It's Been a Year

It has been a year since I have had any caffeine. It has been a year of fewer headaches, less drugs, and more sleep. Instead of drinking a Coke, I have taken a nap, or just went to bed. An ice cold Coke is yummy, but nothing beats a nap!

Somewhere around the age of 12 I stared getting wicked headaches. Some doctors have called them migraines. Whatever they are, they are horrid. The pressure in my head makes me think crazy thoughts, like if I were to shove a red hot poker in my temple it would feel better. The first time I had one of these mind crushers I thought I had been poisoned, and was surely about to die. I was 12, and probably read too many novels. My doctor gave me some pain pills and when I awoke 2 days later on my Grandmother's couch, she assured me that I was not the victim of some assassin, just a migraine and a crazy imagination.

Since then I have had them off and on, to greater and lesser intensities. There doesn't seem to be any clear, direct triggers, although, stress is always an element. For some reason, I have never had one while pregnant, so I think hormones must play some role. The pain killers that work best for me have a heavy dose of caffeine in them. I started to see that I was getting rebound headaches after taking them, and I suspected the caffeine. The only think worse than a migraine on Sunday, is a rebound headache for the rest of the week. I had to stop the cycle.

I asked my doctor for a prescription without caffeine, and he wanted to put me on something that I had to take every day. Sorry, unless my life depends on it, I am not taking a pill every day. Who knows what the happy fun ball side effect would be from that. Not interested.

So, a year ago this week, I decided to cut out all caffeine in an attempt to prevent my head from hurting so often. I didn't make any grand announcements, just decided to stop. My headaches are not cured, but they are much less frequent. I still get them every couple of months, but if I just suffer through, and don't take my prescription, I avoid the rebound headaches. So, one day of pain, rather than a week of it. I would call that a success.

I have heard that it takes 21 days to break, or create a new habit. I was hoping that after 21 days I would not want it anymore. That isn't the case with me. Every time my head hurts I know that if I just drank a Coke it would feel better. I still want one when I eat Mexican food. I still want one with my popcorn at the movies. I guess I might always.