Day 3 Exercise (and some thoughts)

It took me a few days to get through the recommended reading and links for day 3. I had to go back and catch up on things I had previously missed, so there was a lot. It's also a bit hard to face, to be honest. But I'm finding that as soon as I think about accessing the program, my migraine symptoms start to ramp up. My head starts ringing. I start feeling nauseated. The pain starts. I think that's pretty telling.

Obviously I'm only early in the program, so I'm not great at countering this yet. Gosh, even as I typed that sentence, my pain picked up! But I think now I'm beginning to really see it for what it is. Just saying "I see what you're doing" to myself sometimes knocks things back down a few notches.

I still have A LOT of fear to work through. After all, I've left my job because the migraines were so persistent and so disabling. My biggest worry by far is that the stress of my career in medicine will be too much for me to handle, and the migraines will return. But perhaps I'm thinking too far ahead.

I feel a little encouraged though. Maybe I'm on the right track. Perhaps I WILL be a success story. But I sure have a ton of work to do.

Anyway, the assignment today was to talk about exercise. Since being bullied during recess and gym class as a kid, I have always joked that I'm "athletically impaired." Far too self-conscious to participate in any sports or even to go to a gym. I have a great elliptical at my house that I love using, but I stopped with it about a year ago when the migraines started getting particularly ugly. I would get sudden headaches with exercise that lasted for hours or days after. Eventually, it wasn't worth it.

However, I really enjoy gardening, and this is my primary physical activity right now. This morning, I went out and cut the dead stalks off of my hollyhocks. Tomorrow I plan to pull tons of weeds and prune the plants that have already died back for the season. I need to rake the mulch back into the planting beds - my cats kick it all over the place (eyeroll). I also have a veggie garden that is producing tomatos, peppers, and tomatillos like crazy, so that keeps me busy with cooking and preserving, too.

As it gets colder, I'll need to try the elliptical again. Perhaps this program will help me get there.

 

You're absolutely right! That is very telling. You are in the right place. It is hard to lose your fear of the pain, because, well, migraines really hurt. What helped me was not focusing on whether I am in pain or not, but instead just trying to focus on the fact that the pain is not permanent because there is no physical cause for it. Either way, it often takes time. Keep up the good work!