that's definitely a migraine

[jinian]

Had been feeling headachy all day, just a bit, like I'd slept wrong (which I had, on Wim's pillow). Had an abortive bike ride -- trip to Ikea worked out well, but then thatmathchick stuck herself in the eye with a bike pedal and I had to drive home -- then very good lunch at Thai Tom. On the way back to the car, I got very disoriented because most of the left side of my field of view was out of sync with the rest. Got Wim to hold my hand for the rest of the walking, and analyzed the experience: large circular chomp with scalloped edge in the slightly-upward-of-center left side, visible with either eye though my right doesn't look over far enough to perceive most of it, weird fractalish edges, contents past that edge sort of in the wrong place and difficult to focus on.

As I pointed out to Deb, I was not actually in the fetal position with pain when this happened, which is why it took many years for me to get a migraine diagnosis. If I were really smart, I would probably get a nice prescription that I can take when it gets this bad, but it's so hard to tell when it's going to be bad. My head aches pretty much all the time, and it's not really possible to say why.

To try:

• Haircut.


• Doctor.


• Diet.


• More yoga.


• More acupuncture.


• Come back to list when I have more brain and add items.

Comments

[marzipan-pig.livejournal.com]

if you have an aura like that (which me comes before the pain) you should have no trouble getting an array of prescriptions and a protocol at the hospital (though I guess that makes more sense with insurance.) [personally I never had a protocol but they still somestimes ask me if i want one; it's like a fancy note for when you appear at 3am holding your head and they just trot it out and do what it says]

good luck. i had more constant headaches before I had good drugs, btw, if that helps at all to hear.
(I'm such a pusher but they made a HUGE difference in my life)

[elynne.livejournal.com]

Feh. Empathy. I have to admit, I'm curious about migraine visuals - but also happy that I don't have the pain that goes along with them. :/ I'll miss you this weekend. *hug*

[jinian.livejournal.com]

I don't have most of the pain, thank goodness. What I do have is quite enough. And the visuals are usually neat, though this last time they were definitely sick-making as well.

You should come over and see the geodes! (You are coming Sunday anyway, right?)

[elynne.livejournal.com]

Oooooh, geodes! Um... what's happening Sunday? No, really - I'm confused. But I'll write it on my calendar if reminded. :)

[jinian.livejournal.com]

Dude! Clothing swap! You have to come! There was one at Clarica's pretty recently, so we will maybe not get a great turnout, but my mom is bringing great stuff and we will have fun and pie regardless.

[jenett]

Doctor is a good idea.

Besides nice painkillers, you might also try asking about blood-pressure medication (assuming there's no contraindictions) the last time I had serious migraine problems, the doctor I was seeing put me on it for a month - it's supposed to allow the blood vessels in your brain to recover and destress, basically.

I took them for a month, three years ago, and I've only *just* started getting painful migraines again (as opposed to aura+being really careful). It's also (assuming you don't have blood pressure issues already), pretty low risk (since blood pressure meds are meant to be daily+long term), and cheap.

It can be repeated again at intervals (when I talked the doctor, it was a "This will probably help a lot for a couple of years, maybe, if you start having problems again regularly, you can do it again."

I also do chiropractor stuff when my neck tension gets nasty.

[jinian.livejournal.com]

You've said that before, I should've remembered. When I get the information for my new insurance, I'll definitely talk to the doctor about that as well as Imitrex.

[jenett]

*nod* I like it because (unless you've got other blood pressure issues: I wouldn't recommend this to, say, lilairen) it's pretty darn low-risk.

Imitrex is my next step up, but I'm really trying to avoid it, because of the side effect potentials.

[porcinea.livejournal.com]

Feverfew. (Might not work, but if it does, it really does.)

My doctor gave me giant horse pills. I wish I could remember what they were. And, oh! now there's a shot.

[jinian.livejournal.com]

Feverfew! I haven't heard that. Do you take it in response to a headache, or preventively, or what?

Wim's mom had self-administered shots many years ago, with the same stuff as in Imitrex. She's happier with the pills, even if they take a bit longer to work. It's been over a year and a half since I had a headache this bad, so I think I'd be okay with pills myself.

[porcinea.livejournal.com]

Best use is daily as a preventative. It's one of the few herbals there've been studies on. Most people suggest chewing one leaf a day.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=3929876&dopt=Abstract
http://www.ibiblio.org/herbmed/faqs/medi-2-9-feverfew.html
http://www2.vitaminconnection.com/101_txt/3540_02_Feverfew.html

[papersky.livejournal.com]

In addition to what other people have said, lots of people's migraines are diet triggered, and it might be worth writing down what you'd eaten in the 24 hours before and seeing if you can find a pattern.

It's horrible when that vision thing happens -- and I get it before pain, or sometimes with pains in the back of my head. Worse though is the other one, where the middle bit of vision goes and only peripheral vision works -- that makes me feel so queasy you wouldn't believe, just purely from dizziness. Once one came on when I was in town and I had to get home on a bus -- well, that or walk, and walking two miles like that also wasn't a good plan. I nearly threw up on the bus. Eventually I shut my eyes entirely, on the bus, and Zorinth, who was eight or nine then, held my hand and told me exactly where we were as we went around corners and so on.

Ick, migraines, get well soon. I'd bring you a nice pot of raspberry tea if I were close enough.

[jinian.livejournal.com]

I've been thinking of keeping a diet journal for allergies, too, so I suppose I should just start writing. I feel like I'll get terribly controlling or guilty about food if I pay that much attention to it, so I've been afraid to do that so far.

The real pain definitely started after the vision weirdness. I didn't get so much pain after the last major visual effect (http://www.livejournal.com/users/jinian/2001/12/31/), so maybe these are getting worse over time too. Having only peripheral vision work sounds awful, but Zorinth sounds great to have around, as usual. :)

Is raspberry tea a general or specific remedy? The thought's appreciated either way -- thank you! -- but I might go hunt for some if it's particularly for headaches.

[wiredferret.livejournal.com]

I second the comment on diet. I find that my quasi-migraines (and the real ones, but those are rare) are often triggered by food allergies.

You might also check your seasonal allergy level. silmarian has constant low-level headaches from congestion during this time of year, even though he's not "sniffly".

[jinian.livejournal.com]

I'm sure that the constant achiness has something to do with my allergies, which are worse this year than they've ever been, but until I get my new insurance information I can't get back onto Allegra. Soon I will have proper medical attention, soon.