It is easy to say that I refuse to allow migraines to control my life...easy to say, hard to do. Sometimes it is a delicate balance between the pain and my medication--how bad will it get, how much pain can I stand,when should I take the medication which will knock me out. Sometimes I can gauge it, often times I guess wrong and by the time I take my medication it is too late.
So, when I met with my neurologist this time, I spoke to him about going back on Topamax--or "Dopamax" as many of us call it. When I was on it before, I went I had memory and processing problems. As a sign language interpreter, the processing problems were the worst for me. I would work with Deaf people that I had know for years, but I couldn't understand them. I know the memory problems were hard on my family. I would repeat myself to my husband several times. Some days I would ask him the same question over and over again, because I didn't remember asking him. For him, it was like living with someone with early stage Alzheimer's--only I was in my thirties. It was frustrating for both of us.
It wasn't an easy decision to go back on the Topamax. My doctor decided to keep me on a low dose of it, to increase my dosage of Clonazepam and decrease my Nortriptyline dosage. Including my vitamin supplements, I am taking 8 pills before bed at night.
I have been tracking my migraines (yes, there's an app for that!) and have found that they have decreased since adding Topamax back into my regimen. I have asked my family and coworkers to watch for memory issues, and I am happy to report that so far no one has noticed a significant problem.
It is still a delicate balance between medication and control over my life. I hate taking so many pills, but I know that without them I wouldn't be able to function. However, I have to monitor to ensure that my medications don't impede my ability to function, as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment