it's been awhile since i've noted any migraines...but my absence from the computer is in part due to how many i've been having lately. i can't remember all of them (since i've stopped writing them on the calendar) but there's a few that get honorable mentions:
-last weekend we went on our 5th camping trip this season (in part due to how we double wedding planning with camping to retain our sanity). sandbanks was completely full so we ended up at ferris. the park was isolated and we were hidden deep in the forest this time, complete with a raccoon staring us down before dinner. it was okay during the night (being the first warm night camping of the season) but when i woke up, i think i did something to my neck during the night which expressed itself in my head. i had one of the worst migraines of the year (which is pretty bad considering most of them are excruciating). i was unable to pack up, and seeing as we had meetings with vendors late that afternoon we had to get moving. i ended up locking myself in the backseat of the car to lay down since being passed out outside was leaving the mosquitos to have their way with me. i had a shower 1/2 dressed since i was passing out and had to drive 1/2 sleeping in the car while the imitrex took a good 4 hrs to kick in. our meetings went well afterall, we took it easy that afternoon, but all in all it was another one of those epic episodes to remember...
-this weekend is rough as well. i just thank god we have NOTHING going on for once. yesterday i had a rough one coming on, and following a 1 hr neck massage by my fiance (supportive in the best & worst of times) i took 2 baths and ended up in bed early with a beanbag heat pack around my neck. the pain from my neck & head combined was so bad that the pain was radiating down my shoulder, elbow and fingers for most of the night. i downed a huge amount of water, slathered on the peppermint stick and passed out. i was successful in staying of the meds. this morning i overslept a bit and it's been taking a tole on me ever since.
-today, happily with nothing to do, S and I went to the market. we got coffee/tea and he sketched as i read and just relaxed. we got rained out so just went to the fruit/veg market to get some things for dinner and have been really focussing on relaxing all afternoon. in my traditional medicine book i found some new approaches to migraine relief & got a chance to try a few since today the pain is pretty bad. i got a mixture of lavender, spearmint & rosemerry tea (to try tonight -- lavender indicated as a migraine relief aid) & am currently boiling whole cinnamon on low to calm down the environment around here. i've had a few minutes over the steam which has helped momentarily clear my head. i also found some concentrated ginger cubes which S and i sucked out outdoors (again, always a good sport) while walking around and my headache went away for a good 45 min! the ginger was strong and hard to tolerate, but the effects were surprisingly brilliant. i'm set to have another soak tonight, put on some comfy clothes, make some great dinner & focus on relieving my migraine through stress-relief & comfort. the great thing about being in pain almost every day is the opportunistic chance to experiment on yourself! i have to admit, the ginger felt like a breakthrough & if anything, cancelling all plans this weekend felt good for the soul.
oh yeah, and on friday i handed in the whole 1st draft of my thesis to my supervisor. as dad would say...through adversity to the stars.
