I keep looking at that fantastic photograph in my previous post (below) and hate to make a new post which will push it further down the page. What a great shot. The artist says he took it whilst aiming his lens into a mirror in a shop window across the street from the brasserie. Brilliant! I wish I had the streets of Paris to inspire my photography.
But post I must, for I am a blogger. And there is some good news to share, some surprisingly good news. After almost 2 years of chronic daily headache (every single day), and 9 years of plain-old chronic headache (more than 15 days a month) I've recently had some relief. Praise the Lord...things seem to be improving in my head. At least for now. I will take the gift as it comes...one day at a time, and dream of a headache-free week...
For the past 10 days or so, my headaches have "let up". This didn't seem possible, still doesn't seem possible. Headache has been my full-time, 24/7 "normal" for the past 18-24 months. I've had a headache, of some degree or another, all the time. In fact, lately they seemed to be worsening.
So I don't know what to make of this magical state. Why all of a sudden have the headaches lifted? For days in a row, I've felt much, much better. The shadow of headache hasn't fully lifted. They get into your bones, and I realize now it's taking a while for the fog of pain to disappear, for my spirits to lift and find home in this new pain-less place. It isn't entirely pain free, but it's a dramatic shift in the right direction.
Since the mother's day weekend, my headache journal indicates that I have had rather low-level headaches compared to usual. Looking back, I see several days of 2's or 2's and 3's. I've had a few mornings where I woke up with a 6, which then dissolved into a 2 or a 3. Or evenings that have been down-graded from a kindly 2 to an evil 6 or 7. There are even a few zero's and one's! But for the past 10 days, the headaches, the daily 3pm-grind kind of headaches, have subsided. I've been on the low side of the "mild-to-moderate" instead of high side of "moderate-to-severe" as I usually am.
What's the secret? Nothing terribly exciting, I'm afraid. I'd like to say I've found the One True Remedy that has resolved my headaches, so I could share it with you all. But I haven't. I've worked harder and tried more things in the past and been more driven to heal myself and got no relief. So now that I feel I've done so little, here comes relief. What's changed?
My formula for success: 50mg of Elavil and lots of sleep.
Sleep is an issue for me. I'm a night owl. I have trouble getting to bed before 11pm. But since mother's day weekend, I've been going to bed earlier, or at least trying to get 8-9h of sleep, regardless of when I go to sleep. This works on weekends, but during the week I've been trying to get a bit more sleep, just a little earlier to bed. Some nights have been later than 11pm, but I guess I've done enough compensation the following nights. And it seems to be working.
So I will keep this post short and get my chores done and get to sleep. Maybe I should just thank the Elavil, and not count my lucky stars just yet. But at least I'm getting a taste of normal, a taste of the life I once lived, a life where 3pm feels good, not like torture. It is such a joy to have a clear head, yesterday and today. And tomorrow?
Fourteen Years
12 hours ago
that is wonderfull news!! I'm so thrilled for you! Hope it continues on the "downward" slope (down in pain I mean).
ReplyDeleteHave a great day!!
this is fantastic. i couldn't be happier for you!! how amazing. i hope you continue to get better and better. :) wouldn't it be amazing to just have no headache every day? the mind boggles...
ReplyDeleteOh I'm crossing my fingers that this relief is lasting for you!!
ReplyDelete