In this entry I’d like to chat about something that happened to me recently—something I bet many who have experienced chronic pain can relate to. About two weeks ago, I woke up with a headache. I was a bit annoyed as I had a ton of writing to do, and it was one of those headaches where opening your eyes hurts. Because I rarely got headaches, I didn’t have any of the usual headache remedies in my medicine cabinet. I had several bottles of super-potent, put-hair-on-your-chest nerve and muscle pain meds--some I had to stop taking because they had me walking into walls-- but not one single bottle of aspirin! So, I borrowed a couple of aspirin from a neighbor and tried to go about my day. Each night, I went to sleep certain the headache would be gone in the morning. But, one week went by and the headache showed no signs of letting up. That's when I clicked into panic mode. I mean I
really panicked. I began scouring the Internet for information on headaches—symptoms, treatments, natural remedies; I spent a fortune at the drugstore on different headache, allergy and sinus meds; I made lists of specialists in my area, but worst of all, I began to worry. I was filled with a feeling of dread. Was I about to get dragged on another chronic pain ride? Would my head feel like this for the rest of my life? Would I have to learn to write/drive/read/cook/exist around my aching head in the same way that I had to figure out how to work around my pelvic floor issues? I was consumed with fear. Then I went to the doctor, and chatting with him sparked my memory; it was this time last year that I had gone to the eye doctor because I had been having headaches—at that time, I had assumed the headaches were due to eye strain because I was way overdue on updating my glasses. Now, I was having the same headaches--just in time for allergy season. The doctor advised me to take an over-the-counter allergy med, and said I would most likely feel better after taking it for a week. Well, so far I’ve taken one dose, and I already feel better. I can’t help feeling embarrassed by how much I overreacted. But I’m going to give myself a pass. My Mom nearly drowned when she was a kid. As a result, she has always been afraid of the water. I suppose I experienced something similar with my headache pain. Before my pelvic floor went haywire, any time I had a pain, it either went away on its own or an all-knowing doctor would scribble out a prescription that would nip it in the bud. I guess dealing with a chronic pain situation for three years can leave a person shell shocked when it comes to pain. But, here’s the thing: I know that my body is a complicated machine with tons of pieces and parts. I realize that things will go wrong here and there, and I don’t want to get frozen with fear each time. So, I’m taking a lesson from my headache experience. I’ll file it away, and the next time I have an ache or a pain, it won’t be the end of the world, but a situation I can face with calm and perspective.
In this entry I’d like to chat about something that happened to me recently—something I bet many who have experienced chronic pain can relate to. About two weeks ago, I woke up with a headache. I was a bit annoyed as I had a ton of writing to do, and it was one of those headaches where opening your eyes hurts. Because I rarely got headaches, I didn’t have any of the usual headache remedies in my medicine cabinet. I had several bottles of super-potent, put-hair-on-your-chest nerve and muscle pain meds--some I had to stop taking because they had me walking into walls-- but not one single bottle of aspirin! So, I borrowed a couple of aspirin from a neighbor and tried to go about my day. Each night, I went to sleep certain the headache would be gone in the morning. But, one week went by and the headache showed no signs of letting up. That's when I clicked into panic mode. I mean I really panicked. I began scouring the Internet for information on headaches—symptoms, treatments, natural remedies; I spent a fortune at the drugstore on different headache, allergy and sinus meds; I made lists of specialists in my area, but worst of all, I began to worry. I was filled with a feeling of dread. Was I about to get dragged on another chronic pain ride? Would my head feel like this for the rest of my life? Would I have to learn to write/drive/read/cook/exist around my aching head in the same way that I had to figure out how to work around my pelvic floor issues? I was consumed with fear. Then I went to the doctor, and chatting with him sparked my memory; it was this time last year that I had gone to the eye doctor because I had been having headaches—at that time, I had assumed the headaches were due to eye strain because I was way overdue on updating my glasses. Now, I was having the same headaches--just in time for allergy season. The doctor advised me to take an over-the-counter allergy med, and said I would most likely feel better after taking it for a week. Well, so far I’ve taken one dose, and I already feel better. I can’t help feeling embarrassed by how much I overreacted. But I’m going to give myself a pass. My Mom nearly drowned when she was a kid. As a result, she has always been afraid of the water. I suppose I experienced something similar with my headache pain. Before my pelvic floor went haywire, any time I had a pain, it either went away on its own or an all-knowing doctor would scribble out a prescription that would nip it in the bud. I guess dealing with a chronic pain situation for three years can leave a person shell shocked when it comes to pain. But, here’s the thing: I know that my body is a complicated machine with tons of pieces and parts. I realize that things will go wrong here and there, and I don’t want to get frozen with fear each time. So, I’m taking a lesson from my headache experience. I’ll file it away, and the next time I have an ache or a pain, it won’t be the end of the world, but a situation I can face with calm and perspective.
