Migraine of A Lifetime!

By MelissaJ

3 min read

I have had migraines since I was 13. I am now 33. They, unfortunately, run in my family, so, I know my son will have to suffer as I have. But I am going to share the worse one I have ever experienced.

Stabbing sensation

I was 25 and working in a glove factory. It was a hot job with little to no fresh air available. Sewing machines squealing away and a thunderstorm raging outside. Suddenly someone stabs me directly behind my left eye. No one actually stabbed me. Grabbing my face and falling to the floor. I know what is going on. I have had many of them in the past but this is by far the worst. My stomach immediately flips and the smell of machine oil is rancid and assaulting my nose. My vision is blurry and everything has this strange halo surrounding it.

Nausea from migraine at work

My boss comes to see what is going on due to me laying on the floor holding my head together with nowhere near enough hands to do such. As she comes within touching range I vomit all over her brand new shoes and pants, oh, and the gloves that I was sewing together. A whole case ruined. Stammering through an apology and an explanation, I try to stand up. Obviously, a wrong thing to do. I feel like my feet are no longer a part of my body. I have no control over my legs. My boss picks me up and sets me back into my chair. Telling me that I don't need to apologize. (She is a migraine sufferer too.)

Support from my boss

She gives me her sunglasses to help with the lighting issues. I catch my breath and she leads me to my car. All the while asking me if I have someone who can come and get me (I do not since I am the only one with a license). I slowly shake my head, mistake, since I am afraid to open my mouth the speak.

A terrible hospital experience

I start my car and drive home. I am extremely glad that it is a trip I have made a million times before and could drive it blindfolded. A 15-minute trip took 45 minutes due to how slowly I drove. I got home and my husband who isn't supposed to be driving drove me to the hospital. There I was accused of faking it. Looking for attention. They do give me a shot of a pain killer that has no effect. An hour later another shot of something else. By this time I am all but begging someone to cut off my head so I don't have to feel it anymore. I swear I hear my hair growing and screaming in pain from the growth. The fire alarm goes off at the hospital. That was the last straw.

Finally finding some relief

I start crying. A migraine and now crying. Things are only getting worse for me. My husband is pacing thinking that I am having a brain aneurism. Of course, I have to go through all the stupid tests to confirm that that wasn't the case. I was in the hospital from 9 am until almost 6 pm. Finally, the pain lessens and I am more coherent. My feet are now my own to command but my head is still throbbing. I will never forget that day. All the frustrations of people not believing me and the sounds of grass growing and new stars being born. I never want to relive that day.

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pigen51 Member
I can only say that I understand how you feel. I have had this sort of thing happen on several occasions over the years. The worst time was when I was working, in a foundry, and a migraine hit, and built up to one of the worst that I had had in a long time. I was pouring steel, and always tried to avoid taking any pain medication while doing that, obviously. This time, however, I simply could not avoid it, and took some narcotic pain medication. I continued to pour the heat that I was working on, it took another hour or so. By then, I was so bad, that I could hardly keep from squeezing my eyes shut. I got my ladle put down, a sort of involved thing, with a 20 ton ladle, that poured out of a hole in the bottom. So I could not simply walk away. I then went looking for a foreman, finally going into the front office, paging him on the phone system. Told him that I was sick and going home. Of course, he was not happy, as usual, but there was really nothing I could do about it. Driving home, a 10 mile drive from Lake Michigan to my house across town, normally a 20 minute trip, took me about a half hour. I got there, and had my wife take me to an ER, which at that time, was 50/50 on whether or not they would give you anything to help with a migraine. Lucky for me, at that time, I got one of the doctors who knew that by the time a migraine patient made it to the ER, the only thing to do was to give them something to make it stop, and in my case, the triptans don't work. So I immediately got a heavy duty dose of Nubain, one of the narcotics they used at the time, and Vistril, an anti-emetic drug, to stop the vomiting. I forgot to mention that I was vomiting during the drive home. Of course, no doubt you have gone through all of this in your time as a person with migraines. And due to the war on drugs, they don't treat pain at the ER anymore, unless absolutely necessary, and certainly not for something that can't be seen like a broken bone, or a kidney stone.
1. Nancy Harris Bonk Moderator
 Hi <inline-mention username="MelissaJ" user-id="4159615"/>, Thank you for sharing this with us. I'm so sorry you went through all that. I can tell you you're not alone in having people not believe you. Your boss however, sounds awesome!! I hope you have a good day, Nancy Harris Bonk, Patient Advocate/Moderator