When I first started getting headaches I called them migraines. I had sensitivity to light and sound and a headache could wipe me out for days. It seemed like a migraine sort of experience.
Thinking I had migraines I went on an elimination diet looking for my triggers. I drank coffee when I hadn’t before. Caffeine can stop migraines. Everything I tried was based on this idea of migraines. Nothing helped and I couldn’t figure out what made my headaches worse. There was no managing my symptoms.
Knowing I have a problem with my inner ear I can now manage my symptoms better. I know what makes my headaches worse and what can help.
What helps is laying down in a quiet area with as little going on as possible in all directions.
What makes my symptoms worse is moving around (especially any activity that involves pivoting or my head changing level) as well as noisy situations or anything that involves trying to pay attention to more than one sound at a time. Oh, and running to catch the bus or lifting anything heavy or quickly. Or any sudden change of direction or movement.
That means that if I live a slow sedentary life with no chores, no cooking, no walks, no crowds, no lunches of more than two friends at a time, etc, then my evening headache is bearable and I can push out the unbearable two day headache to nearly every two weeks instead of once a week. This is how I will survive until the doctor fixes my superior canal dehiscence in December. And why I’m going hiking a lot in the spring.
Rebekah Golden 