It’s been about ten years since I have been dealing with the ocular migraine issues, but longer for the other symptoms. And when the vertigo kicked in full force, I stopped driving, rather than risk having an accident. The vertigo was the worst experience I ever had as a person who felt ill. Thankfully, it has been largely under control for over a year.

As the stresses increased along with the responsibility for my mother over the years, as I got calls in the middle of the night that she had fallen or that she was in the hospital, or that she had broken something or began suffering from pneumonia, I began having these migraine issues daily, sometimes multiple times. I don’t think any physician had ever met a person who had suffered from so many episodes, so often.

Sometimes I thought it was viral-related. No one knew anything for sure. I tried anything and everything and got no where, for months and months and months, until I began using CBD oil and the self-injecting drug, Aimovig. But it took years to get to that point.

So, when this happened yesterday, I was surprised. Usually around the time I take the Aimovig, I get a string of ocular migraine issues for a few days and then the month is quiet. I suspect it might take a while to get into the system, as a month has gone by since the previous administration. This month was no different. But I also realized that if I got excited or revved up I would also experience an episode. Even if I was enjoying time with friends.

I took the shot last Friday and during lunch out, and an ocular issue began. As always it resolved in thirty minutes. Saturday was non-eventful, but Sunday, while on the phone with a friend, while I was sitting in the warm or over-warm mugginess of my deck, I began to lose my words, suddenly. I couldn’t respond, I couldn’t pull it together; this had once happened a couple of years ago and I ended up in the E.R. as these are possible stroke symptoms. But of course, it was migraine and after four hours on a gurney and a normal C-T scan, I was sprung.

And, unlike the usual non-head pain of my “headaches” or as I often call them, “non-headaches,” I had pain, like I used to, on one side of my head, into my face. My right, big toe has been feeling numb for days (probably a pre-cursor), and as I am writing this, my left index finger is losing sensation. I had to lie down, went back to old meds; a couple of Advil and an Imitrex. I hydrated and ate as I thought this may have contributed, took my CBD oil. Nothing worked for hours. One of the tip-offs is that if I cough my whole skull aches. Weird and more weird. It was likely the signals were going on for days. Sometimes I notice, sometimes not. But as sufferers indicate, every sense is affected, the senses often feel overwhelmed or hyper-stimulated: too much light, sound, smell, food cravings, no food, queasiness. Who the hell knows what causes this. Sometimes I even smell my father’s cigars.

At any rate, the headache used to last for days, a cluster headache, and this is what was happening now. I had found that the Aimovig had greatly reduced the incidence of these. I am not in pain today, but I sense a dull ache, a very manageable ache, my numb toe is still obvious, my words are back (I could process language but not put it together). If I cough, the skull pain is greatly reduced from yesterday.

The barometer changes used to contribute a lot more overtly, and they have been wild of late, not only in the microcosm of weather but the macrocosm.

But as we can see, there can be many factors affecting this kind of health issue, and sitting here now, I know I am not over it, it will take a bit to calm down. My hope is that I can get back on track in this management.

To read about some of the journey and what I have tried, click here

And then I remembered: Sunday began Mercury in Retrograde.

I’ll just blame it on the planets.