Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Productivity - or a lack thereof...

This post will have little to do with writing or reading. It's more of a public service announcement than anything else.

I am suffering from a migraine headache hangover this morning. For those of you who have experienced migraines, you know what I mean. My head still hurts, but not as terribly as it did last night, when I threw the kids and the evening chores at my wonderful husband, and crawled into bed around 7:30.

I've learned what causes my migraines. Anytime I ingest MSG (Monosodium Glutamate) I develop a horrible headache within 12 hours. It lasts for a little over 36 hours and pretty much prevents me from getting anything accomplished. My head hurts, my eyes hurt and I feel sick to my stomach. Anyone making noise around me is intolerable.

I read labels religiously to avoid eating MSG. I didn't, however, read the label of the soup I used in the beef stroganoff I made on Monday night. My bad, and I mean really, really bad.

If you want to know more about migraines and MSG, you can Google it. I have actively been avoiding MSG as much as possible, and have cut down my migraine headaches to one every couple of months instead of one every week.

If anyone benefits from this information, I'll be very pleased.

5 comments:

Jim Melvin said...

Sorry to hear about your migraine. Gawd, that must be terrible. I've never had headaches, knock on wood. Glad to hear you're feeling better.

Dyan said...

Hmmmm. This is why we talk to our food, my friend. Page 79. :=) No mixes allowed.
Migraines are just completely hideous. I'm glad you're better.

Dyan

VirtualWordsmith said...

Thanks for the sympathy, Jim.

Dyan, we're using a cream of broccoli soup next time. I checked the ingredients and no evil MSG is listed. And, I could pronounce everything I read on the label - always a good sign!

Melanie Hooyenga said...

Another random food that triggers migraines for me is ham - as in the main dish often served at Christmas. I figured out the high sodium dehydrates me, and dehydration is a big trigger for me. If MSG affects you that badly, keep the ham in mind. :)

And I hope you're feeling better - mine usually last several days as well.

Anonymous said...

You have my immense sympathy.

MSG isn't a trigger for me. Neither are the usual suspects - chocolate, dairy, and so on. My worst triggers are heat (I overheat very easily) and light, whether it's sunlight on an overcast day, tungsten and fluorescent lights, computer monitors, televisions... Although, really, I don't know all my triggers and probably never will.

I've had the aura for the last nearly two weeks. Spent one day in severe pain. My migraines have lasted anywhere up to weeks, although thankfully they haven't been that long since I was a teenager (hormone levels - another trigger).

Like I said, you've got my sympathy, and lots of it. I hate migraines. :(