Tuesday, November 29, 2011

my headache diary is a pret-ty good read



I was just paging through, making a lil note, and I thought I'd pull a few selects for you:

1/27/11
4pm Headach (sic) = 2
No reason.

2/7/11
Felt a little feverish today -- probs the drop from 50mg to 30mg
No headache until I ate a lollipop though. Now at 2

6/5/11
Stinky Cheese + Sun --> 3

6/17/11
Mint Choc Chip Klondike Bars --> 3

7/27/11
Drank two old-fashioneds, took pills late -- NO HEADACHE!!

8/6/11
5pm --> 4
Yoga or Blue Sno Cone?


I smell a book deal. 

Can anyone put me in touch with Maira Kalman?
______________________________

Have realized that on my scale of 1 to 10, I generally rate a pretty fucking sucky headache a 4. It has to get BAD for me to give it a 5/6. (Here's hoping I never make it to 8.)
Posted by esb at 12:40 PM
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28 comments:

  1. laurenNovember 29, 2011 at 1:45 PM

    this wrinkle in time, can't give it no credit...

    i think you spelled it properly up there, you were just using a german "ach!" to express displeasure.

    i'm sorry, gal.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnnaNovember 29, 2011 at 1:46 PM

    Well I think the clear lesson here is that you should drink more old fashioneds. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. HalfPintNovember 29, 2011 at 1:47 PM

    I like the 7/27 entry. That's my go-to.

    ReplyDelete
  4. FrancesNovember 29, 2011 at 4:21 PM

    A friend who's a physical therapist told me that men always rate their pain above 5 and women always rate it below 5. Oh, don't mind me! This slipped disk is only like a 3, COMPARED TO ALL THE CHILDREN WHO DIED IN HIROSHIMA.

    ReplyDelete
  5. MelissaNovember 29, 2011 at 5:57 PM

    I work on a scale of 1-3, but we're basically in the same boat. Daily topomax/magnesium and acute maxalt + naproxen keep me from being completely miserable.

    Headaches suck!

    ReplyDelete
  6. esbNovember 29, 2011 at 10:24 PM

    @Frances I LOVE YOU

    ReplyDelete
  7. esbNovember 29, 2011 at 10:27 PM

    @Melissa I almost included an entry that read: "Back on top." (I.E. BACK ON TOPAMAX) but I figured I'd be the only one to get the joke ;)

    Scale of 1-3 makes much more sense. I might have to switch over...

    ReplyDelete
  8. wool and miscNovember 30, 2011 at 12:50 AM

    :( i'm sorry

    ReplyDelete
  9. 17 beats.November 30, 2011 at 5:27 AM

    NO BLUE SNO CONES ? damn, girl. bummer.


    ps. to Frances -- sofa king true ! men are weenies.

    ReplyDelete
  10. 17 beats.November 30, 2011 at 5:29 AM

    pps. after i had my baby, this male doc kept coming in and asking me to rate my pain on a scale from 1 to 10 ... i was like, "at this point, EVERYTHING IS A 1, YOU FUCKING PUSSY."

    ReplyDelete
  11. esbNovember 30, 2011 at 8:36 AM

    @wool and misc it's COMEDY! i was trying to solicit laughter, not sympathy. fuck sympathy.

    ReplyDelete
  12. esbNovember 30, 2011 at 8:37 AM

    @17 beats YOU HAD A BABY

    ReplyDelete
  13. KateNovember 30, 2011 at 12:08 PM

    The pill leaches vitamin B6. Could be worth a try?

    ReplyDelete
  14. esbNovember 30, 2011 at 12:15 PM

    @Kate dude, lady. i've been on and off the pill so many times: Will it make things better? Will it make things worse? Now I take a big dose of B2 + B-Complex + Magnesium. Which, I can't really tell if the supplements make any difference.

    ReplyDelete
  15. esbNovember 30, 2011 at 12:17 PM

    @Melissa how much magnesium do you take? I'm at 500mg. rly can't tell if it's doing anything.

    ReplyDelete
  16. AnonymousNovember 30, 2011 at 4:34 PM

    ESB, I'm sorry you've got the chronic migraines too! (I like to believe it means we're extra aware of our surroundings.) I know everyone's noggin is different, but if topomax isn't doing it for you, I recommend verapamil as a daily prophylactic. After the first couple months, there are pretty much no side effects, and it basically saved me from spending my entire life in a dark room. Also, getting off hormonal birth control (including POP) helped me a ton.

    ReplyDelete
  17. MelissaNovember 30, 2011 at 5:03 PM

    My pair (ha!) of fancy neurologists have suggested going up to 1000mg/day of magnesium + 100mg of topomax plus adding in a b-12 supplement, but I don't alway remember to double up on the magnesium (500mg morning, 500mg at night).

    The topo/magnesium combo has been super helpful for moderating severity and the recent addition of naproxen to my maxalt for acute attacks has been pretty rad.

    But you know - i still have a headache every day. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  18. sarahNovember 30, 2011 at 5:05 PM

    yeah, I had to totally cut caffeine from my life - it took a whole 6mos to kick the habit, but I haven't had a single migraine since!

    ReplyDelete
  19. esbNovember 30, 2011 at 5:12 PM

    @Melissa i actually just teared up a little reading your comment. i think to was the ;)

    they're never *not there,* are they?

    ReplyDelete
  20. esbNovember 30, 2011 at 5:16 PM

    @Anon 4:34 i can't even remember if i've tried verapamil. will have to check the ol diary.

    every few years i think the top isn't doing anything and i try going off it and FUCKMEFUCKINGSHITBALLS

    ReplyDelete
  21. AnonymousNovember 30, 2011 at 5:51 PM

    anon 4:34 again. Yeah, tapering off is HARD. I tried to ease myself off verapamil a few months ago and—-well, that didn't go so well.

    One other med that's helped a lot (I swear I'm not a pharmaceuticals rep!) is frovatriptan, an abortive med in the same family as maxalt. Unlike the more common triptans, it lasts up to 2-3 days, which is a huge relief when you're stuck in a nasty little cycle.

    ReplyDelete
  22. esbNovember 30, 2011 at 6:05 PM

    @Anon 5:51 i'm currently kicking effexor, which i was taking on top of the topamax. SUX.

    ReplyDelete
  23. caraDecember 1, 2011 at 7:04 AM

    Sorry you're still getting headaches, that sucks.

    And ohmygawd, I <3 17 beats.

    ReplyDelete
  24. AnonymousDecember 2, 2011 at 10:15 AM

    So I have no idea if it'll work for you or not... but I used to have several headaches per week (say 3-6 depending on the week?) It turns out that I had a wheat allergy that was causing them. Now I'm down to maybe once a month. It's fantastically awesome not to be in pain!
    Anyways, so the way I got over the wheat allergy - I visited a natropathic allergist, who practices bio-intolerance elimination (BIE). It's a crazy sounding system and I feel like a paid-commercial every time I tell someone about it... but it's fantasically wonderful! You can find a list of practioners on their website: www.inht.ca The only catch is that there are very few practioners world wide, so hopefully there's one near you!

    ReplyDelete
  25. esbDecember 2, 2011 at 10:21 AM

    @Anon wait, so the "natropathic allergist" helped you GET OVER the wheat allergy? as in, YOU GET TO EAT SANDWICHES NOW?

    i miss sandwiches. also bagels. and donuts.

    ReplyDelete
  26. AnonymousDecember 2, 2011 at 11:12 AM

    Ha, ya, I guess I could have been a little more specific about that one!
    Yes, I am cured of my wheat allergies. Same with my season allergies, those to dairy, cats, dogs, and numerous other things. I used to take allergy meds every day spring, summer, and fall for seasonal allergies - I've taken maybe 5 so far this year. Woo!

    ReplyDelete
  27. esbDecember 2, 2011 at 11:16 AM

    @Anon 11:12 it sort sounds like snake-oil salesmanship, and yet i think i just might try it!

    ReplyDelete
  28. AnonymousDecember 2, 2011 at 1:15 PM

    One word: acupuncture.

    ReplyDelete

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