great, overarching NY Times article on Migraine

I just searched The New York Times website for any articles related to migraine. Here's what I found: a very well-written, comprehensive, and easy-to-follow article on the disease. This could be a good resource to give to coworkers or friends who are curious to know more about Migraine but might not want to read an entire book.

And speaking of books: my copy of The Migraine Brain arrived today. I think I'll start it now. Also of note? I ordered the much-talked-about Sinus Buster Migraine Headache Nasal Spray. I want to try it now and see if it's as hard to inhale as it sounds--I mean, there's a lot of PEPPER in there going up your nostrils! I'll wait 'til I have a Migraine attack, though. I'll keep you posted with feedback.

Goodnight!

congested congestion never ends

I have felt congested for, I don't know, a few MONTHS now? I chalked it up at first to Georgia weather, but this has gotten out of control. Quite often my entire head, from the skin on the back of it to my nose to the sinus cavities under my cheekbones (uh, there are sinus cavities there, right?) has been stuffy. Yes, experts, I realize that the diagnosis of "sinus headache" is not accurate and that it's usually Migraine at work (this is touched upon here). Yes, I realize that sinus congestion can be a precursor or side effect of a Migraine attack. But all the time? Really? Even when I'm not in the midst of a Migraine episode?

Perhaps this is tied to the incessant tiredness I've been dealing with. In the last couple weeks, I've gotten so tired I've succumbed to the desire to take a nap for 30-120 minutes. When I awake, I feel groggy at first but then have energy again. Imagine that--energy!

Here's what I'm thinking. I need to make more money. I need to make more money so I can see a doctor who actually practices in my town. I need to talk to a doctor whose staff doesn't feel like I'm bothering them. I need to figure out what's going on with my body as a whole, but I have to get over my hesitation when it comes to holistic healing. Okay, let's clarify: holistic treatment is one of the only methods that makes sense. Of course you have to look at the entire body in order to figure out what's happening to make you function under par. But so many holistic healers I've come across--mainly on the web or in accidental late night conversations at music shows--are a bit kooky. The daughter of two die-hard skeptics (not to mention I'm a skeptical little squirrel myself), it's difficult for me to swallow the talk they deliver, the talk that smacks of New Age (e.g., millenia-old) wisdom. What to do?

For now I can't do anything anyway. Ain't no dispensible income to speak of, so I'll just sit tight. Bright news at the moment? My stuffiness is only 15% present at the moment. And yes, that's an official calculation.

Goodbye, Zonegran/Hello Petadolex!

Guess what, guess what, guess what?! I am officially weaning myself off Zonegran. My neurologist gave me a plan to follow and everything. I started on the drug in April 2006 and quickly worked my way up to 200mg/night. In October of 2006, my neurologist upped it to 300mg/night in the hopes of killing off more Migraine attacks.

It is now January 2008 and, after months of going back and forth about the issue, I've finally started the process of getting off the meds. This marks the second night in a row I'll be taking 200 mg/night instead of 300mg.

Here's the plan.

Up until now: 300mg/night before bed.
Then for two weeks: 200mg/night before bed
For two weeks after that: 100mg/night before bed
And for the two weeks after that?: 100mg every OTHER night before bed

And then I'll be done. Minor snafu? The doc didn't call in enough pills to the pharmacy to get me through all the weeks. I'll run out of pills during the last stage, right when I've almost got it beat. We shall deal with that when the time comes--a quick but annoying call to the neurologist's voicemail will clear that right up.

To complicate and [I sincerely hope!] improve things, I've been prescribed a new treatment, if "prescribe" is the accurate word here. My doctor is requesting (nay, ordering!) that I begin taking a new pill every day, but not one I need his signature for. What is this, you ask? Why, it's a little something called Petadolex. This herbal supplement has virtually no side effects, is relatively inexpensive (especially if you're starting from scratch sans insurance like me!), and is readily available on this here World Wide Web. There are actually verifiable scientific studies in which results show that Migraine frequency and intensity decreased in people using it daily. And my neurologist, one of the foremost experts in the field, is recommending that I take it.

So why didn't my doctor tell me about this long ago?

I fear that the answer lies in the well-founded fear that doctors are getting some pretty big payoffs from Big Pharma in exchange for pushing certain drugs to their patients. (I just stumbled across this article that describes how influential drug reps can be! Frightening.) This doesn't seem entirely true in my case, perhaps, since I was taking the generic form of Zonegran anyway--but I lasted the first four months of my drug therapy without needing one prescription from my local pharmacy. Why? Because my neurologist had tons (TONS!) of free samples to give me. While I was very grateful for this, I also find it off-putting to think of the millions of dollars and labor hours spent in order to get those sample packets into my hand. I fear that the motive isn't just to make me and others like me well. I think it may have to do with handouts, payouts, and some free vacations and dinners to boot. A friend of mine who's a pharmacist just went to a talk given by my aforementioned well-known neurologist--a talk about Topamax. "Why would he do such a think in his free time? You know he's got to be getting paid for it."

And I'm off on a little bit of a tangent. I'm really hoping that there's a good reason why I went through four preventative treatments, all of which had adverse side effects, all of which I told the doctor I was hesitant to go on, before he told me about this side-effect-free alternative therapy. I really hope that the reason has nothing to do with his being money-grubbing, 'cause I like him. I do.

Goodnight, and I hope you're feeling well!