Not Now, I Have a Headache

I tend to get migraines. Turning white, vomit inducing, incapacitating migraines. Thankfully, I don't get them too often, though. I'm talking maybe two a year or so. And I know how to stop them before they happen. If I can get a couple Advils in me when I first notice the headache, chances are that will do the trick and a migraine won't occur.

So, basically, it's not a problem.

But lately - like, maybe the last month or so - the headaches are coming more and more frequently. I've noticed because I'm not the type who likes to take medications at the drop of a hat. I have to have some solid, major reasons to finally decide to down some painkillers or cold medicine. Mainly, I try to stick to the homeopathic fixes - echinacea for colds, or simple rest and relaxation for minor pings, pains and pulls.

So the fact that I've had Advil on the brain lately - Is this pain bad enough for drugs? Do we have Advil at work? Will any generic painkiller help? - tells me the headaches are indeed coming more regularly now.

I have an appointment with my neurologist in a week. I'll definitely be asking him about these headaches/migraines. My concern is that they're related to my Arnold Chiari Malformation. I say this because I've noticed that the headaches usually start from the back of my head/neck area and intensify from there. Surely that may have to do with my "droopy brain", right? Oh, and what about the sometimes accompanying upset stomach? Related? I don't know.

As my mom and husband have pointed out, just because I recently found out I have ACM doesn't instantly mean that my migraines (whether or not they're increasing in frequency) have anything to do with that condition.

But maybe it does, I say. Maybe it does.

Or - maybe it's the blogging. Too much - way too much - time spent at the computer, hunched over the keyboard typing my blog and writing my articles. Or even - gasp! - resting my chin on the desk, staring at the screen as I fritter away my late night and weekend hours blog-hopping and web surfing. (Hey, I never admitted to having a perfectly ergonomical feng shui situation in home office/desktop set up, did I?).

Yah, it's probably the typing and hopping. Not the ACM. But maybe it's because of the ACM that the typing/hopping are so quick to turn into migraines. Hmmmph. That's an idea.

Regardless, I'm not stopping my writing and blogging. No way, no how. I'll work on the ergonomics of the situation. I'll write in shorter spurts. I'll take pain medication. Anything to keep me writing. It's what I love to do and what I need to do. Physical pain and suffering be damned!

A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. Yah, you heard me - that's write!