Oh My, Migraine

So, I’ve been getting more and more and worse and worse of headaches lately.  I’ve always dealt with headaches, but the severity of them is getting really bad.  Like, wanting to throw up and hole up in a dark room, bad.  I actually didn’t go to work today because of my migraine.

When I think of migraines, I’m reminded of a roommate I had in college.  People always ask me, “Why don’t you go to the doctor and get medicine for it?”  Well, because I remember this roommate, Abby.  Abby got terrible migraines.  They were so bad that you could literally see her eyes blur and I swear her head swelled as well.  Oh the pain coming from her.  She took medicine to “stop” her migraines.  Well, what the medicine actually did was render her completely helpless for 2-3 days at a time.  She would literally sleep and then she would still have a headache when she woke up.  No thank you.  My migraines aren’t to the point where I think I would need medication that would do THAT to me.

So, I decided to do a little research on web MD and I found some surprising facts.

This article talks about “Surprising Causes of Migraines.”

1. Your Boss – I laughed out loud when I read this.  Now, my boss isn’t stressful, but I did have staff meeting yesterday and that was when my headache started.
2. Warm Weather – no wonder I hate summer and love winter.  Now I have another reason!
3. Strong Scents – does the smell of human waste count?  Yup.  I think so.  Let me explain.  My school is right next to a “water treatment plant” or as I like to refer to it “The Excrement Factory.”  And I have a direct vent into my room from the outside.  Yippeee!  This last week the smell has been particularly bad – like wanting to throw up bad.
4. Hair Accessories – ummm, please don’t make me give up my headbands.
5. Strenuous Exercise – yeah, no problem there.  Exercise? What’s exercise?
6. Poor Posture – oh, guilty!  But can I blame my height and poor self-esteem from being an overgrown giant as a child.  I mean really, I was taller than my 2nd grade teacher.  What about the fact that I always have to look down at others, I mean literally look down because I tower above them.  This is not my fault.  It’s genetic!
7. Cheese – No!  My one true love!  I just can’t give that up.  I did have a cheese sandwich yesterday.  Hmmm.  Okay, okay, I had two,  but they were are hard rolls, not a “whole” sandwich.
8. Red Wine – no problem there.  I wonder if grapes count?
9. Cole Cuts – ummm, no.  I only eat that when I go to Subway.  Mmmmm…..Subway.
10. Skipping Meals – does my 15 minutes lunch, oh I mean snack break count?  I don’t usually skip meals, as my waist size can prove.
11. Smoking, Personally or Secondhand – Well, also not a problem.  Unless you count smelling smoke on all my students.  It’s funny.  It is as though they think we can’t actually smell it on them.
12. Caffeine – when I saw this I gasped!  Nothing gets rid of my headaches better than 2 Excedrin and a diet Pepsi.  But then I actually read the note: “In moderation, caffeine is often beneficial — in fact, it’s found in many headache medications. But chain-chugging coffee can be a cause of headaches.”  Whew!  Good thing, because I don’t think I could give up my Diet Pepsi.  I wonder what would be considered “chain-chugging” for soda?

So, there are definitely some things for me to think about here.  But for right now I’m going to go get some fresh ice for my ice bag (you know the old fashioned kind – I love them!), take some more Excedrin, and hole up under my covers in the dark and try to sleep it off.

Enjoy these comics:

from: becauseitsreality.wordpress.com

from: alvernah.wordpress.com

I also found a whole blog with lots of comics about migraines: Migraine Chick