And I thought I had it bad.. some of you have it way worse then me. I get these dam things at random. Sometimes I wont get one for 4 months.. sometimes its only two weeks. I have the aura type but for me it anit that bad. As soon as I see it (Aura) I take two tylenol extra strenth and I get no pain at all. But there are a few.. I would say about 1 in 20.. that nothing works. Heck if Im sleeping, my mind/head or soul wakes me up and I take the pills. I swear even if Im having a dream I'll notice it blocking my vision and wake my self up.. not all the time but most.

I have one right now.. Hurts only alittle.

They started sometime around when I was 8. The light/color pattern started small then grows. It was always in the pattern of the letter C. When I reached about 22 it changed to zed type pattern. I have never seen the C pattern since. I found that part really weird.

One day I drew the C pattern in pencil to show a friend what it is I see. Then when I got a computer I drew it as best I could in color.. well hell I got a migrain right then. I know it sounds weird.. how could this trigger it?? Well I forgot about this drawing for a few weeks.. then I looked thur some pics I had and found it again. Guess what.. MIGRAIN! Now I dont like pain but on three occasions looking at this triggered a migrain. My doc who is the greatest and was wonderful at helping me with this for about 10 years thought it was silly and I told him I knew it sounded weird but how could it be that I got then at random yet the timming.. three times.. I got one within min's. I have since seen a computer generated, moving version of my AURA and it didnt trigger one.

Anyways.. this "headache" is best believed if the non-believers go thur it once.. It sucks when people think your nuts or looking for an extra day off. I say we give then a shot of that chemical that is suppose to trigger it and watch then squrm on the floor holding there head.. I got canned once cause the guy didnt believe in migrains.. only if some people can see what we go thur.. you'd never here another word about it from them again.

Tim <psychofox@sk.sympatico.ca>
Friday, October 19, 2001 at 03:34:21

I am 24 and have migraines. I don't have them that often, but when I do, they are severe. The pain is so bad that all I can do for the two full days that a bad migraine spell normally lasts is lay down with minimal sound and light. The pain is different than a normal headache; it is in my ears, between my eyes, and in the lower back of my head. Doctors think my migraines are the result of head trama received when I was in a car wreck five years ago.

Clif Day <cliff.day@eds.com>
Tuesday, October 16, 2001 at 14:27:25

Hello My name is Sara. Iam 17 years old and I have been suffering with migraines(or thats what I think it is) since I was about 4 years old. My headaches come at night, while Iam asleep. They come every three months almost excactly at the same time. I can't do anything for at least three days when i get one.I get really scared on the third month because they hurt so bad. My mom doesn't understand me nor my doctor. He thinks that he knows whats wrong with me but realy he doesn't care. No one knows whats wrong with my head aches. When i get a migraine I vomite constantly untill I can't any more. My head doesn't pound, It spins like an annoying nausiated pain. I can't even tell you or explain how it feels. But I know you may think I am wierd but I live with this pain and have no kind of medication for this. I am scared this is going to over come my whole entire life. Please if anyone expierences the exact same thing please write me back. I would very much appreciate how to get started finding out what this is taking over my life. Thanks to You all for reding my entry. God Bless Us.

Sara Kowalsky <KindaSweet99@aol.com>
Friday, October 12, 2001 at 21:26:50

hi i am new at this so here it goes(i have never gone online for migraine b4)...i am 19 years old and have been suffering from migraines since i was 13....i have had the same headache for 3 weeks now for months i went without one..just down to once a month and now they are back hard core again like b4...i am really scared and want to know whats wrong with me...i go to the doctors for a shot of imetrex and 100 miligrams of demoral...unfortuantley this time around it hasnt worked..sometimes i just feel like a guiena pig..i've been on everything from prozac to blood pressure medicine....and still i get them..right now is the worst though..its hard because i have no one that understands.. my friends say they do but when i cant be around them they get mad....my parents get ticked too...i miss so much work..i am a library asscioate (in virginia)and i fear i will lose my job even though i know they are understanding...but so many that said they were arent in the end..its just really hard for me sometimes...i wanna be on my own but i always have to turn to family when i am sick....i wanna leave va and become an actress a writer and direct...but i feel like i am stuck....sometimes i think no one understands...right now i am at work with a migraine i cant stand the noise and it pains me to even hear myself type...i can hardly see from the tunnel vision and i am just trying my best...sometimes i just wanna give up...but i have to work because now that i am of age my bills no longer go to mom and dad they go to me..so i am trying..and its really good to know that so many others suffer...it makes me realize i am not alone...well i am gonna get back to work now hopefully when i get off my mom will take me back to the doctors.
rachel

rachel <boopynose@aol.com>
Tuesday, October 9, 2001 at 10:59:53

After speaking with 2 specialists at Johns Hopkins Hospital, I "guess" I have migraines. Atypical is what they said. No pounding headache but extreme sensitivity to light, sound and movement and nausea (I throw up if I push myself). I am 43, have had them for 3 1/2 years and until going on the birth control pill 1 year ago experienced them frequently at random times and for weeks at a time. Now, I have a "migraine" at the end of my period which lasts from 3 to 14 days. My quality of life is suffering although being on the pill makes it predictable. I have tried beta blockers, Maxalt, and several other typical migraine medications. Normally, I get sick and can't hold them down. I don't know what to do but was hoping that someone out there may have a similar type of migraine. I guess I should feel lucky that I don't have the actual "headache" but my life is so disabled at this point, it is hard to feel lucky. Thanks and I appreciate any information that anyone has. Sara.

Sara Scott <sss@intercom.net>
Tuesday, October 9, 2001 at 09:29:48

I have had these monsters since i was 13 and now am 27. How do you explain to your neuro that you are having these darn things every day? Mine just says that they are because I am taking to much of my meds. I could understand that if i took them constantly but after two days I let off for a day and back on for a few more. I have been out of meds for two weeks now and have not had one day that i have not had a migraine of some sorts. Some days it is with the aura and some BAM it jsut hits me all at once. I know that the meds i take are addictive but it was three weeks when i called for a refill. But she said that i could not have them til the 12th. well a lotta good that is doing me. In pain all day every day. What can i do to make her understand? This is so frusterating! Thanks for letting me vent tonight. :)

nikki <sonflr@aol.com>
Monday, October 8, 2001 at 20:56:20

Hello everyone,
It has been a while since I posted anything even though I have not been headache free. I am in one of those why moods as I wait for my headache to come full blown (my aura has already started). So as I try to prevent my headache with a mircle a am reading everyone's entries to find some comfort. As I read I realize how lucky we are to have the internet because we can find people who are like us so that we can now know that we are not alone. For so many years I always thought why me? Why am I the only one like this and now I am able to know I am not the only one; I am not a freak.

For me the worst part about having headaches is not the pain or the last days, months or even years of my life it is the little rainbows of hope that I get when I try something new only for it not to work or not as well a couple of months down the road. I have tried so many different things and in the begining most things work and my heart gets so full of hope and joy that I have found my "wonder cure" only for a couple months down the road for the cure to stop curing. To me this is the saddest part about headaches. Like I said the little rainbows of hope that end up being once again showers of black clouds.

Thank you for letting me ramble.
Jenifer

Jenifer <Doubleface@peoplepc.com>
Saturday, October 6, 2001 at 13:44:25

Hello to all sufferers on this page!
I have typed here before, and that was about a month ago, when I was in very bad shape with my head. I have had the same headache for 2 months now, with no end in sight, but luckily the pain these past 2 weeks has not been too severe, and not any migrainous flare-ups this week either. Thank god, because I have been having tension/migraine headaches off and on(mostly ON) for the past 15 or so years, and almost daily for the past 3 years. I am only 30, and I hope that I don't have to go on this way for the rest of my life. My doctor has diagnosed it as "statous migrainous" or chronic daily migraine/tension headache. I am currently on an anti-inflammatory used to control severe arthritis, and I think it is finally breaking through my daily pain. I am now feeling well enough to get back on here and type again, and I also enjoy reading about other people like me. So to anybody out there who is reading all these stories, and mine, just know that you are not alone, and I know how you feel, if you are having chronic head pain. Anybody who reads this and wishes to share their story, or anything else with me, feel free to e-mail me anytime.

Caroline <eniloracdnalloh@hotmail.com>
Thursday, October 4, 2001 at 23:14:06

Hi everyone. My name's Renee. I am a college student who has suffered from weather, horomone, stress, and other migraines for years. I was having a talk today with someone about what it's like to have a migraine and I got an idea for my class project.
The class is multicultural perspectives and we're supposed to do a 20-30 minute presentation about some kind of prejudice or some aspect of culture. After I got this idea, i brought it to the attention of my teacher, and she expanded on it a little and we came up with an interesting topic: "invisible disabilities".
So, I'm writing about ADD, migraines, diabetes, MS, and other disabilities and how people with them are discriminated against because others don't understand their situation. Since most of you seem to be working adults and/or parents dealing with migraines, it would be really helpful to me if you could email me information about your experiences with the workplace or schools and how other people have treated you because of your disabling migraines.
I know people that haven't understood mine have assumed that I was using them as an excuse to get out of work or something, and seemed to be saying "take an asprin and get over it".
Your input will help me do a better project and educate a class of people who will be going into the workforce and will have an effect on the policies that affect those of us with invisible disabilities. Thanks!
-reneemarie2000@hotmail.com, JMU

Renee <reneemarie2000@hotmail.com>
Tuesday, October 2, 2001 at 20:29:44

I have been having migraine with aura since I was nine years old. I am now 25. Suddenly, seven months ago I made a transition from four migraines per year to "chronic daily migraine" for no known reason.
I became a completely different person. I was quick tempered, quiet, and weak. I was embarassed to meet anybody new because they were meeting somebody I hated.
I speak in the past tense because in the last two weeks I have been fortunate enough to see a slight decrease in my pain intensity. I don't know if it is the combination of preventatives I am taking or if it is the alternative therapies I have tried, but I am grateful that I can have a full day where I don't have to lay in bed while everyone else is working, playing, LIVING.
I am still scared, however. What if this is just a temporary respite? It is not even a question of "what if" but WHEN. What if tomorrow I wake up and I am Mr. Hyde for another 7 months?
I am ok for now, but I am very tired. I wonder if I will everbe able to stop living day to day. Best of luck to all of you who read this. I think about you often.

Amy <yam@fiberia.com>
Tuesday, October 2, 2001 at 00:19:15

Hi everyone:
I'm so glad I found this page. I am a 37 year old female. I have no children. I have suffered from migraines for years. A few years ago they became far more frequent and lasted longer (24-48 hours), and then a year ago April they hit almost full time, so they are not strictly hormonally related (and I've tried at least 4 different birthcontrol pills over the past year to see if any would help).

It took years to diagnose them as migraines, for years the dr. thought they were sinus related. Last year I began to take Maxalt, which kills the pain but has a rebound effect of great fatigue a day or so later, mental fogginess, and my fingers began to feel really stiff. A couple of months ago the dr. switched me to Zomeg which is suppose to last longer and causes fewer rebound headaches...in the beginning it seemed to be the case but now I'm back to my same old same old...headaches every day, the zomeg keeps the pain down but it's always there...waiting and it has so disrupted my life that I cannot work much right now and have to apply for disability so I can re-think my entire approach to this and try to get off the rebound medication problem.

Melissa Balmer <melissa@languidkiss.com>
Monday, October 1, 2001 at 23:37:49

Hi to you all. I am Kaz and even though it is sad to read all the entries in this Journal it makes me feel alittle better to know that I am not alone in this horrible Migraine world with no cure!! I am 36 years old with 3 children, and did not suffer with a Migraine until I was 23. For the last 6 years I have suffered a Hormonal Migraine every month. The Migraine hits 48 hours before my menstrual hits, and this has been the way for 6 years. My doctor is great, but I have had it with the shots every month. Preventatives don't help at all. I was taking Imigran for awhile but this no longer works. Now my doctor has me on Ergodryl but this doesn't help either. I give up! A CT scan has shown nothing, which I knew, would be the case. I am seeing a gynecologist but I am guessing they have no answers either. I would do just about anything to stop these happening every month. I live north of Brisbane in Australia and have been looking for a doctor or support group that may be able to refer me to someone that has any idea on how to handle these. So if there is anyone who reads this and lives close and knows of a doctor or even an alternative medication, I would love to hear from you.!!!Thank you.

Kaz <kazvic@hotmail.com>
Monday, October 1, 2001 at 00:21:51

Hi,I am Julia and I haven't had any headaches in my life, until I came to the US 6 years ago.I am 33 now and suffer from severe migraines almost every other week. Imitrex does help from time to time, but it seemes to provoke another attack and I feel "stoned" after taking it.My triggers - stress, alcohol and weather changes.I told my doctor about that "weather factor". She called it "nonsence" and laughed at me.
My last 3- days attack was exactly a week ago,it's started Friday night and went away Monday morning. That particular weekend the temperature moved up a little bit and on Tuesday there was big thunderstorm and tornado warning.
If you live in Va - DC area and expierience the same simptomps, related to weather changes - please, let me know, let's try and beat it together!

Julia Korol <julia.korol@worldnet.att.net>
Friday, September 28, 2001 at 21:36:10

Hi-I've just been diagnosed with migraines (no aura) and also with low thyroid. I'm on Synthroid now as well as the preventive meds for migraines. The doctor says low thyroid wouldn't have triggered the headaches however. My life is limited in part due to fear that driving, a migraine will begin suddenly as they always do. Anything on the market for temporary relief giving me time to pull over out of traffic?

Annie
Friday, September 28, 2001 at 12:50:23

Hello, I started suffering from migraine 48 hours ago. Really. I'm 29 and this is one of the most annoying things I've ever experienced.

It seems that something in my body changed 6 days ago. I had a retinal eye surgery procedure, with complete anaesthesia, and that seems to have triggered it all.

Now the eye who suffered the surgical procedure is hurting a lot, and so it does that side of the head.

This entry is just to give courage to all the rest of you who have been hurting for a longer time than I do. With only 48 hours of pain, I can imagine what the rest of you have been through.

Rodrigo, Santiago, Chile

Rodrigo <rvaldebenito@hotmail.com>
Thursday, September 27, 2001 at 23:43:40