Bad headache does not = migraine

[Parrothead]

You know, I sympathize with migraine sufferers. I know they hurt and migraines are pretty much the worst possible pain that exists. But there comes a point when it isn't a contest any more. Suffering is suffering whether it is a bad headache or a migraine.

 

I don't have migraines. I have some kind of undiagnosed bad headache. There is no brain fog, auras, vomiting or light sensitivity. What there is, is the most incredible pain which lasts for 3-5 days at a time. Nothing touches it. No Advil/Tylenol cocktail, no prescription migraine medicine (just in case) no nothing. Since I'm allergic to most narcotics I don't have the option to use those. If I did, I'd do it in a heartbeat. I'd feel better if my head would explode. But "It's not a migraine. How bad can it be?"

 

Being insensitive to someone's suffering is just wrong. No, the suffering may not be as bad as yours (in general not specific to one person) or the suffering may simply be different. A person may have no choice but to work through the pain no matter what. For some being able to lie in bed curled in a ball is a luxury.

 

And for some people "migraine" is a term used to describe any headache. Education is necessary, not condemnation.

[Mejane]

I get headaches (bad ones) all the time, but I've had one migraine in my life. Yeah, there's definitely a difference.

[nd293]

Annoys me too! I suffer from very bad head-aches that sometimes only respond to a cocktail of meds aimed at migraines, but I don't claim to have migraines.

 

Claiming to have the flu instead of a cold is another one that drives me insane...

[TravelingChris]

I have been getting migraines since I was a kid. They aren't all the same. SOmetimes I get a version with abdominable migraine to go along with the intense headache. I have also gotten basilar artery migraines which caused weakness, walking problems, speaking problems etc. I do drive with migraines but only if they are mild like right at the beginning. My worst one was for three days when we were on vacation. With the worst ones, I can't function. I just have to lay down in a quiet dark room.

 

My dd has a worse migraine problem than I do.

[Impish]

I get migraines of varying intensities. My description of them to a friend who didn't get them are as follows:

 

• First, you think you're going to die.
  
• Then you HOPE you're going to die.
  
• Then you KNOW you're going to die, and are grateful.
  
• At the height, you're afraid you WON'T die, but will live forever like this.
  

 

I've had migraines that drilling a hole in my skull made perfectly logical sense...it would release the pressure. Fortunately, I owned neither a drill or even corkscrew at the time. And couldn't move.

 

That's how I described them...until my worst (to date) migraine that hit last fall. I couldn't even bear a sheet touching my head. I ended up being tested for an anyerisum a day later when the pain hadn't left.

 

Adding migraines on top of RSD is a sure fire way to think God doesn't like you. At all.

 

While they're competing for attention, anyways. ;)

[Gooblink]

I get headaches (bad ones) all the time, but I've had one migraine in my life. Yeah, there's definitely a difference.

 

This is me, too. I now know the difference. :)

[justamouse]

I've had them so bad I would have ripped my eyes out of my head without a thought. I've also had lingering ones for days where I stumble through the day and taking 8 motrin at a pop isn't killing it.

 

My friend's son has migranes-and manages to go to college with them, AND his meds don't work--but pot does.

[Wendi]

I have never had migranes, but I do get your point. I have OCD. Diagnosed and am being treated. People around me are CONSTANTLY saying things like.."Oh, I'm so OCD today, everything needs to be just so.....or, "I'm totally OCD over my towels"...or, or, or......I just want to stand up and SCREAM, you are NOT OCD, and be THANKFUL you are not! It isn't cute, quirky or endearing like all of those **** movies make it seem. It is debilitating, destructive, depressing and MANY MANY other things. I WISH all I cared about were clean straight towels. :lol:

 

I have the same problem. A number of years ago, before medication and counseling, I was really suffering. I called dh at work at least once a day in tears. I washed my hands until they cracked and bled. I lost weight because I was afraid of eating many things. Recently, when OCD came up, a family member laughed and said, "I have that! If someone wants to change the date or time of something, I'm like, I already have it written down in my book! It just drives me crazy to change it. LOL" :glare:

 

Wendi

[Sun]

... A person may have no choice but to work through the pain no matter what. For some being able to lie in bed curled in a ball is a luxury.

...

 

What some people are trying to say is that in the worst migraines it is just not possible to work through the pain. I've had a lot of migraines (diagnosed) and cluster headaches (basically a type of migraine, also diagnosed). I have had only one killer migraine, though, and for that I am very thankful.

 

That one killer migraine had me stumbling into walls as I tried to make it to the bathroom to throw up in the early stages. Later I couldn't even walk. It had me lying on the bathroom floor clutching my head, crying, and moaning. It had my husband, a physician, thinking that he should call an ambulance for me. There was no way I could have worked through the pain. None. I couldn't see straight; I couldn't walk straight; I couldn't talk at all through most of it.

 

I would have been far, far more able to "work through" end-stage labor (and I've had what the doula and OB both called a really, really hard labor) than through that migraine. It was just absolutely, positively not possible. If the house had caught fire, and I had been home alone, there is a very good chance I would have died in the fire because I couldn't see well enough or walk well enough or process well enough to get to the bathroom on my own, let alone out of the house.

 

In the worst migraines, there is no "working through" it.

[tex-mex]

The first time someone has one it's often pretty terrifying. I almost called 911 the first time. I thought I was having an aneurysm or something. The pain really is like nothing else. When my brother first had one, he had his wife call me to ask if she should take him to the E.R. He thought he was dying. My sister and brother both have visual disturbances (migraine aura) before they start. I am unusual in that I actually get an auditory hallucination before one starts - it sounds like I can hear a siren in the distance in my right ear. Extreme nausea is common, as are vomiting and diarrhea. Light and sound sensitivity are common, as is being very, very exhausted. It's just not your normal headache. It's so, so, so awful.

 

I'm so sorry you have gone thru those episodes. In my family, my MIL deals with those types of migraines for decades. Her episodes with vomiting over the years have deteriorated her esphophagus so badly, she needed an operation to repair it. She now takes Relpax the minute she senses a migraine occuring... and I can honestly say, she now does not need to be in a dark room for 48-72 hours. She can cook, drive, or watch tv with the Relpax (with a mild to moderate headache).

 

For myself, I have a rare liver disease. One of the hallmark symptoms that my body is going thru shock or toxic levels is a migraine. Fortunately, that is very rare and if it did happen (much like you describe -- the last one I had felt like my brain exploded and my body was immobile for the first few minutes -- then the nausea and vomiting occurred. It is a 72 hour PAIN you cannot imagine, you cannot do anything, then the next day you are in fatigue & ordeal I don't wish on anyone.) I have to go to the ER or call 911 as it is the beginning of my liver going into crisis. Hang in there.

Edited October 8, 2010 by tex-mex

[*********]

I get migraines too. I have some that I can push through for a while (especially if I medicate early) and some so bad that I can't stand to hear my own heart in my head. They are both migraines, diagnosed by my Neurologist and many medical tests.

 

Be careful not to judge others, when you may not know all the details. Not all migraines may present the same as yours.

 

This is my experience as well. Sometimes, my migraine is so bad I can't stand to hear myself breathe. Other times, if I get my medication early, it's not as bad.

 

What's the worst is watching my son have a migraine. He's only 7. Poor thing. :(

[Mejane]

I knew a policeman who had severe (although thankfully infrequent) migraines, and his family would hide all the guns when he had one because he'd gone looking for his service revolver one time to "stop the pain." :(

 

Jackie

 

I remember my dad ramming his head into a wall because he couldn't take the pain. I don't know if he was trying to knock himself out or what.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Since the word "worst" seems to be the offending term, perhaps you need to ask if they are referring to it being the worst they've ever had (in which you can hardly argue with their own perception of their own experience) or if they are referring to it being the worst that anyone has ever had (in which case you do have a case for argument).

[tex-mex]

Since the word "worst" seems to be the offending term, perhaps you need to ask if they are referring to it being the worst they've ever had (in which you can hardly argue with their own perception of their own experience) or if they are referring to it being the worst that anyone has ever had (in which case you do have a case for argument).

True. Plus, I have found with those who have my rare disease -- we all have various types of migraines. My metabolic genetic specialist and neurologist both agree regardless they are ALL classified as migraines. Perhaps to the OP, she is more bothered by the fact her friend or family complain and don't realize what they are saying?

 

I have had one friend who did have severe migraines (she also took Relpax) but on the outside seemed fine -- I always thought she caught it in time with meds? Again, it is like walking in another one's shoes, que no? :D

Edited October 8, 2010 by tex-mex

[Imprimis]

 

I have had one friend who did have severe migraines (she also took Relpax) but on the outside seemed fine -- I always thought she caught it in time with meds? Again, one shouldn't judge other folk's illnesses -- saying this to the OP, that is. :D

 

Yes. I am usually able to function, drive my kids to music, etc., IF I take my Relpax at the onset of a migraine.

 

As often as I have migraines, I have to take something that allows me to go about my day as much as possible. Migraines can be absolutely debilitating without the right treatment.

[tex-mex]

Yes. I am usually able to function, drive my kids to music, etc., IF I take my Relpax at the onset of a migraine.

 

As often as I have migraines, I have to take something that allows me to go about my day as much as possible. Migraines can be absolutely debilitating without the right treatment.

That is both my MIL & friend. If I had not witnessed one of MIL's migraine episodes 20 years ago -- I would never realize her level of pain and would assume she wasn't in misery nowadays. Now as I get older, unfortunately, I have been in her shoes with migraine suffering. (I cannot imagine being a child or teen suffering with it as MIL did before meds.) I am amazed with Relpax!! It can help.

[unsinkable]

This is my experience as well. Sometimes, my migraine is so bad I can't stand to hear myself breathe. Other times, if I get my medication early, it's not as bad.

 

What's the worst is watching my son have a migraine. He's only 7. Poor thing. :(

 

That is awful. Poor little darling.

[lionfamily1999]

:iagree:

 

My husband did it - once. I set him straight and he never did it again. :lol:

 

My (least) favorite response is, "Take a pill and suck it up. That's what I do."

 

Ummm, yeah. That works so well for me. Thanks. Thanks for caring, @*&@^#(!.

Dh did this when I threw out my back. He totally did not believe that I was in pain, or that I could not walk. He thought I was being a sissy :glare: Two months later I came home and found him on the floor in agony...

 

Oh, it was so tempting...

 

But I took care of him. He's much more understanding now :D And still feels guilty.

[unsinkable]

Are we done piling on the OP yet?

 

It must be awful to be dealing with migraines and family members who don't experience the same level of debilitating pain but call it the same name.

 

:grouphug:

 

I am sorry OP. I have incapacitating migraines where I have begged God to please let me pass out until the pain ends. When I can talk, I've told my DH I couldn't live like this.

 

Call it whatever the heck you want. It is the Pain Which Should Not Be Experienced.

[Snowfall]

What some people are trying to say is that in the worst migraines it is just not possible to work through the pain. I've had a lot of migraines (diagnosed) and cluster headaches (basically a type of migraine, also diagnosed). I have had only one killer migraine, though, and for that I am very thankful.

...

In the worst migraines, there is no "working through" it.

 

YES! I have also had a very difficult labor with a posterior baby (born "sunny side up") with no drugs. It was horrendous, but I could still move, etc. I could not do that with the worst migraines I've had.

 

Since the word "worst" seems to be the offending term, perhaps you need to ask if they are referring to it being the worst they've ever had (in which you can hardly argue with their own perception of their own experience) or if they are referring to it being the worst that anyone has ever had (in which case you do have a case for argument).

 

Yes, it does have a lot to do with the term 'worst', but it's also just annoying when people have to call everything whatever will get them maximum reaction. Both of these girls call every bad cold a flu (another common thing people do, as mentioned by another poster). One of them calls every stuffy nose a sinus infection. To listen to them talk they're getting "the worst" or "killer" migraines often and the flu two or three times a year, and one of them has sinus infections at least 6 times a year. Yes, there are people to whom, any one, or even all, of these things could happen, but I know these girls. They're family. I know these things aren't actually happening to them. Every cough or cold is not a flu. Every headache is not a migraine. Every stuffy nose is not a sinus infection.

 

I'm also definitely not suggesting that a headache isn't bad unless it's a migraine. I'm simply annoyed by the dramatics. It's hard for me to feel sympathy for someone when I know that they're exaggerating their symptoms just to get it. You can't feel that bad (migraine or anything else) if you are together enough to get on facebook on your android phone and type in a whole status about it on your touch screen while sitting at a stoplight with your kid in the back seat. I guess I just classify pain differently. If I'm well enough for that, I'm not that sick. If I am that sick that it's going to be difficult to even take care of my kids that night, while I might be capable of playing on my phone on facebook (not if I have a bad migraine) I'm not going to waste my energy on it.

 

For those of you with OCD, I'm so sorry. I had PPD-OCD after the birth of my older daughter. It was horrible, but it was temporary at least.

 

Thank you, unsinkable. That is a huge part of my annoyance. They just aren't the same thing.

Edited October 8, 2010 by Snowfall

[KidsHappen]

I am another person who suffers migraines of wildly varying levels of pain. I have just about every known aural symptom including, visual disturbances, olfactory and auditory hallucunations, light and noise sensitivity, and nausea but not every migraine is actually accompanied by head pain. As a matter of fact, I had silent migraines for years before I had the first one followed by head pain. Sometimes the pain is actually quite mild while other times is is debilitating. Sometimes they only last for a few hours whereas other times they last for days. Sometimes I am able to function normally and other times I am incapacitated. Finally, I have had tension headaches where the pain was just as severe as any migraine I have ever had.

 

Sensitivity to pain is incredibly individualistic. Only a person who has had migraine is capable of telling the difference between a migraine and a different type of headache. It is possible to have pain on one side of the head and if you have never had a migraine before it would be easy to mistake this for a migraine. There are also cluster headaches that are usually confined to one side of the head and are typically considered more painful than a migraine. My point being that there is simply no way to judge the amount of pain another person my be in or even the cause of their pain.

 

I also realize that this post was probably just a vent for you and I do sympathize with you. I just wanted to provide additional info for other people who may be reading this thread.

[CAMom]

 

 

Yes, it does have a lot to do with the term 'worst', but it's also just annoying when people have to call everything whatever will get them maximum reaction. Both of these girls call every bad cold a flu (another common thing people do, as mentioned by another poster). One of them calls every stuffy nose a sinus infection. To listen to them talk they're getting "the worst" or "killer" migraines often and the flu two or three times a year, and one of them has sinus infections at least 6 times a year. Yes, there are people to whom, any one, or even all, of these things could happen, but I know these girls. They're family. I know these things aren't actually happening to them. Every cough or cold is not a flu. Every headache is not a migraine. Every stuffy nose is not a sinus infection.

 

 

 

Can I ever relate to that!!;) Some people just always have to be worse off than everyone else and need all the attention for themselves.:)

[rafiki]

.

[HappyGrace]

Snowfall-I'm sorry, I don't have time to read the whole thread right now. (But for the record, I agree with you!)

 

I'm a fairly new migraine sufferer (tied with my cycle). I was SO interested with what you said about a "silent" migraine (migraine w/out headache). I have had that happen to me and I didn't even know it was an actual thing that other people got!!!!!! It's like you are about to get the migraine but it's not actually there but you somehow can't deal with whatever is happening. It's so weird. I am so happy to know I am not crazy when I get whatever that is! Can you tell me more about this please? Maybe describe it more or how you knew it was called a silent migraine-do other people get this too?

 

Feel free to just direct me back to the thread, if it's in here and I missed it. (I will read it tomorrow but it's late here and I need to go to bed!)

 

:grouphug: to you-I can totally sympathize about migraines!!! Nightmare!

Edited October 9, 2010 by HappyGrace

[HappyGrace]

Okay, I tried to go back through a little and read, and can I just say that even READING about people's migraines makes me want to cry, knowing how it is! It makes me feel sick just THINKING about getting one.

[Gwenhwyfar]

 

What's the worst is watching my son have a migraine. He's only 7. Poor thing. :(

 

poor kiddo. :(

 

with any luck, he'll outgrow them - i did.

 

(i still remember how horrid it was though)

[Peela]

My mum used to have migraines when I was a kid. If Dad was away, I used to have to empty her vomit bucket from next to her bed. She couldnt get out of bed. She was a wreck. We would have to call a doctor into the house to get her injections for stopping the vomining sometimes.

It is something I have often heard migraine sufferers say...a bad headache is still miles away from a migraine.

 

I also wonder why mothers think its so great to "push through" things like headaches- even bad headaches. What is so wonderful about being a martyr? How about letting the kids eat cereal, watch a movie, and bring you whatever you need in bed? Why do we think its so wonderful when we don't take care of ourselves?

[asta]

 

From the blog A Cartoon Guide to Becoming a Doctor

[Gwenhwyfar]

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

 

( @ asta's cartoon)

[dansamy]

I'm weird. I get an aura that is a bad taste in my mouth. It tastes like metal. Usually, 3 excedrin and laying down & I'm fine. Unless I hurl the excedrin. If that happens, just count me out for the next 6-36 hours. Because it's not stopping. Fortunately, I've learned to.listen to my body and can usually manage to take some excedrin before the puking starts. I no longer keep rx drugs on hand for migraine.

[CAMom]

I also wonder why mothers think its so great to "push through" things like headaches- even bad headaches. What is so wonderful about being a martyr? How about letting the kids eat cereal, watch a movie, and bring you whatever you need in bed? Why do we think its so wonderful when we don't take care of ourselves?

 

:cheers2:

 

It took me 40 years to understand this and realize that I want to be a mom who teaches my kids to care for themselves. We deserve to be cared for!:)

 

Reformed "martyr syndrome" mom,

[jenniferlee]

slightly off topic, but this used to drive me crazy when I was sick with "morning" sickness during my first 3 pregnancies (actually all day puking for 5 months straight)

people would say, "Oh yeah I had bad morning sickness, but if I ate some saltines it would really help" or something similar. I just wanted to scream "you have no idea!!!"

 

Jen

[astrid]

Being insensitive to someone's suffering is just wrong. No, the suffering may not be as bad as yours (in general not specific to one person) or the suffering may simply be different.

And for some people "migraine" is a term used to describe any headache. Education is necessary, not condemnation.

 

:iagree:

 

Thank you, Parrothead. This thread is giving me a throbbing pain, aura, and bad taste in my mouth. ;)

 

astrid

[JustGin]

Have to chime in that I've been dx'd with a-typical migraines. Mine can start and often do start as marching numbness in my hands and or feet and sometimes I get the weird visual thing. I'm usually able to head the headache off with a heavy dose of OTC meds and lying down for a while, but with or without actual pain, one of these wipes me out. The weird thing is, that if I head off the pain, I can still function quite normally while feeling super crappy. These are real migraines. My dh gets the more typical, full blown nasty, send him to bed in agony kind and so does his mom and so did my mother. I have so much empathy for migraine sufferers, those that get horribly sick and those like me who are sometimes functional. Migraines are just nasty all the way around.

[Snowfall]

slightly off topic, but this used to drive me crazy when I was sick with "morning" sickness during my first 3 pregnancies (actually all day puking for 5 months straight)

people would say, "Oh yeah I had bad morning sickness, but if I ate some saltines it would really help" or something similar. I just wanted to scream "you have no idea!!!"

 

Ah, yes, lol. That one really annoyed me during my second pregnancy, when I was almost to the point of needing a prescription, and people kept telling me to drink ginger ale or eat crackers.

[dansamy]

I'm weird. I get an aura that is a bad taste in my mouth. It tastes like metal. Usually, 3 excedrin and laying down & I'm fine. Unless I hurl the excedrin. If that happens, just count me out for the next 6-36 hours. Because it's not stopping. Fortunately, I've learned to.listen to my body and can usually manage to take some excedrin before the puking starts. I no longer keep rx drugs on hand for migraine.

 

I hate to quote myself....

 

I should have said I no longer have to keep RX drugs on hand for migraine. That's because I have clear signals from my body prior to the onslaught and have gotten better about heeding those signals. I've also gotten better at avoiding triggers. As a migraine sufferer since I was 4 or 5, I have had 30-ish (:p) years to learn to handle them. Not every patient has though. And not every patient has easily controllable migraines. Every migraine sufferer is different in their tolerance to pain, perceived severity of pain and their reponse to migraine control or pain alleviating methods and medications.

 

Yes, I was diagnosed as a young child. I was physically carried out of my preschool class because my teacher found me curled up in a fetal position in the doll crib, with tears streaming down my face. I have had migraines to the degree that moving my head even a millimeter results in atrocious dizziness and nausea, sometimes to the point of dry heaving and vomiting.

 

My son was diagnosed at age 7. I would not wish migraines on anyone. However, his momma knows all about migraine management and will teach him to listen to his body and not what any one else thinks about it. If he's fortunate, he'll have migraines that are manageable with a little effort. If he's more like my uncle, who had intractable migraines, then he's in for a lifetime of unalleviated suffering.

 

My uncle was declared disabled because he was so debilitated by both migraines and mental disorders exacerbated by them. I have another uncle who cannot eat any aged cheese, sausage, aspartame or caffeine because they are all migraine triggers. My mother cannot eat aged cheese or shellfish.

 

I truly feel for those who have poorly controlled migraines. It's pure hell. I wouldn't wish it on Satan's housecat. That being said: a migraine is not "just a bad headache". I could push through a bad headache. If I can't get a migraine under control early in the onset, I can't push through the resulting brain storm. More power to you if you can. Maybe I'm just a weenie! :tongue_smilie:

[scrappyhappymama]

Ugh! This is a pet peeve of mine as well! My dear husband is a hard worker and a good man, but when he gets sick he either has the "flu" or a "migraine" or he's "thrown his back out." Ironically, I'm pretty sure he really does suffer from (undiagnosed) migraines, but he's like the boy who cried wolf, and lumping every headache in the same category for sympathy's sake gets pretty old pretty quickly.

 

On the other hand, I can sympathize with those who have commented that not every migraine presents the same way and other headaches can be quite debilitating. I've had several textbook migraines over the years, but a few years ago I suffered from a cluster headache series that lasted about six weeks. After numerous expensive tests to rule out an aneurysm and various other off-the-wall syndromes, my neurologist told me I was suffering from cluster migraines and needed to wean my nursling so I could go on migraine medication, despite the fact that the medicine she gave me in office did not even touch the pain. :glare: I literally stumbled through weeks of caring for my home and family and newborn as best as I could manage. *That* was the worst "migraine" I ever had (although I think my doctor was mistaken in calling what I suffered migraines).

 

Yes, some people exaggerate, and yes it can be quite annoying to those who are truly suffering. I think the OP is well within her rights to vent on this subject. But when it comes to it, I find playing my suffering is worse than yours to be a bit unproductive. I have a friend dying of leukemia, which puts any of my complaints into perspective. I'm sure we all could point to someone else worse off. It doesn't lessen one's legitimate suffering, but could perhaps allow us to extend grace to those who just don't have the same point of reference.

[delaney]

I can relate having spent many a night curled up on the bathroom floor in the dark. Thankfully Excedrin has been a miracle for me if taken at the first sensation of "the line" I get that pierces my head. I swear there have been times I could literally reach up and pull a sword out of my head the pain is so sharp and defined. Posting on Facebook? Not even an option with a real one:glare:

[lionfamily1999]

Does anyone wake up because of them? Lately, I've only gotten them while sleeping........ I wake up because it hurts so bad and I have a terrible metalic taste in my mouth. Normally, they come around in the middle of the day, or else immediately after waking, but this is new for me. Thank goodness they only last an hour or so and I can maneuver enough to get to the bathroom, but that only goes so far.....

[carolinagirl]

I've had one migraine and it had me bedridden and throwing up from the pain. I have to agree that it is not something you carry on with normal activities.

 

ETA I should always read the entire thread before posting, doh! I see that you can have migraines and go about activities. I've only had the one and hope to never have it again. Like someone else said, it was scary, freaked out hubby and he called our doctor only to be told 'it's probably a migraine'...

Edited October 12, 2010 by carolinagirl

[asta]

Does anyone wake up because of them? Lately, I've only gotten them while sleeping........ I wake up because it hurts so bad and I have a terrible metalic taste in my mouth. Normally, they come around in the middle of the day, or else immediately after waking, but this is new for me. Thank goodness they only last an hour or so and I can maneuver enough to get to the bathroom, but that only goes so far.....

 

That doesn't usually qualify as a migraine. You should probably see a neurologist.

 

 

a

[lionfamily1999]

That doesn't usually qualify as a migraine. You should probably see a neurologist.

 

 

a

Great.

[Reeciecup]

I had a friend who would complain about her migraine and then scream at her kids. Nobody with a migraine could run around screaming at her kids. The funny part was that she called them "mind-grains".

[Mercy_Me]

I have the same problem. A number of years ago, before medication and counseling, I was really suffering. I called dh at work at least once a day in tears. I washed my hands until they cracked and bled. I lost weight because I was afraid of eating many things. Recently, when OCD came up, a family member laughed and said, "I have that! If someone wants to change the date or time of something, I'm like, I already have it written down in my book! It just drives me crazy to change it. LOL" :glare:

 

Wendi

 

Wendi,

You should have spit on her hand amd asked, "does that make you want to boil the skin off your hand and then follow up with clorox? No? Then you're fine." :D

[sacgw]

Oh my goodness, how I can relate with you.

 

I have a friend who is always talking about her migraines and how she has to be outside for fresh air and/or still do daily chores in order to "work" through them-- that being in bed, like I am when I get a migraine, doesn't help at all. I always feel like she's implying I'm a big baby and she's has a high tolerance for pain. I always want to tell her that she's just having a bad headache. One day she finally had a real migraine-- light and sound sensitive, nausea, vomiting,she had to call in to get medicine for the nausea. I felt horrible for her since I knew the pain, yet she still calls them all migraines and proceeds to tell me (20+ yr migraine sufferer) when I am having one. What can you do?! :-)

 

Those of us who truly suffer from them know the difference. My kids even know, when mom has a migraine, they fix a bowl of cereal and put on a movie while taking care of little brother until Dad gets home and try their best to be quiet. They can tell the difference between a migraine and a bad headache. When I have a migraine, they do try their best but for a bad headache-- not so much. :-)

 

The nice thing is we can come here and vent to others who understand. :-)

[tex-mex]

I wake up because it hurts so bad and I have a terrible metalic taste in my mouth.

 

I don't wish to alarm you -- but saw an episode of Mystery Diagnosis where the person had migraines and a "metallic" taste in her mouth. Finally diagnosed that the fluid in her brain was leaking. You really need to see a specialist ASAP. That is not normal.

[dansamy]

I don't wish to alarm you -- but saw an episode of Mystery Diagnosis where the person had migraines and a "metallic" taste in her mouth. Finally diagnosed that the fluid in her brain was leaking. You really need to see a specialist ASAP. That is not normal.

 

I get a metallic taste in my mouth before a migraine, but I definitely don't have a CSF leak.

[lionfamily1999]

Tex Mex and Asta (and anyone else who cares)... I spoke with my doctor about this and she feels that it is related to bp and stress. It turns out (found this out last night) that the metallic taste is blood (yum) because I am grinding my teeth while I sleep. That's a problem I haven't had since I was about four :glare: I'm going to recheck with my pcp now that I have that to add. I'm thinking that's the cause of my blinding head aches as well.

 

Thank you for caring :D even if you scared the patooties out of me :lol:

I get a metallic taste in my mouth before a migraine, but I definitely don't have a CSF leak.

Thanks :p

[lionfamily1999]

I woke up with them all the time. No metallic taste though. The ones I got during the night I usually couldn't get rid of with prescription meds. I did read that sometimes the caffeine in your system can run out during the night causing withdrawal headaches. I switched my pillow habits and that has made a HUGE difference with nightime headaches. I routinely slept with a pillow under my head and one on my head like a sandwich to block noise-bad habit from living in a college dorm. I just realized (20 years later) that is when my headaches started! I think it was putting pressure on my neck and causing pain. I'm much better after stopping that but I still get them hormonally and when bad weather is coming.

I've been wondering about the pillow issues too. I'm a side sleeper with my arm under the pillow (elbow under my cheek, hand and shoulder behind my head).

 

All the same, I'm pretty sure that (for me) it's the teeth grinding.

[unsinkable]

Tex Mex and Asta (and anyone else who cares)... I spoke with my doctor about this and she feels that it is related to bp and stress. It turns out (found this out last night) that the metallic taste is blood (yum) because I am grinding my teeth while I sleep. That's a problem I haven't had since I was about four :glare: I'm going to recheck with my pcp now that I have that to add. I'm thinking that's the cause of my blinding head aches as well.

 

Thank you for caring :D even if you scared the patooties out of me :lol:

 

Thanks :p

 

:grouphug:

 

Oh, boy. Sucky answers but good to have.

 

I have migraines and headaches from the position I sleep in. I actually posted about the position thing. I would curl up in a fetal position (that shouldn't surprise me...it's like my body is saying "take me back to the womb! it was good in there!") and my neck was bent.

 

When I'd wake up, I'd practically be staggering around the house. I was nauseous and dizzy and in moderate pain. 10 being the worst headache, this pain was a 6 or 7. But as the morning progressed, I felt better. If I sat down and rested, I felt better quicker. If I went back to bed, then the pain stayed.

 

That's when I started the realized the connection being laying down and the headache.

 

HTH