Savi and her migrainess

My daughter, Savannah (Savi), has been getting quite a few migraines the past three weeks. She has missed six days of school since the Thanksgiving Holiday. I am really worried about her. She and my younger daughter, Mallory, have both experienced migraines, but they are usually few and far between.  

Savi had a really bad migraine on Thanksgiving, so we ended up staying home for the day.  Each migraine has presented in the same way. She starts with nausea in the middle of the night and then around 5:00 A.M. or so, she will wake up with a really bad "headache". She describes it as though sometimes is stabbing her left eye and then causing the left side of her head to throb really hard. She had built a fort for her to go into and sleep when she was fighting the migraine during the day. The light and noises really bother her. Oh, how it breaks my heart to see her suffer, only because I know how miserable it can be. I would take all of her pain from her if I could. 

We went and saw her Pediatrician last Thursday. Dr. Conover would like her to get an MRI very first before she becomes a little more proactive in treating the migraines. Dr. Conover and I talked about possible triggers: the stress of having an ill Mom, hormones, body changes, conflict with friends, stress with school, to name a few. After great discussion, we felt that it was in the best interest for Savannah and Mallory to begin weekly counseling sessions with a therapist. Our goal is to see if there are specific triggers that we can eliminate. I'm hoping that the therapist will be able to help Savannah as well. Maybe he will be able to help figure out why she is all of a sudden getting so many migraines. The last night I want is for Savi to end with Chronic Migraines like I have. Oh, it pains me just to think about it. Her pediatrician is awesome. I am hopeful that as we work together as a team, we will help learn the triggers  and get effective treatment so that she will not have to battle migraines so frequently. 

I hate watching her suffer. On the bright side, I am very educated in migraines, so I hope that I will be a good asset for her. Please keep her in your prayers. Oh  how I hate that I passed this dreaded disease onto her. I would take it all away from her in a heartbeat. 

Please pardon any spelling or grammar rules. My eye sight is very blurry right now, so I am having a very hard time seeing what I type. Please be gentle with me. Thank you all for your love and support.

Savi & Mallory Winter 2007

Savi & her former puppy, Cher. R.I.P. Cher. 12/25/10-7/13/2014 We all miss her, but Cher was Savi's special dog, and she is just grieving desperately for Cher.

Savi took my phone hostage and was doing selfies. I love this pic!

I am praying the MRI will be clean and we will find an effective treatment plan. I love my little girl so much, and I don't want her to suffer anymore than she already has to. Thank you.

 

Allodynia

Allodynia and I know each other really well. I had to shave my hair because the tickling sensation from my hair brought me such excruciating pain. My hair literally hurt to touch it. I've never felt anything like it. I was losing a lot of hair. I would wake up with clumps of my hair on my pillow and I would lose hair when I showered. It got to the point where I could tolerate firm touch, like from a hat or scarf, but I could not tolerate the tickling sensation of my hair touching me anywhere. I would cringe and cry and want to crawl out of my skin. I debated for quite a while about whether shaving my hair off would be beneficial or not. I decided to go for it. My daughters strongly encouraged me to shave it off because they were hopeful that it would help alleviate my pain. I shaved my head over three weeks ago, and I do not regret it. It has made a huge difference in my comfort and pain level. Instead of typing a lot, I will let you watch the videos and you can read the small article about allodynia below. Hopefully, the article will help you understand allodynia a little better. If you have any additional questions, please leave them in the comments, and I will answer them to the best of my knowledge. Thank you.

http://www.achenet.org/resources/allodynia_when_touch_hurts_but_shouldnt/

Introduction and explanation as to why I have decided to shave my hair. 

Part 1 of shaving my hair.

Part 2 shaving my hair and teaching Mallory how to use the clippers. I feel bad because I moved a little too much for Mallory while she was shaving my hair. I apologized. I will be a better client next time. Lesson learned.

Conclusion of me shaving my head. Shared my thoughts on living with chronic illness and pain.

Did a little slide show of finished product.