He likened the MAV experience to having a nail hammered into a piece of wood. Some people came to him with only a bit of the nail in the wood, and so it’s easy to prise out with diet and lifestyle and maybe meds. Some people have the nail more deeply entrenched, and it’s harder to prise out.
He reckoned my nail was COMPLETELY embedded in the wood with only the head of the nail showing, so is going to take a hell of a lot of prising out!
Not sure whether this reassured me or not. And is it possible for the head of the nail to disappear? What happens then?
Another thing he said which kind of annoyed me a bit was that I had unwittingly driven the nail in over the years by following the wrong lifestyle, diet, getting stressed etc. This sort of made out it was my own fault (albeit unwitting). Well I’m sorry but If I’d had a PROPER DIAGNOSIS in the first place or at least early on, instead of being told ‘it’s anxiety’, ‘it’s stress’, ‘it’s somatisation’, ‘you’re mentally ill’, ‘it’s meniere’s’ etc. etc. then the damn nail would never have got so far embedded.
His changed his metaphor. It’s generally the jug of water or the swimming pool . I shall giggle if he says it to me. I have to agree that I usually leave Medway feeling slightly depressed. I don’t think DRs understand how very ill desperate people analyse their every word, especially women.
Dr S has said that he thinks he may not get me back to 100% which was cheery. The VRT ladies are more forthcoming about vestibular conditions. Regarding the wood simile…my piece of wood must be broken and the nail lost!
It’s not your fault in any way . He hasn’t got a clue about our lives. I remember once he was late because he had run out of petrol so he tends to live in a bubble.
I am absolutely certain at your age and given your circumstances that you will find the right drug quickly and it may well be lyrica. I have read that there are peaks for Mav in a woman, pregnancy, periods, menopause … it also peaks around 35 and menopause. Mine started out of the blue when I was 45 so I fit the menopause peak.
So there is no reason why yours can’t be nipped in the bud.
He used the jug thing with me too! My jug’s madly overflowing.
He was also 40 mins late for my appt which was the first of the day. Don’t know if he ran out of petrol again! :lol:
My MAV history’s a bit peculiar. Started at 18. Well my periods started at 11 so no correlation there. Re-started at 36 after I had my twins, so yes, definitie link there. Went away for brief stretches. Now I’m 43 (44 in June) so probably beginning perimenopause, although a blood test didn’t detect any hormone changes yet (Dr S. said the brain can detect changes b4 it shows in the blood). My mum started menopause at 52. So I could be like this for years! Although I have had long stretches without it, they are getting fewer. And even when well recently, my balance is a bit ‘off’, so he reckoned it’s unlikely I’ll ever be normal again too.
And the fact that blokes get it is interesting. They don’t even have the hormonal thing to hang on to!
He once said to me that if I was a young man I would be sorted out by now! My Mav was episodic at first then in 2009 I had the year from Hell. After which I was In London and bam it ramped up and went mad on the underground and on the train back to Faversham , there after it has been constant 24 hours a day. Apparently this is not unusual. So if you can ( I know your life is tough at the moment) try and do something that de-stresses… yoga or pilates perhaps.
WOW!I am 35 and its been the worst its ever been…(been having for 13 yrs) and I AM hoping I am getting close to a early menapause…my mom was DONE by 39-40, so I am hoping that my PEAK is 35 and menapause wrapped together!!! I have 1 more month before I go to see Dr. HAin in Chicago, I am excited and nervous, I want to be better, at this point, if I could be 70% better…that would be heaven!!! SO we will see
I am 33 (34 in June - DizzyIz when is your birthday???) and never had hormone issues or problems with my periods or anything. Ive just always been completely normal and healthy and had no issues.
I’m taking my 20mg Nort 2nite instead of 2moro night coz my dizzies are driving me nuts 2nite so I want to know if this is my drug or not!!
Fiona - pls try and stick with the Lyrica!!
Donna - put Hain on speaker phone when you get there!!
Interesting analogy by Dr S with the nail. I wouldn’t get too carried away with it. These analogies are helpful in trying to understand what’s going on but really, migraine is so complex that it would be very hard to apply anything to it for total clarity. You may well have the nail hammered all the way down but maybe it was hammered into a pine 2x4 and not mahogany (hard woord). Pulling it out of the pine 2x4 will be easy … just needs a good yank. :lol:
Personally, I think the person holding the hammer at my end can’t decide if the nail should be yanked out or pounded back in. Enough already … I want the nail thrown in the bin.