OWWW

I have what may be the worst headache I've had in several years. I'm pretty sure it's just a factor of the weather, hormones and allergies coming together into the perfect storm, but I am miserable. I'd sleep, but I'm not sleepy. I just hurt.

I have taken Sudafed and Excedrin. I know it isn't a caffeine headache because the only caffeine I ever get anymore is when I occasionally take Excedrin.

If the headache subsides at all, I'll blog later. I got some great photos this weekend.

UPDATE: My hearing is acting up pretty intensely now. I had forgotten that headaches are also a symptom of Meniere's, as well as the hearing anomalies. I was also dizzy this morning. This is a Meniere's thing. Yecch.

Wednesday weariness

I'm getting closer to having my classroom in a workable state. Rick came up today and installed my pull-down screen and covered the chalkboards with sheets of foam insulation to make them into display boards. I've got a whiteboard now, which will be immensely more useful. Chalkboards are worthless wastes of valuable wall space.

I turned in a PO for a projector. Keep your fingers and toes crossed for me.

Tomorrow morning Alice checks in at the EMU at Children's Hospital in Dallas. That's the acronym for Epilepsy Monitoring Unit. We had to schedule it now because my health insurance is about to turn over to a new year and we'll suddenly be stuck with a humongous bill we can't pay if we wait until after then. Plus, this way she'll hopefully be out of the EMU by Sunday and won't miss the first day of school.

Normally, I go to the EMU with her when she goes, but because I'm already in school, and because Rick is unemployed, it seemed best that he go and stay with her. I'll go down there on Friday afternoon after I'm done with school and stay with her that night; we're hoping that Saturday she gets to go home.

Oh, hey... I took some Sudafed this morning and again this afternoon, and had my first headache-free day in a week. Yay!!

I am plumb wore-out tonight. I'm going to bed now.

Hacking. Again.

I am so tired of coughing.


Wikipedia: The cough reflex consists of three phases: an inhalation, a forced exhalation against a closed glottis (the complex of the vocal folds), and a violent release of air from the lungs following opening of the glottis, usually accompanied by a distinctive sound.

That distinctive sound? For me, it's this wheezing bark that sounds like tuberculosis.

And nowadays it also triggers a monster headache every single time I do it.

It also means that it's going to be a while before I finally get to see my mom and dad again, since they're both immuno-compromised individuals.

Do you KNOW how tired I am of this winter? I think I've been sick the entire time.

Grrr.

3AM UPDATE: I knew there was a good reason I was hoarding the Vicodin from my surgery and my weird non-root-canal incident... it totally made me quit coughing and get some sleep. Of course, I also woke up the moment it wore off, but I can take another one and go back to sleep here in a minute when it kicks in. If you're concerned, I don't seem to have a problem becoming addicted to it. In fact, I rarely take all of it when it's prescribed to me (obviously, or I wouldn't be hoarding it). And it comes in handy occasionally when I need it, like tonight.

I'm glad I got up, actually. I had forgotten to make a new pitcher of green tea last night because I was pretty absorbed in watching Fringe. I heart Fringe.

Saturday bidness

I am under the gun to finish the yearbook cover design PRONTO... so I have to spend this afternoon at school working on it. I missed two days this week because of the bad weather, which threw off my whole schedule.

And to add to my angst, the camera ... THE CAMERA ... the REAL NIKON D80 WITH THE NIKKOR 18-200MM LENS... finally arrived at school this week. I had gotten approval to purchase a DSLR camera back in October, but there were issues with the purchase order and the place to order it from, yaddayadda, and we didn't get to place the order until last week.

Which means, this delicious, fantastic beast of a CAMERA is sitting there and there's SUNSHINE outside and I should be taking pictures with it. I've spent as much time as I could allow myself just dinking around with it, learning to use it. But the temptation is terrible! And I absolutely MUST finish that cover TODAY.

The agony!

On the headache front, I am still dealing with it. It really has to be hormonal; I can't imagine why it wouldn't go away when I take medicine for it otherwise.

What a day it is outside! GAH!

Ow

The noggin hurts today. I've taken some palliative measures which have proven unfruitful. I'm guessing it's hormonal in nature; I will get some sleep and see if it passes.

Misery

Ever coughed so hard you thought your head would asplode?

[throbthrobthrob]

Meds don't seem to be working very well. I can't imagine I'm going to sleep well tonight.

UPDATE: Woke up about every two hours to take more dextromethorphan (which, I think, I'm technically not supposed to do if I'm also taking Prozac or another SSRI, but I'm desperate here). I'm gonna skip church; can't sing in the choir if I'm coughing myself inside-out.

Same headache again

Started at about 7:45 tonight.

Same headache, same time

The same headache has arrived again, precisely at 8:30 PM tonight, in exactly the same place behind my right eye.

Rick thinks I might have a sinus infection, but I don't have a stuffy head or drainage or anything.

Tonight instead of the usual two Aleve tablets (which I have to take for my arthritis anyway) I took one Aleve and one 500mg Vicodin tablet left over from my recent dental adventure. I always keep pain meds when I don't use them all because they eventually come in handy. I think I went through almost my entire stash of extra Vicodin after my surgery two months ago... I hurt a LOT more than I expected I would, and we lived so far from a pharmacy that it was just easier to use what I had rather than try to get a refill of what the doc had prescribed for me. Plus, now I always feel really guilty when filling a Vicodin scrip thanks to The Angry Pharmacist and all his rants. Even though my scrips are always legit and never the result of abuse or overuse, I still feel bad about it.

I'm probably going to use this blog as my personal headache documentation again (like I did several years back), to keep accurate track of their onset, duration and location. Feel free to ignore the headache posts.

Oh... and the white-hot anger that overwhelmed me yesterday? I knew it would be better after I woke up, and it was. I had some of those little miniature pumpkins that people decorate with this time of year, and I tied a little note of apology to the stem and put it on the desk of my offending co-worker. Yes, he was in the wrong, and his behavior and attitude were sucky. But he obviously perceived that I was the one behaving badly and I knew there would be no reconciliation if I didn't go forward with a sincere apology. Eventually maybe he'll realize he was the one with the problem, but I doubt it... and it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things anyway. I need to be able to work alongside him without friction, and I've learned where his tipping-point is with regards to sarcasm and jokes. Basically I will no longer joke with him, and hopefully if I stay out of his way I can stay on his good side. And most important of all, I needed to be the one who submitted -- out of reverence for Christ. Jesus didn't deserve the treatment HE got, but he took it willingly. I'm certainly NOT undeserving of punishment for lots of crap I do and don't do, so let's just take the medicine cheerfully and move on.

I have better things to do than hang onto anger and grudges. I see too many people around me who have clutched their lifelong bitterness to their chests like security blankets... it's no way to live, in my opinion.

Exactly the same headache

I don't have the headache all day, but at about the same time every evening for the past three nights, I have a twingy headache right behind my right eye.

I refilled my Prozac prescription today and the pharmacist said that the doctor won't refill it again until I go in for a visit. This ticks me off royally because I was JUST IN THERE a month ago for a different issue. A Prozac refill shouldn't be a big deal, though. It's not as though I haven't been in to see her in a year or something.

That being said, though, if I'm going to HAVE to go in for yet another stupid doctor visit, I can mention the headache and see what she says. Probably nothing; I haven't been hugely impressed with this doctor. My former doctor was annoying enough, sure, but this one who came in as a replacement when that one left is not terribly scintillating either. I sometimes get the idea that I do more reading and research than some of these yay-hoos.

Meh. It's probably just this really really really really really really rotten mood I'm in... this Terrible, Horrible, No-Good, Very-Bad Mood.

Grrrrrrrrrowl. Snarl.

An unusual occurrence

Wendy M. Painter, "Migraine", 16" x 66", 1993

I actually have a headache tonight. A few years ago this was an every-day thing, but I can now say that I do not even remember the last headache I had. I don't know of a particular reason why I'm having a headache tonight, but unless it persists and isn't gone by morning, I probably won't even bother worrying about it. How cool is that?

Just the same, I should probably check my BP. When I was having all those horrible headaches, it turned out that my systolic BP was spiking over 200 and I never even knew it. I have been taking my Lisinopril faithfully, but we dropped the HCTZ a few weeks ago because my BP was going too low.

Likely cause: sleep deprivation. I didn't get as much sleep last night as I should've, and I didn't nap this afternoon because I had to go try to find some pants that won't fall off me at school tomorrow.

It's 10PM now, so I think I'll just go to bed now and see if that helps.

Symptom check

Pre-Rash Stage

Pain, burning, tickling, tingling, and/or numbness occurs in the area around the affected nerves several days or weeks before a rash appears. The discomfort usually occurs on the chest or back, but it may occur on the abdomen, head, face, neck, or one arm or leg.

Check.

Flu-like symptoms (usually without a fever), such as chills, stomachache, or diarrhea, may develop just before or along with the start of the rash.

Check.

Swelling and tenderness of the lymph nodes may occur.

Check.

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Active Stage

A band, strip, or small area of rash appears. It can appear anywhere on the body but will be on only one side of the body, the left or right. Blisters will form. Fluid inside the blister is clear at first but may become cloudy after 3 to 4 days.

Check.

A rash may occur on the forehead, cheek, nose, and around one eye, which may threaten your sight unless you get prompt treatment.

Oh, for Pete's sake. Check.

Pain, described as "piercing needles in the skin," may accompany the skin rash.

Check. Oh, yes, definitely check.

Blisters may break open, ooze, and crust over in about 5 days. The rash heals in about 2 to 4 weeks, although some scars may remain.

Ewwww... not yet... [shudder]

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The Fun That's To Come

Post-herpetic neuralgia is the most common complication. It lasts for at least 30 days and may continue for months to years. Symptoms are: aching, burning, stabbing pain in the area of the earlier shingles rash; persistent pain that may linger for years; and extreme sensitivity to touch.

The pain associated with postherpetic neuralgia most commonly affects the forehead or chest, and it may make it difficult for the person to eat, sleep, and perform daily activities. It may also lead to depression.

Cranial nerve complications may include:

Inflammation, pain, and loss of feeling in one or both eyes. The infection may threaten your vision. A rash may appear on the side and tip of the nose (Hutchinson's sign).

Intense ear pain, a rash around the ear, mouth, face, neck, and scalp, and loss of movement in facial nerves (Ramsay Hunt syndrome). Other symptoms may include hearing loss, dizziness, and ringing in the ears. Loss of taste and dry mouth and eyes may also occur.

Nice. I'd heard of people having shingles, but certainly never considered the notion that I might get them someday, too. Thank goodness for a couple of alert friends at work who recognized it and directed me to the immediate help I needed. My own doctor couldn't see me until Friday afternoon; my co-workers told me about a local clinic that would treat me immediately and try to arrest the progress of the virus.

I had seen "Thelma's Hometown Clinic" before, but honestly, I'd thought it sounded amusing at best. But when I went to visit Thelma this afternoon, she saw me right away (even though I didn't have an appointment) and knew exactly what to do. I came away with a prescription for Valtrex as well as a couple of palliative pastilles to attempt to relieve some of the extreme discomfort.

------------------------

Two or three weeks ago I began noticing a spot on my scalp right above my forehead. It felt as if I'd burned it with the styling appliances I use every morning, and I always noticed it because it had showed up right at the spot on the right side of my face where I part my hair.

I've been battling fatigue and flu-like symptoms on and off for that entire time. I've had diarrhea that didn't seem to originate with anything I'd eaten.

Yesterday morning, I noticed that the burn-spot was now several bright red, very sore bumps, but because of the location, I couldn't really see it clearly. I figured it was a couple of acne lesions. On the way home from school yesterday afternoon, I tried to touch the area and found it to be so painful I couldn't bear to put any pressure on it at all. Was it a ringworm? I thought.

I had Rick take a look at the patch last night. "Do you think this might be ringworm?" I asked. He looked closely at it and said, "No, that doesn't look one bit like ringworm. It's like bright red blood-blisters."

I put some clotrimazole on it anyway, just in case, and went to bed... but I couldn't sleep well at all.

This morning the lesions were very noticeable, and the pain was significant enough to prevent me from using the straightener. I left it in its natural mop-like state in hopes that the messy-look would be a distraction from the bright red rash on my scalp. Then at lunch I mentioned it to one of my co-workers, who looked at it and said, "Sounds to me like you've got shingles."

It had never even occurred to me. "Go back to your computer and look it up on WebMD or someplace like that," she said. "I bet that's what you have."

When I did, I was stunned to find a rather comprehensive list of my symptoms all neatly tied into one package.

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The needling, burning pain is unpleasant, certainly, but the most aggravating thing I'm experiencing right now is the persistent twitching of my right eyelid. It's a symptom I usually get when I'm having a migraine. I guess I *do* have a rather nasty headache now, but this headache isn't going away anytime soon.

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But you know what? The sun is shining down here, and the temperatures have been deliciously mild. I wouldn't be surprised if in a couple of weeks I started seeing things blooming.

Change is in the wind.

Tired of hurting

I am really, really tired of this headache.

My BP is 97/75, and my blood sugar is 90. I'm okay on those fronts.

I am SO going to see someone about this. It's time to end this. I'm just so stinkin' busy and we live so doggone far away from civilization... and I'm just so exhausted when I'm home that I don't have the energy to remember to do anything about it.

But I will. I promise.

Two days in a row now

WARNING: DISREGARD UNLESS YOU'RE JUST INTO THE MINUTAE OF MY LATEST SUFFERINGS.

Yesterday and today I have had terrible, terrible headaches in the late afternoon. Yesterday's was the worst I've had in a super-long time; we were at the One-Act Play performance and I was hurting so badly I felt agitated and bordering on panicked. I had my kids with me, and after North Ruralville's performance I took them out into the lobby with me and I lay down on a bench and covered my eyes with my program. I really hated doing it, because it makes me feel as if I'm one of those people who fake illnesses for attention. This was those kids' moment to shine, and I didn't want to detract from it one single bit. Thankfully I didn't have to.

Today's headache isn't as severe, but it's the same kind I had yesterday.

No, my BP is perfect. My blood sugar (which I just tested) is high (156) but not astronomical. I have taken a metformin tablet to try to get it back down.

I'll quit now. I'm not writing this in my blog for advice, necessarily; it's more for my own record-keeping than anything else.


UPDATE: Methinks my headaches may have to do with sleep deprivation. I guess the older I get, the less able I am to function on fragmented or disturbed sleep. [sigh] This, plus my worsening hearing, does not bode well for the music career. hehe I'm grateful my hands still work so I can at least paint. For now. Until something dramatic and terrible happens to THEM.

[/pessimism]

Headaches good for the brain?!?

Maybe they are, but I'd say that the corresponding inability to function outweighs whatever benefit they might afford.

My headaches have subsided considerably in the past year. It was, in fact, right at a year ago that I was having severe, crushing headaches that were later found to be caused by skyrocketing blood pressure. They never figured out why my BP shot up like that, but at least it's now well controlled and stable. I say stable; it doesn't shoot up high anymore. Occasionally it dips low enough to cause me to faint, but that tends to happen only during medical procedures (mine or my children's). I have no idea why.

Attention Deficit Migraine

I thought that this particular Emily Dickinson poem suited me this evening, both from a "disjointed thoughts" angle and a "my head is killing me" angle:

I felt a Cleaving in my Mind --
As if my Brain had split --
I tried to match it -- Seam by Seam --
But could not make it fit.

The thought behind, I strove to join
Unto the thought before --
But Sequence ravelled out of Sound
Like Balls -- upon a Floor.

or, in other words:

Having a Scattered Brain can be exhausting sometimes, just from the sheer effort it takes to keep myself focused. Sometimes it doesn't do any good to try. Other times I want it so badly that I end up with a headache afterward. That's what I did tonight at band rehearsal.

I'm already vaguely dissatisfied... not with the talent level, because the guys are incredibly talented, but with the built-in inability to stray from the EXACT COPY of the CD sound. We have to match it. Some of it is necessary, since we're using a click track. But when we can't add a part or make it "our own" because it's not on the original CD recording?

I also can't tell if it's just because I had the beginnings of a headache all day anyway and am predisposed to irritation anyway.

I admit that I'm chafing a little under the strain of playing along with a pre-recorded set of tracks... I know it's got to be beneficial for me to learn to do this, but the free-spirited artist in me fights against the bit constantly. I don't wear discipline well.