So... as of tomorrow I'll have been doing this site (in one form or another) for eight years. A lot of people don't know that. Weird. I'm still really trying to hold out for 10. We'll see.
Anyway, I had originally planned to get back to all-out posting this week, but yesterday I had a crippling migraine and was basically unable to function for the vast majority of the day, so I got nothing done (and I generally do all of my writing on the weekends). I've been suffering from migraines for about two years now, but lately... man, they've been life-ruiningly miserable. I mean, they've been bad before, but they were actually sort of getting "better" for a little while. "Better" as in "I was only having two or three a month". But for the last few weeks I've been getting them damn near every two or three days... and the (extremely expensive) pills I pop aren't really working as well as they used to either. It fuckin' sucks. Especially because I'm more sound-sensitive than light-sensitive, so I don't want to listen to music when I'm in migraine mode.
It's pathetic. I can't jog. Stepping off a curb or coughing or sneezing can set me off. Shit, lately, even tapping my feet (which I usually do incessantly) or nodding my head can do the trick. I'm in hell.
If anyone has any bright ideas, I'm all ears. And yes, I've already spent thousands of dollars on various tests to ensure that I'm allegedly not going to drop dead of cancer or an aneurysm or anything "serious". But I'll try anything at this point!
In the meantime, here's a semi-appropriate old gem I hadn't heard in a good eight years or so. I loved this song in 1995, but sold the disc somewhere along the way:
I'm not sure if anything else on the CD still stands the test of time today, but I just grabbed the entire album off eMusic this morning before my downloads for this month expired. I guess I'll find out...
Comments
I suffer the same migraine episodes sometimes (fortunately largely separated in time), but all I can do with those painful episodes is taking pills. Analgesics are the only “remedy” I know and use by now when it occurs, but they often don’t work, so the only thing you can do in that cases is waiting and hope the pain cease.
Patience, my friend.
12.31.2007 | By Engrudo
Dude, i’ve had migraines too for years now and while i got pills to help only this years january, i’ve had only like 4 or 5 attacks this year in total. Last year i had like 2 to 3 per month and it truly is fucking hell when it hits you, it sucks when all my friends have hangover and still i, who havent drinked a drop am the one with most nauseated feelings. Anyhow the medicine i got, didnt help on few first attacks, but then it helped after that and somehow miraculously the number of seizures has dropped and i hope it stays that way too. Try to hang on and hope you’ll find a way to overcome.
12.31.2007 | By markusxKTL
“been doing this site for eight years.”
“been getting [migraines] damn near every two or three days…”
maybe there’s a connection? :)
my brother had used to have migraines so bad they made him vomit. but he beat it. i’ll ask him how when i see him.
all the best, man, by the way. “hang tuff”.
12.31.2007 | By chris
yo i’ve read that the majority of americans are seriously dehydrated and that causes headaches. I drink a lot of booze and realized i never drink water, i’ve started drinking a lot of water lately and I can tell the difference. May as well try.
12.31.2007 | By el
I’ve heard that cayenne pepper helps with migraines by aiding your blood circulation. It also provides about a dozen other health benefits. You can buy it in capsule form at GNC stores or pharmacies. Let me know if it helps.
12.31.2007 | By Adam
Hey Andrew,
I’ve had migraines caused by a few things, as in - they can be pinched nerves, or extreme muscle tension caused by stress and yeah, extreme things like cancer or lesions. If you’re constantly under an insane amount of stress, that could be one major factor.
I guess my advice would be to just test out different things. When I get migraines, I find drinking alcohol or smoking anything exacerbates it. If it’s muscle tension, caffeine can also effect it as well. You could do some kind of stretches or things to relax your muscles, switch between hot and cold water in the shower, etc.
Also, there is a line of medicine from Germany called Dr. Reckeweg. In my experience, it’s the only medical stuff that one can buy non-prescribed that has ever worked for seriously insane back pain.
Best of luck, dude. Don’t kill yourself over the blog, ya hear?
12.31.2007 | By Simon
not to turn this into a medical journal, but…
andrew, here’s the story. my girlfriend suffered from extreme migraines, ran a couple of tests and discovered it was sinus-related. have you checked your sinuses? she’s had two operations and now it’s okay. she still has occasional headaches, but gone are the vomit- and misery-inducing migraines.
my brother’s case is somewhat “paranormal”. his migraines started when he moved to a new house (no ghosts, though). after running all sorts of tests known to man (with no results) and at wit’s end, he hired one of those guys who detect underground water radiation (or whatever you call it). the dude discovered the head part of my brother’s bed was directly over a massively negative stream. he started sleeping in another room and the migraines disappeared.
i dunno. can’t hurt trying.
on the other hand, most of migraine cases are apparently caused by some sort of obstruction of blood (oxygen) flow to the brain. try exercising more. or google it. :) an operation may be inevitable, but at least you’ll get your life back.
best of luck.
1.1.2008 | By chris
Other than considering your water intake, you might also want to check for other stuff. Radon, Carbon Dioxide.
Also, how are your teeth? I’ve had killer headaches since I was in high school (I don’t remember having them anytime before my mom died, which was during my freshman year), and they started to get worse before I wound up going to the ER with an infection (a year ago, then two years before that). I’ve had dental issues for years, as well as the migraines and the two can be linked. Plus, diabetes runs in my family (one of the things I need to be wary of myself as I get older), which can also be linked to dental health.
Just something to chew on.
1.1.2008 | By Dichatomy
my dad’s a pilot and used to get migraines all the time while flying. back in the military days, the flight surgeon recommended what he called a “migraine speedball” which was pretty much a maximum strength excedrin and a sudafed taken together. the kind of sudafed they keep locked up now. my dad swears by them. i’ve never had migraines, but my wife gets them and i told her about it and she says it works pretty damn good. might be worth a shot.
1.2.2008 | By phil
Nice tune! I have no medical advice to offer, but as others have said, you should make sure other parts of you/your surroundings aren’t out of tune. May your health improve for ‘08, and congratulations on the 8th anniversary - here’s looking forward to the 10th!
1.2.2008 | By Invisible Oranges
smoke some pot…
1.3.2008 | By Anonymous