I wanted to post regularly, I actually had a plan. I would post about the UX conference I just joined, about random things like drawing challenges I want to try out or learn a new song on the guitar or ukulele every 2 weeks. Normal stuff. But something got in the way. None other than a migraine attack.
Now you might think:
What’s the biggie? It’s just a migraine attack!
Well, it is not that simple.
I suffer from what you call an aura migraine. It starts with a simple flicker. After minutes this small flicker turns into zigzagging lines that distort half of my sight. Then starts the unbearable headache accompanied by nausea. It also starts to get freezing cold regardless of the temperature. After some minutes nausea becomes unbearable, so the vomiting starts. But that is not all, diarrhea joins the party too. The headache actually becomes a tad bearable once the contents of my stomach and intestines have been emptied. My headache subsides after a couple of hours, but this does not mean that I feel normal again. I feel like crap for a day or two, sometimes it takes even weeks. My eyes are strained, and it feels like an attack is lurking around the corner. Every flicker I see scares the hell out of me.
This actually started in 2015. At first, it was a half-yearly thing. Then it happened quarterly. Then monthly. This went on until April. I went to different doctors, none could really help. The only help I got was some meds: one for nausea, one for diarrhea, and one for the headache. At some point, I also tried taking CBD oil. That did not really work. So I tried cutting down on some things. Chocolate, Cola, sweets. Nothing happened. Then I stopped taking pills and using my prescription glasses. This helped. I was migraine-free! Not sure which caused my attacks, but I was not really keen on taking pills again nor using my glasses.
So, I felt like I did something right. I did not have any attacks anymore. I was one happy kid. I got to enjoy life again, without the paranoia of ever experiencing any migraine attack especially when on the road with my son.
Until 2 weeks ago. I did nothing out of the ordinary. I am still trying to trace back to the things I did. Was it because of the new tablet I bought? Was it because of 3 successive days where my eyes were strained from too much screen time? Was it because of a couple of nights where I only had 5 hours of sleep? Was it because of some food I had? Chocolate? Cola? Coffee? I honestly have no idea.
And up until now, I feel like shit. I still feel lightheaded. I get mild headaches every now and then. I feel nauseous at times. Now here I am, waiting for the next attack. When will it happen? Maybe 1 month after the previous one? Maybe never? Hopefully never.
Silke 