Mom with Migraines, Child with ADHD - Advice?

One of my girls was diagnosed with ADHD yesterday.  I'm really not sure how to handle this.  I know there are things we can do to help her cope, but I would really like to stay away from medication unless nothing else works.  I am also hoping to find ways to help all of us when I have a migraine on one of her hyper and/or distracted days.  I guess that means it's time to start the research.

Any and all advice, words of wisdom, etc would be greatly appreciated.

My Migraine Aura

I have thought, for a very long time, that I was one of the many who does not experience an aura.  I now stand corrected.  Ever since I was a child with my first migraines, I have had what is known as:

• Alice in Wonderland Syndrome: a rare form of Migraine aura in which the distinctive symptom is a type of metamorphosia, a distortion of body image and perspective, which Migraineurs know, while it’s occurring is not real. “Alice in Wonderland” syndrome can occur at any age, but it is more commonly experienced by children.

http://migraine.com/migraine-basics/migraine-phases/

I only experience it with my eyes closed and it's always been difficult for me to explain, so I thought it was just something that happened with my migraines.  It's very nice to finally know that there is actually a name for it and I'm not completely delusional.

Patience, or lack thereof

As I'm sitting here waiting impatiently for bedtime, I find myself wondering where my patience has gone. I used to be a fairly patient person who was also very even tempered. Not so much anymore. Sometimes the smallest thing will set me off. I either give up in frustration or yell in anger. Neither of these is good for dealing with migraines.  Nor are they good when dealing with children.

I don't like to cook anymore because invariably someone "hates" it. Cleaning is frustrating because it either doesn't get noticed or gets destroyed shortly after what feels like hours of work. Helping my kids with homework is almost always a battle. Shower time is a fight over who has to go first.

None of these are fun, for any parent. For me, they are a nightmare. My 2 biggest triggers for a migraine are weather changes and stress. I love my children dearly, but 7 year old twin girls could stress out probably anyone.

I'm trying to not let things bother me quite so much. Some days it actually works.

Migraine and Noises

It has come to my attention, especially recently, that I don't like odd noises. I hate them when I have a migraine. I am currently listening to someone eat cereal and it's very grating.

My kids were humming this morning while getting ready for school. Normally, I like hearing music, especially from my kids. I love music and I'm glad that they like it, too. I just can't handle the humming.

My fiances cell phone vibrates every time a new tweet shows up on his Twitter page, even at night. I swear it shakes the whole bed.

Toys, video games, McDonald's fry machines, loud bass on cars driving by....you name it, it probably bothers me.

Ted even bought me ear plugs, hoping they would help. I can't stand putting them in my ears.

Week 3 :(

I so don't want to wait anymore for my neurologist appointment.  I am in the middle of my 3rd week with a pretty much constant headache and a migraine every day.  There are days my nausea is so bad that I really don't want to eat.  I force myself to anyways because I know if I don't, the nausea will just get worse.

Luckily, I have an amazing man in my life that is helping me deal with all of this.  He has been the best thing for me.  He is my cheering section when I feel down and my kick in the pants when I need the extra push to do what needs doing.

My kids are also dealing with all of this fairly well.  They don't like that mom doesn't feel good, but they are getting better at helping me cope with it.

I have some wonderful friends and family that have been very supportive of all the changes we have had to make in the journey to helping me feel better.  Thank you, all of you.

Test Results

Today was a day for a couple of test results.

My blood work from last week came back *mostly* normal.  

While my sodium is technically normal, it's on the low side of normal.  The doctor is not worried about since I am taking a few medications that can affect sodium.

My cholesterol is "border-line high". Nothing too bad, but still something to work on.  Time to work a little more on my food intake and exercise just a bit more than I have been.

I also got the results back from my pulse oximetry test.  While it's not too worrisome, I do need to have a more intensive sleep study done.  So now I am waiting for yet another referral.  

At least everything is progressing.

On another good note, the anti nausea medicine is working.  Though it really makes me sleepy, at least I am no longer completely miserable. 

/Sigh

I know I've done a lot more complaining on this blog than anything else so far.  For that I am sorry.  It's still the beginning of this journey (for the most part) and I am still trying to figure out how to live with it.

Today is day 9 of straight headaches with a migraine every day.  Obviously, I can't take my abortive medicine every day or I will wind up with a rebound headache.  I've had to push through as much as possible.  What that means is, a nap almost every day, cancelling any appointment that I can and struggling through what I have to.  This also means that my poor (and amazing) fiance has had to bear the brunt of everything.  My children have also had to do without me for quite a bit.  I've tried to be there for them, but it's hard when my head feels like it's going to explode.

School days are a mix of good and bad.  Good, because I can relax without having to worry about neglecting my kids while they are at school.  Bad, because once they get home, the homework battle begins.  Being little girls, they tend to over dramatize when things don't work the way they think they are supposed to.  This gives me a headache at the best of times.  When I already have a headache, this makes us all cranky. I have very little patience lately, which is not a good thing when dealing with kids.

/sigh

Long Week

It's been a long week. 

I've retaken the pulse oximetry test.  This time it had over 8 hours of information, so they should be able to get some sort of results from it.

I've scheduled an appointment with the neurologist, though it's not until the middle of December.

I've gotten a referral to an OB/GYN to talk about getting my tubes tied in the hopes that maybe "natural" hormones vs "synthetic" hormones will possibly help.

I volunteered for the book fair at the kids' school for 2 hours.

Through all of this has been a constant headache with a migraine every day. The nausea alone is enough to drive me crazy.  I feel like I'm on the verge of losing my mind.  I want to just give in, lay down and cry it all out.  But I can't, at least not yet.  It's just me and the kids right now, so I have to be strong enough to be here for them.  

Hopefully, when my fiance gets back with the new anti nausea, I'll be able to get some relief.