Three Trips to the Emergency Room

By late December my body finally had enough. I was on antibiotics for 6 weeks straight and still felt awful. I made a trip to my PCP during their walk in clinic hours and saw the nurse. She gave me a shot of antibiotic and steroid to see if that would help. Two days later I went back and she sent me to the emergency room. I had lost 10 pounds in two days and was severely dehydrated. I did not want to go to the emergency room but I could barely stand so I went. They diagnosed me with a migraine (go figure) and dehydration. I was given what they called a migraine cocktail which is Benadryl, Toradol and an anti nausea medication. I felt very tired and ended up sleeping for 24 hours straight. When I woke up I could barely stand. I began drinking a lot of Gatorade and water to stay hydrated. I opted for plain pasta with butter for food. Although I had plenty of sleep I was still exhausted and crawled every where because I felt so dizzy. I went back to my PCP per emergency room orders and I still felt awful. He advised me to go home and just rest. Not even a week later I could not take it anymore and made a trip back to the ER. Again they gave me the migraine cocktail and fluids. They also took blood and noted that I had an infection somewhere and put me on Levaquin and another steroid to fight the inflammation. I finished the antibiotic yet felt awful still. One evening in now January I felt an awful pain in my lower abdomen and I was throwing up for about an hour. I could feel like a pop in my belly and that is when I had my very first anxiety attack. I was gasping for air and felt as if I was going to die. My hands were shaking and I panicked. It was 1 a.m. and I woke my Daughter to let her know I needed to go to the Emergency Room. I drove myself in a snowstorm while my Daughter called my son and held on the phone with him. My son talked to the ER and they quickly wheeled me to a bed. They set up an IV and gave me pain meds and an anxiety med. I explained the "pop" in my stomach and they did a CT scan and then an ultrasound. The "pop" was a cyst bursting on my ovary. I also explained the dizziness, nausea, sinus pain etc. Diagnosis? Migraine! Once again I received the migraine cocktail and sent home. I decided it was time for a second opinion. I made an appointment with another ENT. Did I mention I was stubborn?

Topiramate/Topamax

What can I say about this drug? It is the drug from hell! Topiramate is the generic version of Topamax. It is used to treat seizures and migraines. Basically it decreases "excitement" in the brain. What could possibly go wrong with a drug that was originally used to treat seizures right? She had me at the added perk of it curbing your appetite and losing weight. Double bonus! I was elated to try this medication! Day one the cotton mouth was there but I just assumed it was the Imipramine still active in my body so no big deal. The next day I was extremely tired but it was the weekend so I could sleep all day. Day 3 the dry mouth was still there and I was feeling fuzzy in my head. I felt like I had been drinking and I bumped into a lot of things leaving bruises. I was now constipated and had to take magnesium citrate. I could not sleep because my extremities were making an uncontrollable jerking movements. Food had no taste (which explains why people lose weight) and I could barely look at it never mind eat it. I messaged my Doctor and she insisted I give it more time because side effects tend to subside. Day 5 is where it got scary! I started forgetting things especially words! My children thought I was losing it! Simple words took me what seemed forever to find. My performance at work started to suffer. Still I pressed on remembering what my Neurologist said. They will go away. Day 7 I folded and took myself off of it. I absolutely could not function on this medication. I decided to give up and go back to popping excedrin  migraine again. I also ordered a book called "Heal Your Headache." I posted a picture of it on the right side of this blog and if you click it, it will bring you to it. I jumped right to the triggers part of the book and then tossed it aside because there was no way I was giving up my favorite foods (I told you I am stubborn). For the next 7 months I suffered the same fate of sinus infections/migraines (still holding onto the sinus infections at this point). I end up taking round after round of antibiotics and prednisone again. Then December rolled around and the nightmare really began! Next up: My trips to the emergency room.

Imipramine/Tofranil

My journey begins with the preventative medications. Up first is Imipramine (generic version of Tofranil). It is used to treat depression but also for migraine prevention. My Neurologist has stated that her Husband has had great success with it for his migraines so I am confident it will work for me. I pick up my prescription and start right away. The first night I am up throughout the night sweating profusely and making frequent trips to the bathroom although I do not recall drinking a lot of water. When I finally do fall asleep I have the worse nightmares I have ever had. My mouth feels like I have been sucking on cotton balls. The next day I am tired and can barely function at work. By day 3 I am feeling dazed and confused. I message my Doctor and she reassures me that they will subside. I continue with all the symptoms for a few weeks until I finally had enough. I message my Doctor and she switches me to Topiramate/Topamax. Perks of this one? Weight loss!

The Neurologist Appointment

Finally the day arrived for my cure to all these umm sinus infections? Migraines? I still had not convinced myself that it was a migraine and how on earth sinus issues could be connected. I was stubborn and refused to believe it was a migraine. Made no sense at the time. Although now when I think about it I was popping over the counter pain killers like they were candy. The day of my appointment I felt horrible. My sinuses were inflamed and I felt "disconnected." My head was throbbing and the light was hurting my eyes. Classic signs of migraine right? Nah couldn't be. She examined me and I explained my symptoms. The verdict? Migraine. I asked her how a migraine gave symptoms of a sinus infection and she simply said that it is all connected. Not that I was really listening at this point anyways as I was in complete denial. She gave me a list of what she called migraine triggers and gave me a prescription for Imipramine (generic for Tofranil) which is technically an antidepressant but for some reason works for preventing migraines as well. I left feeling a sense of contentment knowing that I had an answer after all these years and finally I will be cured. She also gave me a prescription for a muscle relaxer called Baclofen since many migraines are caused by tense muscles. She did mention something about a "rebound headache" from taking so many exedrin migraine and other over the counter pain relievers but like I said before at that point I was not listening. I just wanted something to take away all this mess! In hindsight a year later I should have paid attention to what she said because this journey was about to get real rocky!

Steroid Sinus Rinse

The steroid sinus rinse had to be specially compounded in a pharmacy 4 hours away. My insurance company only uses this pharmacy for compounded prescriptions so I had to wait to have it delivered in the mail. I already had been doing sinus rinses so it was not at all a difficult thing to do. Although it came with a bottle I preferred my Netti Pot. I also had to buy the saline packets to combine with the steroid. I used the rinses for the 8 weeks leading up to my Neurologist appointment to no avail. There were no changes in my inflammation at all. I should also note that I was also using Astelin and Nasonex nasal sprays for years which made no difference in my sinus issues along with Allegra. Finally the day arrived for my Neurologist appointment. I was about to be cured! Well at least I thought I was.

The ENT Visit

The day finally arrived to see the ENT (ear, nose & throat) Dr. I have to admit I was irritated having to take time off of work for this appointment but also knew I had to get to the bottom of this chronic sinus infection. So many thoughts were running through my head. What if I need sinus surgery and how on earth would I pay for it? I had health insurance but with the deductible I was looking at thousands out of pocket and quite frankly this was not an option. I explained all my symptoms and he did a nasal endoscopy which entails a tube with a camera at the end that is inserted up each nostril so he could see the anatomy of my sinus cavities. It was not painful just a little uncomfortable. After the procedure he explained that I had no polyps but I did have a slightly deviated septum on my left side. He stated that he could do surgery to correct it but he would be just taking my money because the real cause he believed was migraines! Migraines? What on earth was this man talking about? He must be crazy! My sinuses were always inflamed and I always had drainage! How is this a migraine? At this point I wanted to scream. Still no solution. He referred me to a neurologist and appeased me by giving me a prescription for a steroid nasal rinse to see if that would help with the inflammation. It had to be compounded at a specialty pharmacy and was a whooping $50.00! Once again I felt defeated. This made no sense in my head. How can a migraine be related to all of the sinus issues I have been having? I received the call for my Neurologist appointment the same day however it was not for another 8 weeks! I started the nasal rinses three days later.

The Sinus Infection/The beginning

My Journey with migraines began years ago although I did not know it at the time as they were given the name "Sinus Infections." Since college I had been suffering from these sinus infections around 6-8 times a year. The usual prescriptions were given, antibiotics and prednisone. After a full course I would feel better and then at times I would need several different antibiotics back to back and a few times I had been on them for 6 weeks at a time. I worked with small children so naturally I assumed that being around so many illnesses during the year I would be sick. In addition to these episodes I also have allergies to the common allergens, pollen, dust, ragweed etc. I assumed they had contributed to the inflammation of the sinus cavities. I began allergy shots shortly after I was married in 2001 yet I still suffered from these recurrent "sinus infections" year after year. One day while at the allergist for a normal routine check up I was feeling horrid. She looked at me and once again prescribed antibiotics and steroids. After about a week I still felt terrible and she told me to come in. As I sat there in frustration with this pain in my sinuses she asked me how many times a year I have been suffering with these infections. I was so embarrassed to admit it was 6 to now 10 times a year. I sometimes would go to Urgent Care and other times my PCP. It depended on the immediate need. She asked me if I took over the counter pain killers and of course I did! I was taking Tylenol up to 4 times a day. She examined me again and told me that she will not be prescribing anymore antibiotics that I needed to see an ENT (ear, nose & throat Doctor). She referred me to one in the area. I left defeated and made my way to Urgent Care for my usual "bandaid" to get me through work the next few weeks. It seemed to be a hassle to have to go see another Doctor for the same thing. I honestly felt like the allergist should have been able to "cure" me. Not the case unfortunately as something much more sinister was going on. I proceeded to Urgent Care and wouldn't you know the Doctor there flipped through my chart and suggested the same as the Allergist? The nerve!! He did appease me and give me a stronger antibiotic so I felt somewhat triumph that day.