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Archive for the ‘Weblogs’ Category

Blue Tuesdays

April 20th, 2010

On Tuesdays there are staff meetings at my new office, at 8:30 a.m. That may not be ridiculously early, but it means I have to be up at 7 and racing through my morning to get there on time. The nortriptyline I take as a Migraine preventive makes me good and sleepy, and it’s hard to wake up and move on less than 9 hours of sleep. Today I not only had to be awake but to give a little presentation at the meeting on using Facebook and Twitter for business. I am relearning some things I used to know, like how to get up and go even when I don’t feel up to it. How to push myself through times when my focus isn’t there, or I’m a bit fatigued, or to work with a triptan in my system.

Don’t get me wrong, this new job wouldn’t even be happening if my Migraine prevention regimen weren’t working quite well. My Migraines went down by about 60% in the months before I started the job. The challenges of the work routine have them back up a little again, but it’s still significant progress. If I had tried to take on the challenges of this job a year ago, I doubt I could have done it.

I also work an 8 1/2 hour day on Tuesdays and Thursdays because Monday and Friday are my short days and Wednesdays are a day off. That’s just the way we worked out for me to work a 25 hour week. It makes those long days challenging, though. If I don’t sleep well the night before (like last night) and I still go put in a full day, it can lead to an evening Migraine. Right now I am lying down with the laptop, writing to you all after dinner, with a bit of a headache. Trying to see if I can contain it by resting. That works sometimes.

One of the difficulties for me is that I can’t seem to go to sleep and get up at the same time every day the way my Migraine brain demands. I need plenty of sleep, and if I went to bed early enough to make the Tuesday wake-up hour my standard, I’d never get to see my teenage kids or night-owl husband. I’d be best off if I could take a nap to even things out, I think, but short of napping in my car that’s not an option right now.

All in all, I am very grateful to have a job, to be doing professional work and helping people, to be getting some respect and recognition, and earning a living. I am grateful that I still have Wednesdays to keep working at my Migraine coaching. I had forgotten, as a self-employed person for many years, how satisfying it is to leave at the end of a work-day, knowing I had filled the day with doing my best, and that I am done for the day. I am enjoying my evenings more, and allowing myself to relax. Except that these Tuesdays are hitting me hard!

- Megan

Sleepy law student image courtesy of umjanedoan.

Tags: Migraine coaching, Migraine preventive medication, part-time work, sleep hygiene, triptans
Posted in Advocacy, Managing, Musings, Weblogs | Comments (0)

Happy New Year!

February 12th, 2010

What? It’s 43 days into 2010!

I know, but I haven’t posted since January 7th; I feel like I need to catch up with you all. Greetings from snow-bound New Jersey!

I just saw that Medical Assistants.Net listed me as “One of the Top 50 Health and Wellness Blogs to Watch in 2010.” If that’s the case, I’d better get writing!

It’s been a busy month and a half for me. I have returned to my professional roots and taken a half-time job as a lawyer. I love working with you all to help you manage your Migraines, but it’s not keeping me busy full-time. I’m lucky to have a good set of skills to return to, and a great firm owner who knows me, likes my work, and is very flexible about my health needs.

I haven’t missed a day for a Migraine yet, though I have to admit I’ve had a few let-down Migraines after busy days at work. I am adjusting to a new schedule. That takes some time for a Migraineur - our systems crave regularity, and tend to freak out when we change things up on them. It took a few weeks to build enough stamina to have energy left for the other things I do. I am very glad that my preventive medication works well for me, and that my years of practice in managing my Migraines have given me the breathing and relaxation skills to get me through.

When I left the practice of law in 2000 I thought I’d never be able to go back to the pace and demands without frequent Migraines. I’m happy to report that my Migraines haven’t increased at all. Even better, I seem to have a reputation around the office as a calm person and a calming influence. That would have shocked those who knew me a few decades ago! Learning to manage Migraines, to keep my system on even keel, has left me knowing not to sweat the small stuff, and yes, most things are small stuff.

I owe all my subscribers a newsletter, and I am backed up with a couple of book reviews I want to give you. I have some stories about medication allergies for you and some great new products to link to. The Migraine Support & Coaching Group is going well, and I’d love to have more of you to talk to in the meetings! I think I’ve got my new rhythm down enough to be back and talk to you more often.

I hope your winter is going well. Let me know how you’re doing!

- Megan

Tags: health and wellness blogs, let-down Migraine, managing life with migraine, Migraine preventive medication, migraine support group
Posted in Communicating, Managing, Weblogs | Comments (5)

Blog Carnival Time: Holiday Stress

December 15th, 2009

Teri Robert is hosting the blog carnival this month at My Migraine Connection. There’s a great collection of posts on caring for yourself such that you can actually enjoy the holidays. My contribution is just one post down on this page (unless you’re reading on Facebook, if you are, please hop over to Free my Brain). For the rest of the carnival, please go to December Migraine and Headache Disease Blog Carnival: Holiday Stress. And whatever else you do, remember to slow down and breathe!

- Megan

Tags: blog carnival, holidays
Posted in Tips & Techniques, Weblogs | Comments (0)

Reducing Holiday Stress - Blog Carnival

December 6th, 2009

The theme for the December 2009 Headache & Migraine Disease Blog Carnival is “Advice on & experiences with reducing holiday season stress.” This will be the Blog Carnival’s second anniversary issue, so please consider joining in! I’ve missed the carnival myself for the past few months but I’m planning a post this time. We all know that Migraines can make our holidays much harder - let’s share how we cope! To participate just use the form on the carnival web site or contact Diana Lee over at Somebody Heal Me.

- Megan

Tags: blog carnival, holidays, Migraines, stress management
Posted in Managing, Weblogs | Comments (2)

October Blog Carnival Coming Up - On Alternative Therapies

September 26th, 2009

Diana Lee of Somebody Heal Me will be hosting the October 2009 Headache & Migraine Disease Blog Carnival on the theme “Alternative therapies - your experiences (good or bad), thoughts about trying them or any other take on the subject.” To participate, send your link to a blog post on the topic, new or old, along to Diana, through the form on the carnival website or directly to her by e-mail.

Submissions are due by midnight (the end of the day) on Friday, October 9. This is a great opportunity to gather a number of posts around a topic of interest to many of us. About 6 weeks later Dr. Christina Peterson will be addressing the same topic on the November Managing Life with Migraine Teleconference, so between the two events we should gather a lot of great advice!

- Megan

Tags: alternative therapies, blog carnival, managing life with migraine
Posted in Managing, Medicine, Weblogs | Comments (0)

Blog Carnival Time Again!

July 12th, 2009

It’s your hit and run blogger here, catching up to let you know about two wonderful blog carnivals.

How to Cope with Pain published the June Pain Blog Carnival about a week or so ago (told you I was catching up) with lots of great posts on living with chronic pain.  She has kindly listed teleconferences as one of the posts.

Tomorrow tune in to Somebody Heal Me for the July Headache & Migraine Disease Blog Carnival. There is no theme this time, but there are sure to be a number of great posts as usual.

Hope to talk to you again soon!

- Megan

Carnival Lights image courtesy of Gilberto Santa Rosa

Tags: blog carnival, Weblogs
Posted in Communicating, Weblogs | Comments (1)

Headache Carnivals and Awareness

June 8th, 2009

It’s a big week in the world of headache - first of all it’s Migraine and Headache Blog Carnival time again, with this month’s topic of “What people don’t understand about migraines & about what it’s like to live with them” posted over at Somebody Heal Me. Lots of great posts, both on and off topic. If you haven’t checked out The Headache & Migraine Disease Blog Carnival before, it was been created to provide both headache patients and people who blog about headaches with opportunities to share ideas on topics of particular interest and importance to us.

But even bigger news is that it’s National Headache Awareness week, sponsored by the National Headache Foundation.  Educational events are going on throughout the country this week to raise awareness of Migraine and other headache disorders.  A great new tool on the National Headache Foundation web site is Headache U, an on-line resource where you can look up your experiences with headache, create a personal headache profile, and get matched with the right resources for you.

A great week for educating both ourselves and the other people in our lives about Migraine Disease and Headache Disorders!

- Megan

Tags: blog carnival, headache disorders, Migraine and Headache awareness, Migraine disease, National Headache Awareness Week
Posted in Advocacy, Communicating, Weblogs | Comments (1)

May Headache and Migraine Blog Carnival

May 12th, 2009

The May Headache & Migraine Disease Blog Carnival is posted at Somebody Heal Me.  Diana Lee created the carnival to provide headache patients and people who blog about headaches with opportunities to share on topics of interest and importance to us.

This month’s carnival was on the topic of “Talk about where to find support: Where do you find it & where can other migraineurs find it?” It’s a very important topic - Headache disorders and Migraine disease are very isolating and we need support! Head over to Somebody Heal Me for a lot of good reading.  Enjoy.

- Megan

Tags: blog carnival, Migraine disease, migraine support, Weblogs
Posted in Managing, Weblogs | Comments (0)

Great Poetry inspired by Pain

April 28th, 2009

I’m really impressed by the winning poems in this year’s Putting Our Heads Together Migraine and Headache Poetry Contest, over at My Migraine Connection.  I don’t impress that easily when it comes to poetry - these are an exceptionally well written bunch, lyrical, moving, interesting, sometimes funny, sometimes wacky.  I guess it’s only fair to let you know I have an honorable mention in there, but I’m not saying all this to boast.  I’m very happy to be included but I think mine is far from the best.

I’m in the midst of a not very creative Migraine at the moment - some Migraines leave me able to write eloquently and some leave me pretty wordless, you know? I guess it’s a question of which part of my brain the storm is passing over.  I’d love to be able to tell you more about what moves me in these poems, and why, but it’s beyond me right now.  Would you go read some, and come back and share your favorites with me?  I’m particularly fond of the fourth place entry, “Pain Breaks Like Teeth” by Kate Brady, which opens

Pain breaks like teeth into rice cakes all over the floor.  My pieces aren’t swept up because I haven’t cleaned in weeks.

Enjoy!

- Megan

Tags: migraine, poetry
Posted in Communicating, Weblogs | Comments (0)

April Headache and Migraine Blog Carnival

April 14th, 2009

The April Headache & Migraine Disease Blog Carnival is posted at Somebody Heal Me.  Diana Lee created the carnival to provide headache patients and people who blog about headaches with opportunities to share on topics of interest and importance to us.

This month’s carnival had no set topic and garnered an interesting collection of posts.  There is a lot of good reading here.  Some of my favorites - James of Headache and Migraine News Blog gives us exciting news of a new upcoming Migraine drug.  Rosalind of Working with Chronic Illness makes some really insightful points about how to avoid and deal with errors at work resulting from your illness. Kelly of Fly with Hope has the inspiring idea of writing herself a letter to remind herself of hope when she’s in pain. And Rena of Dealing with Headaches - well, Rena, you know you always make me laugh, but this month I’ve got to say you win the Ewww award!

I don’t want to slight anyone - every entry is worth a read!  Enjoy.

- Megan

Tags: chronic illness, migraine, Weblogs
Posted in Weblogs | Comments (0)