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02 September 2007

sleep sleep sleep

I know I need to get on a normal sleep schedule someday. That a disrupted sleep schedule can lead to Migraine episodes. Boy, do I ever have disrupted sleep and abnormal sleeping patterns. I certainly don't have a predictable schedule, that's for sure.

But how can I de-night-owl myself? I love staying up late. And I need several hours of solid sleep to feel up to having a whole day of work and play, so that means waking up at a late hour in the morning if I'm going to bed late. And on the days I have to work earlyish and have gone to bed lateish, that means getting not as much sleep as I'd wanted, so after work's over I'm definitely ready for a nap.

And lately naps haven't been reinvigorating and rejuvenating. Instead of making me feel better, the last two naps I've indulged in have ended up leaving me feeling migrainous. Go figure.

It's a quarter to three in the morning. I'm going to convince myself I'm tired somehow. Sleep time.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your story is very similar to mine. I'd had migraines as long as I could remember, but in my 20's, it got to where I was having them every day. I tried some things with my doctor, the final one being a certain anti-depressant, which maybe took away one or two migraines a week, but left me totally wacked out. I quit taking them and for some reason, tried a different doctor.

Without meaning to, I stumbled into the office of a more holistic doctor who uses conventional and non-conventional treatments. They wanted to know everything about my health and saw the migraines as a symptom of something else. I had sleeping problems, had a hard time managing stress and had digestive issues. It never dawned on me before that all of these things could be connected. As we worked on these underlying issues, the migraines took care of themselves. There was no one magic bullet, they just got a little bit better and better over time.

Now I'm in my early 30's and barely ever have a migraine, and don't need any medication for the couple of times a year when I do get one. In addition, I sleep well, I can handle stress, I've been successful in my career, and pretty much love my life. I don't take any prescription meds, but I do take some supplements (which can be expensive and are usually not covered by insurance).

I'd suggest that you look around for a holistic doctor that will help you find the underlying cause, not just prescribe drugs to treat your symptom, the migraine. I don't mean trying quacks, but finding a real doctor, who is also very holistic in the approach and who doesn't only use prescription meds as solutions. You're in Atlanta? It shouldn't be too hard to find someone there.

Good luck, I hope you find some answers with your struggle. I know too-well what you're going through.

Anonymous said...

Hi Migraine Girl,

This is kind of funny because I kind of refer to myself as a migraine girl. I don't know if you are on facebook but a bunch of people in the Migraine Research Foundation love your blog and want you to join the group. http://umass.facebook.com/group.php?gid=13854170626 ... the group is based off my parents foundation to raise money for research migrianeresearchfoundation.org ... I just thought you should know. Also the website is always looking for people to submit their story. There are a few different migraine stories including mine all the way at the bottom "Sam's Story".
I have suffered from migraines since I was three. Since I was five, I’ve been to ER’s all over the east coast, and I have been hospitalized for over 15 days twice in the past year. I am 19 now and have lived with chronic daily migraines for the past five years. Being a teenager in college, I have lots going on - academics, sports, friends... I have accepted the pain that’s always there and learned that distractions are necessary. It is not impossible to deal with migraines every day - it just takes a lot of courage. You have to take it a day at a time.
I appreciate what you are doing.
Hope you are Pain Free

Samantha

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