directed, hoping for the same results I had had the day before.  I knew within a few minutes this migraine would be very bad and called my sister in law to come watch the kids.

 The pain was escalating more quickly then I had ever experienced, the blindness was unrelenting and I began vomiting but there was something new that I had never experienced with my migraines.  I was beginning to feel pain in my chest, shakiness all over, and hallucinations.  My sister in law called my mom as it was becoming evident I would need more help.  My mom nursed me through hours of what became the scariest experience of my life. 

 I spiraled into a hellish nightmare of panic and hallucinations that still seem real to me today.  By the time my husband got home from work I was curled in the fetal position, my hands tightened into fists I could not release and I was hyperventilating.  All this was secondary to the pain of the migraine which was unbearable.  Even in this no doubt pitiable state I refused to go to the doctor hanging on to the belief that it would pass.

 My mom called the pharmacist and explained what was happening.  He asked her if I was on antidepressants, which I am.  He explained that Imitrex can have this effect on persons who take serotonin reuptake inhibitors.  What I was suffering with was the fine print.  The less likely side effects of a medication prescribed to me by the same doctor who prescribed me the antidepressants.

 I still do not remember the four or five days after the incident.  A sort of eerie amnesia came over me soon after the pain began to subside.  I do not know how I spent those days recovering, if I was in pain or if I seemed normal to others, if I played with my kids or laid on the couch staring at a wall.  I wish I did, I wish I could remember but wishing won’t give me back those days or make the sharp memories of pain and fear go away. 

 But there is one wish I can make a reality, and that is sparing others from this terrifying experience.  Please do not assume that your doctor remembers what he prescribes you.  Whenever someone offers you a new prescription always remind them of every other drug you are on.  To be even safer ask your pharmacist, they know better what can and can’t be done with your medications.  Never assume that just because you pay someone allot of money that they are automatically intelligent or capable.  There is nothing a doctor knows that you cannot learn yourself from a book which means they are not gods.  They are not infallable and we should not expect them to be.   If I had taken the time to look up my medications in the book my doctor had sitting next to him I would not be missing a week of my life today.  Please take care with my regards,

Geri Rene

Jan

18

Migraine Support - My Synthroid Experiment Continued!

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I had my first migraine since going off of Synthroid over three weeks ago.  I am disappointed to have had one but, it is a great improvement over the four or five I was having each month before going off the Synthroid.  This migraine came five days after my period ended which is like a clock work migraine for me.  Of course I need more time to be sure but I am very excited to see the improvement.  The Doctor put me on ‘Armour’ to replace the Synthroid and I am feeling great on it.  If you take Synthroid and get migraines you might consider discussing it with your doctors and see if another option may improve the frequency of occurrences. Hope it helps!

GG

Jan

11

Migraine Support For Moms - Survival Ideas

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What do you do when you have a migraine and are trying to take care of your kids?  I still panic when I know I will be alone with my two little boys and face the awful pain and blindness of a migraine.  I call my mom and even my mother in law when all else fails.  But when no one can come I am left to battle the pain and the fear knowing my children are depending on me.  My biggest concern is that my children will be scared or feel responsible for trying to  make me feel better.  Especially my five year old who will quickly assume the role of caretaker when given the chance.  So I invented the headache box, which has worked out pretty well for us. 

I explain to the kids that when mom gets a  ‘bad headache’ we need to keep the house quiet but that does not meant we can’t have fun.  They also understand that mom might have to lie down for awhile and that I won’t want to talk very much, but that they don’t have to help mom because she will be fine after she rests.  They know that they will get to drag out all the contents of the headache box and since they do not get to play with anything in the box when I am well it is always like a box of brand new toys.  I keep puzzles, quiet toys and a couple DVDs in the box as well as some special art supplies.  I believe that by being honest with my children about what is happening and balancing it with something pleasant that they will not be afraid of my pain but will learn to be respectful of it.

What do you do when severe pain hits and you are taking care of the kids?  I would love to hear other ideas!

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