The Decision

Finally, I decided what I wanted my story to actually be about, MIGRAINES! I suffer from horrible migraines. To someone who doesn't get them, this may seem ridiculous, but it is the worst pain & weirdest feeling I could ever describe. The time it takes from start to finish takes about 4-5 hours out of my day. It begins with a weird light or "fuzzy flashing" (which is what i call it) in my eye. That usually lasts 20-30 minutes. During this time, there is no headache, it is simply the fuzzy flashing, and this is the time when I take my medicine and go to the darkest place in my house possible because light is the worst thing. After the light in my eye stops, there is a period of time (another 30 minutes) where I have difficulty formulating sentences, or saying what I mean. For example, I thought I asked my mom to get me a wet towel for my face, but it came out something like "towel face for my get me." Obviously migraines are triggered by something in the brain and nerves are being interfered with, but it is strange and scary because I don't notice that I say things incorrectly. After that last 30 minutes is when the pain begins. It starts in the back of my eyes, then the sides of my eyes, then the forehead & all surrounding areas. This can last anywhere between 3-4 hours. It is a constant heavy pain, and occasionally I will vomit or get the chills and be shaky. During this time I will be in the darkest room possible still, with a wet towel over my forehead, a pillow over that, and many blankets because I usually get cold. Once the migraine has passed, I will still have a headache for the rest of the day/ sometimes even into the next morning and afternoon. As much as the pain is horrible, it really screws up my day. I have had to miss classes, trips, meals with friends, work, etc. I have done many experiments ordered by doctors, and personal ones as well, and have found out some of the things that trigger the migraines. Unfortunately I still have them so I continue to experiment with different food, smells, and certain lights to see if anything triggers them.

Here are a few things that I definitely cannot have... caffiene, chocolate, coffee, red wine, most sugary food like cookies, cakes, anything like that, florescent lights are horrible, and some artificial sweetener is not good.