My first migraine

Sounds like a Fisher Price toy, doesn't it? However, it was anything but. I don't have medical confirmation that it is a migraine, but my wife has been diagnosed with them and told me that was what I had. It started after basketball on Wednesday. Turnout was very light, so I ended up playing one-on-one. I started feeling a little shaky, so we called it early. I thought my blood sugar was just a little low. So, I had something to eat. I showered and got back to work. As I was sitting at my desk, the vision in my left eye went funny. You know how sometimes you see spots. Well, I was seeing them with only one eye. And closing it and pressing on my forehead only made it worse. Then my left eye could only see blurry things. I was a bit freaked out, but I felt fine otherwise, so I didn't worry. I called my wife to see what she thought. She told me it would probably clear in about an hour. She didn't tell me how she knew...

The hour went by and it cleared. Then the headache started in. It wasn't my usual sinus headache and it wasn't one of those tension headaches that radiate from the back. It was focused primarily on the right side and felt as though someone were boring a hole in my right temple with a power drill. The intensity was manageable until shortly after dinner. After dinner, I went to try to read to Josh. As I sat there, I found myself getting nauseous from the pain. Never had a headache do that before. That's when the wife informed me it was a migraine. She gave me some excedrin, turned off the lights and told me to rest. Then she took Josh out to read to him.

Josh came back shortly thereafter because he wanted to snuggle with me. Mommy agreed that it would be ok as long as he didn't horse around or bother me. He was concerned about my head, so he gave it very gentle kisses and rubs. He also laid reasonably still and was asleep before long. I left so as not to disturb him. That and I wanted sympathy.

I ended up doing more to annoy the wife than to elicit sympathy from her. So, she left me with my head firmly embedded in the beanbag chair the dog uses for a bed and went to other rooms in the house to get things done. She gave me a Unisom and told me that the headache would soon be gone and the Unisom would help counteract the caffeine in the Excedrin. She was right on both accounts. I managed to move to the couch and withstand the brightness of the TV. I stayed there until she woke me and sent me to bed. In the morning, I was a little foggy, but otherwise ok.

So, that's a migraine. I don't want another one. Ever. But at least I know how to deal with it. Maybe I can head off the nausea if I lie down and take the drugs as soon as the blurriness starts. Regardless. If it happens again, I intend to consult a doctor. I don't know what brought it on, so all I can do is wait and see.