My Migraine Diary

January 26th, 2012...I don't think I can!

2012-01-26T10:13:00.000-08:00

Dear Blog/Diary,

I just don't know if I can do this or not. I am SUCH a junk food eater! I am not sure I have any motivation at all to do it. Except that it *may* help my migraines...but then again it *may* not! Ughh...I am so indecisive. I truly want a relief from my headaches..I do! But cutting out so much of what I eat daily seems like such a scary daunting task that I just don't know if I am willing to do. Plus no one thinks I will so I virtually have no backup or support. :( blah.

I really need to sit down and think it over if it is something I want to do or not. I am still going to keep up with my migraine history here regardless of where my diet leads. I have also thought about cutting out ALL caffeine..but my beloved sweet tea has caffeine in it. Maybe I can talk the house into switching to decaf tea! ha :)

Man, I know I am like dust in the wind right now but really I am not sure where to go/start/do!

Food diary:
Early Morning: 1 cup of orange juice
Breakfast: English muffin (1 half with cheese, 1 half with strawberry jelly) w/ water
Lunch: Ham sandwich w/ water & some Monterey Jack and Sundried tomatoes sunchips
Dinner:

Migraine Diary:
As of right now (12:12 p.m.) I have no signs of a migraine :)
Still no migraine symptoms! (1:45 p.m.)

-Cori

January 25th, 2012...I remember.

2012-01-25T10:08:00.000-08:00

Dear Blog/Diary,

I remember my very first migraine. I was between the ages of 7 and 8 years old. We lived in Benton, AR. It was the summertime and I was outside playing with my friends. I remember feeling my eye start to hurt. I told my older sister several times that my right eye was really hurting, but being kids we kept on playing.

I looked down and noticed that I had something black on my hands, not uncommon for me as I was a small child prone to getting dirty. Then I started to think that maybe that black stuff on my hands had caused my eye to hurt so badly. I asked my sister and friends if that black stuff was on my eye too. Nope. It wasn't. I could not figure out why my eye and head was hurting so badly.

I eventually went inside to my dad and step-mom to tell them about the pain I was having. They figured I was having some heat exhaustion seeing as I had been playing outside for hours in the Southern heat. They told me to drink some water and go lay down in bed. I was crying at this point. What is a little child supposed to do or think in that situation?

I remember it so vividly in my mind. I remember lying in bed crying and praying to Jesus for it to stop. I cried myself to sleep and woke up normal again. It would be months before I had another one.

01/25/2012

Food Diary:

Breakfast: English muffin with cheese & water
Snack: small cup of vanilla cappuccino
Lunch: Leftovers from dinner last night (roast w/ roasted potatoes, corn & black eyed peas) w/ water
Dinner: 2 chicken strips, steamed broccoli & french fries w/ root beer.

Migraine Diary:
No migraine as of yet..pressure behind right eye (first sign of migraine for me) started at around 11:55 a.m. this morning but not turned into a migraine yet (crossing my fingers!!)
Slight headache throughout the day but never a full blown migraine. Yay! :)

P.S. I would like to wish my niece Jayci Leigh a very Happy 6th Birthday today!

-Cori

January 24th, 2012...My First Post :)

2012-01-24T11:08:00.000-08:00

Dear Blog Diary-

I started this blog because I have been a chronic migraine sufferer since the age of 8. Yep, you read that right...ripe old age of 8 years old. I have been on/off medication since that age. I took preventative medicines when I was about 13-14 but stopped taking them because they affected my moods and school work. Up until December, 2011 I was merely treating the migraine attacks with medication, mostly over the counter medication.

I would usually take some sort of Excedrin or Aleve Migraine pill and head straight for my bed. Lights & sounds are huge no-no's when I have a migraine. They make it 100x worse! When I was in my late teens and early twenties (after I left home but before I got married & had insurance) if I had an attack that would not go away with over the counter medicines, I would have to go to the emergency room for medications. Yep..they got THAT bad. Migraines are no fun!

I finally decided in December of last year (2011) that I was so tired of just treating each migraine. I asked my doctor for a preventative medication, which he prescribed Topamax. Topamax does work (mostly) but has some not-so-fun side effects. Also, I do not want to rely on medications my whole life. Which is why I have decided to *try* this Gluten Free diet. I have read many testimonies that it has worked for many people. I am going to blog/diary my experience here so maybe I can help others that may be experiencing what I am.

I am going to start on Monday January 30th. It is just easier if I start on the first day of the week for me. I know that sounds strange and crazy (kind of like me talking to myself since no-one reads this blog..yet hopefully).

I will post the things I ate that day and also my migraine history for the day.

Sort of like this:

Breakfast: 2 Zingers (not kidding) & a Coca Cola
Lunch: 6 inch sub meatball sub from Subway w/ water
Dinner: *Edited to add dinner* Roast with roasted potatoes, black eyed peas & corn w/ sweet tea

Migraine History for the day:

Migraine started around 10 a.m.
Nausea started around 10:45 a.m.
Took pain pill around 12:45 p.m.
Migraine didn't go away until around 8 p.m.

Plus, I will include any other information I think is important to the study. I am going to continue blogging my "normal" foods until Monday just to get the hang of blogging everyday again. I used to keep up with a personal blog but fail to do that anymore. :)

Thanks for coming on this journey with me!

-Cori