Health Scare

On Monday, I thought I had a stroke.

Right before lunch, I started seeing white spots and an over-stimulation of colors in my right eye. Then, I had pain in my left eye. I figured maybe I was just hungry, and should eat something. Before I could sit at my desk to eat lunch, I started having trouble talking. I could speak, but couldn’t think of the right words to say. I tried to read an email. I could read, but not fully understand what I was reading. I started to freak out! I thought I was having a stroke at age 27. My fingertips started to ‘tingle’, and then it got to a point where I could not writing the words I wanted to write. I was scared.

I called my husband who urged me to rush to the ER. I couldn’t bare the thought of calling 911, and being a spectacle for all my co-workers and DC tourist - watching me get into an ambulance. I braved the metro, and offered to meet my sister in law at the end of the line so we could head to an ER that was closer to home.

On the metro ride, all of my symptoms went away, then I got a splitting headache. The whole ordeal only lasted 30min or so. At the ER, the doctors ran all kinds of tests…CAT scan, MRI, EKG, etc. They wanted to make sure I didn’t have a stroke or a blot clot. In the end, the ER doctor told me that what I had was a very severe migraine. The MRI showed no signs of a stroke. The next day, I went to see my family doctor who referred me to a Neurologist to make sure I didn’t have any blood clots. Neurologist diagnosis = severe migraine.

I did a bit more research on this phenomena. I’ve always had migraines, but never this bad. What I experienced this time was called an “Aura Migraine”. “Auras” are visual and physical symptoms your body displays 30/45min before the onset of a migraine. Aura Migraines explain everything…the distorted vision, the trouble with my thought process, the tingly fingertips.

At least now I know what ‘auras’ are, and how I should handle my migraine if an ‘aura’ appears.

Needless to say, this was a scary week for me. I’m happy that all ended well. Migraines are terrible…but I’d much prefer them over a stroke or blood clot!