The Pain

Before I was pregnant I had nasty headaches but Ibuprofen 800mg mostly kept them in check.  Caffeine helped as needed.  Through the first half of my pregnancy, no headaches at all.  Second half, they were back but caffeine was the miracle drug.  Just enough to banish the headache, not enough to be a ridiculous amount when  pregnant.  But since I wasn’t allowed anything for pain other than Tylenol, I was damn lucky the caffeine helped. Post pregnancy, the headaches are unlike I’ve ever had before EVERY SINGLE DAY and no amount of Tylenol, Ibuprofen or caffeine can touch them.

Sometimes, as in a few times a week, the pain is so bad I can barely lift my head.  I have to, of course.  Life moves on despite my headaches.  I have 3 kids who need me to function.  Even if I can’t function at my best, I have to function well enough.  Usually though, it leads to me giving up around lunch time, and taking a nap with Sammy.  Usually with the passage of time, the headache does eventually fade.  Just to reappear 12 hours later.

These aren’t migraines.  It’s about as close to a migraine as you can get pain wise without being a migraine, but it is indeed just a tension/stress headache.  The pain it located right where my skull and neck meet.  That very first vertebra, or whatever that would be at that exact spot.  It feels, I’ve “joked”, like someone has stuck a straw in right there and is trying to suck my brain out through said straw.  (Too much Dr Who has made that metaphor really fun to envision, btw.)  Sometimes the pain is so intense, it’s like a band of it wraps around my face and stops at my eye sockets.  At which point, straw in the back, daggers through the eyes in the front.

I do have a doctor appointment coming up for this.  It’s in a week.  I made the decision to schedule it for when I was in that area anyway.  Trying to conserve gas and all since money is running out and I still have a ways to go before I’m back at work.  And honestly, I have little faith there is anything he can even really do for me, so I don’t see the point in wasting the gas.  That isn’t a slam against my doctor, btw.  He is great.  I’ve just never had anyone give me anything other than the Ibuprofen, and so, I have little faith in my headaches going anywhere.

Anyway, time to lay back down.

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