My Migraine and Headache Blog

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

10/08/2011

October 2011 Headache and Migraine Disease Blog Carnival: Your Scariest Migraine Moment

This month's Headache and Migraine Blog Carnival theme is "Scary Migraine Episodes: What is the scariest migraine attack you've ever suffered or witnessed?" Head on over to Falling through pain to read some really horrid Migraine stories these brave people are willing to share with us.

I'm not sure I've had or even witnessed a Migraine attack that could be called the "scariest." In my mind there are all pretty scary, and here’s why.

When my “headaches” started around my menstrual cycle I now know were really Migraines. Whether they were truly menstrually-related Migraines without aura, pure menstrual Migraine without aura or non-menstrual related Migraine without aura per the International Headache Society's ICHD-II I’m not sure. What I am sure of is that they were fairly manageable with over the counter medications.

If I remember correctly, I continued on this path until I became pregnant with Sarah, my daughter. I'm pretty sure there were some awful Migraines during my pregnancy, but after my princess was born, life took on a brand new normal. Sarah, family, work, - we had a busy yet lovely life - tweaked with manageable Migraines.

My son Samuel came along and life turned upside down. While thankfully he was not tragically ill, he was chronically sick for about the first four years of his blessed little life. He was tested for cystic fibrosis (which was negative!) he had chronic upper respiratory tract infections, ear infections, and sensory integration issues to boot. Oh yes, did I mention eight months of colic too? But we made it through, and today he is a fine young man.

But on that cloudy day in December, when we fell in my driveway, my life changed forever. Walking to the car to put Sam in his car seat, I slipped and fell on a patch of black ice. While I was unconscious for some 20 odd minutes, I believe my poor baby cried his little heart out. Waking up and not knowing what was happening was one of the scariest moments of my life. Why was I on the ground? Why is Sam on top of me crying? Why can’t I see? And why in God’s name does my head and neck hurt so badly? If you’d like to continue reading about my story, head on over to MyMigraineConnection.Com, after you finish this reading this of course!!

So what's my point? My point is this: every Migraine is a bit scary for me, but somehow manageable. My life has been turned upside down by chronic head and neck pain and Migraines. Not knowing when the next Migraine attack will strike is scary. Not know how long each attack will last is scary. Not knowing how many hours, or days I will be debilitated is scary. I think Migraine attacks in general are just plain scary.

But here's MY thing – Migraine attacks and chronic pain are scary. What makes my journey less scary is that I wake up each morning and try to carry on. Some days are easier than others, let’s not kid ourselves. So I absorb everything I can about Migraine and then have the privilege and honor to share it with you. This in turn makes Migraine less scary for me. I try to take this scary Migraine and turn it into a positive. If Migraine and chronic pain hadn’t “fallen” into my life, I wonder where I’d be right now.

Thanks for reading and feel well,