My Dark Couds

I had my first migraine when I was about 7 years old and at junior school - very frightening because I experienced and aura. I had various bouts of migraine after that, the worst being in my late 20s for a while and now in my late 40s.

These days I get them a bit too often for my liking, mostly without aura but with debilitating headaches on the left side of my head. During the headache phase I suffer awful feelings of doom, paranoia, sweating, watering eye on the headache side, and am often laid up for 2 or 3 days. Afterwards I am so tired and rather emotional. During the headache I feel very much in the migraine's grip, if that makes sense, with literal tight band feeling around my skull but more than that, it's like a heavy black cloud weighing down on me even after the pain is subsiding. It really is the most awful thing and I avoid as many triggers as I can such as chocolate, citrus fruits, synthetic flavors and colors, alcohol. And that, my fellow migraineurs is my pitiful story.

One quirk I left out: during my worst migraines I reverse the way I lie in bed, taking my pillow to the foot end. Somehow it feels better to have my head in the east, ha ha, I really don't know why but when you're desperate......Anyway, hello.