I’ve lost six precious months to migraine chaos. The last two have been especially brutal – housebound, unable to work, struggling to even feed myself. It’s like I’m stuck in a Groundhog Day nightmare, reliving the same miserable days over and over.
It wasn’t always this way. For a year, my migraines seemed manageable. I felt like I was finally getting a handle on them. But then, BAM! A sudden worsening of symptoms sent me careening back into chaos. The stress is real, folks. As I approach 39, the pressure cooker is reaching a boiling point.
We migraine warriors know that this disease can take everything from us – friends, jobs, hobbies… even relationships and loved ones. It’s a weighty burden to carry. But there’s one loss that keeps me up at night, wondering what could’ve been: time.
I’ve spent years in therapy, working through the grief of my past losses. But as I stare down the barrel of 40, the thought of all the experiences and milestones I’ll miss is suffocating. How many more years will migraine render me a shadow of my former self? Will it take months or decades to find a new treatment that works?
The not knowing is what keeps me up at night. Instead of worrying about the unknown future, I focus on what I can control today. Today, I’ll spend some time researching with my headache specialist next month. Tomorrow, I might tackle tweaking a treatment variable. It’s small steps, but they bring me closer to relief.
But even with these tiny victories, moments still slip away faster than I can bear. Some days, the grief feels too much to handle, and I’m forced to put it on the back burner to prevent collapse. I know that one day, I’ll work through this tremendous sadness, but for now, I just have to keep moving forward.
So, if you’re like me, stuck in this migraine maze with no clear exit strategy, remember: every small step counts. Today, take a deep breath and focus on what you can do today to move closer to relief. Tomorrow will come, and so will the next step towards reclaiming your time – and your life.
