An Example

I don't often post here any more, mainly because it's largely more of the same. But you'll remember that I had to surrender my driving licence after a simple partial in August 2008. I had another in December but I've been clear since so I got my licence back before Christmas and I am now driving again.

Anyway to give you a flavour of how my life can be here's a little example. I went to a party last Saturday night. Beth was away in Scotland so she wasn't there. I had a total of 500ml of German bier (so about a pint in real money) before switching to alcohol free so I was good, but I left it far too late before I left at about 9:45pm.

And boy, did I pay the price.

Sunday I woke up with a bad migraine but did manage to weave around Milton Country Park with Jake once the drugs had kicked in. Monday was worse and I had to show him the garden before going back to bed to cuddle up with the bears Beth had left in our bed to look after me. It wasn't until about 1pm that I felt well enough to take Jake out for a very brief walk and I wasn't really over it until early evening. Tuesday and Wednesday I had migraines again, although milder and only really kicking off once I woke up¹.

So Thursday, five days after the party, was the first day I felt vaguely normal although I still couldn't concentrate on any work related (thank goodness things are pretty quiet there at the moment).

Friday started OK, although when I got up I discovered to my annoyance that I'd forgotten to take the previous night's dose of my anti-seizure meds. I was wondering about going to the pub as I'd not really seen anyone all week (Beth still being away and I'd not made the Wrestlers for lunch on Tuesday because I wasn't well) but then I had three or four episodes where I felt "odd". These are very difficult to describe to anyone, not least because I suspect I have a tiny bit of amnesia afterwards. My suspicion is that they're seizures which don't really take off, presumably because the drugs do the right thing. They always scare me and make me very rapidly put myself into a safe position in case I do have a seizure (as I did when I last had a full tonic): so taking off my glasses, sitting down away from hard edges and sharp objects.

Why were they happening now? Perhaps the reduction in my plasma levels as a result of the missed dose was the problem although I do miss doses occasionally and don't normally have problems. Perhaps it was the previous week compounded with the missed dose?

So I didn't go to the pub.

I told Beth about what had happened on the phone and she decided to come home a day early which was perhaps wise as I had another episode on Saturday morning so again failed to get to the Wrestlers for lunch.

It's nice to have Beth home early but this whole sequence of events does illustrate the "joys" of where I am now: I've paid for one evening's fun by losing out on three further opportunities to see my my friends, not getting much work done for a week, and making Beth feel she had to bail out of her holiday early.

Oh, and it's not finished yet. I woke up this morning (Sunday) with another migraine.

1. Which is better: being woken by a migraine really sucks.