The thing that concerned me most about becoming a mom was migraines. How could I function as a mom, taking care of a small human, if I had a migraine?
I've suffered from migraines since 2003. They started in college, and I usually got about five migraines a year. I had medicine that I could take if I got a migraine, and my doctor put me on a preventative, which I thought was working.
But in 2006, after moving to a new state and starting a new job, my migraines got out of control. I started getting four to six a month, and they were really bad. I've seen three neurologists and tried 10 preventatives and even more prescription pain relievers since then. If you are pregnant, you're not allowed to take any of these medications because they are "Class C" drugs, which means they could be harmful to the fetus but nobody really knows.
My OBGYN said that some women's migraines go away entirely while pregnant, while other women experience more migraines. She hoped that I was in the former group and recommended I only take Tylenol if I got a migraine while pregnant.
Ah, Tylenol. The thing that non-migraine sufferers are always asking me about. As in, "Can't you just take a Tylenol?"
No, KAREN. I can't JUST take a Tylenol. Why? Because Tylenol doesn't work on migraines!!!!!
But I digress.
I did experience migraines while pregnant, but thankfully, they were few and far between. It was a nice change of pace from my usual migraine schedule. If I got a migraine, all I could do was take a Tylenol and, as soon as I got home from work (because that's where 99 percent of my migraines originate), I would lie down in a dark room with an ice pack on my head and a heating pad around my neck. I put into practice my oojay breathing technique from my yoga classes, and sometimes the migraine would indeed go away. Sometimes I'd have to sleep it off and pray that the migraine wouldn't still be with me the next morning.
All that is fine and well when there isn't a baby in the house. At that point, the baby was still in my tummy. So I had plenty of time to lay in bed and do nothing during a migraine.
But what would happen when the baby was here? Babies (and toddlers and preschoolers, for that matter) don't understand that Mommy just needs to lie down in a quiet place for a few hours.
There was also the question of breastfeeding. At the time, I planned on doing it, but I knew that if I got a migraine and took my medicine, I would have to "pump and dump" because the medication would contaminate the breast milk.
Things seemed to work out for me, though. I had trouble breastfeeding and so fed my daughter formula, which meant I could take my migraine medicine without a second thought. But I barely had any migraines during my two-month maternity leave. (It was actually "disability leave", but that's another story.) I was so surprised at my lack of migraines because I thought for certain that the lack of sleep and disruption in normal eating habits would give me migraine after migraine.
But none of it affected me.
Going back to work was another story, and I would still say that 99 percent of my migraines happen while I'm at work. Usually they go away before I get home once I take my medicine, but sometimes they linger and I just have to grab an ice pack and lie down for a little bit, which is difficult when your 3-year-old wants to play with you. Hence some of the pictures in this blog post.
Any other moms out there suffer from migraines? What happens when you get one? Did you have them while pregnant or postpartum? Share your stories in the comments!
I've suffered from migraines since 2003. They started in college, and I usually got about five migraines a year. I had medicine that I could take if I got a migraine, and my doctor put me on a preventative, which I thought was working.
But in 2006, after moving to a new state and starting a new job, my migraines got out of control. I started getting four to six a month, and they were really bad. I've seen three neurologists and tried 10 preventatives and even more prescription pain relievers since then. If you are pregnant, you're not allowed to take any of these medications because they are "Class C" drugs, which means they could be harmful to the fetus but nobody really knows.
My OBGYN said that some women's migraines go away entirely while pregnant, while other women experience more migraines. She hoped that I was in the former group and recommended I only take Tylenol if I got a migraine while pregnant.
 |
| Scrapbook layout from 2006 documenting my migraines |
Ah, Tylenol. The thing that non-migraine sufferers are always asking me about. As in, "Can't you just take a Tylenol?"
No, KAREN. I can't JUST take a Tylenol. Why? Because Tylenol doesn't work on migraines!!!!!
But I digress.
I did experience migraines while pregnant, but thankfully, they were few and far between. It was a nice change of pace from my usual migraine schedule. If I got a migraine, all I could do was take a Tylenol and, as soon as I got home from work (because that's where 99 percent of my migraines originate), I would lie down in a dark room with an ice pack on my head and a heating pad around my neck. I put into practice my oojay breathing technique from my yoga classes, and sometimes the migraine would indeed go away. Sometimes I'd have to sleep it off and pray that the migraine wouldn't still be with me the next morning.
 |
| I told her I needed to lie down with an ice pack. She said she needed to lie down with an ice pack, too. |
But what would happen when the baby was here? Babies (and toddlers and preschoolers, for that matter) don't understand that Mommy just needs to lie down in a quiet place for a few hours.
There was also the question of breastfeeding. At the time, I planned on doing it, but I knew that if I got a migraine and took my medicine, I would have to "pump and dump" because the medication would contaminate the breast milk.
Things seemed to work out for me, though. I had trouble breastfeeding and so fed my daughter formula, which meant I could take my migraine medicine without a second thought. But I barely had any migraines during my two-month maternity leave. (It was actually "disability leave", but that's another story.) I was so surprised at my lack of migraines because I thought for certain that the lack of sleep and disruption in normal eating habits would give me migraine after migraine.
But none of it affected me.
Going back to work was another story, and I would still say that 99 percent of my migraines happen while I'm at work. Usually they go away before I get home once I take my medicine, but sometimes they linger and I just have to grab an ice pack and lie down for a little bit, which is difficult when your 3-year-old wants to play with you. Hence some of the pictures in this blog post.
Any other moms out there suffer from migraines? What happens when you get one? Did you have them while pregnant or postpartum? Share your stories in the comments!
Comments
Post a Comment