Hello and welcome, happy to see you have come to be with us, it a great place to be. As you can see we have a great number and caring fellow members here, where you have find a supportive and relaxing place. Have fun looking into the different forums. Our shoulders are here for support in many ways.

Please keep us up to date on your condition. Again welcome, looking forward to seeing you around. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Darlene

Hi Fox & Welcome to the Forum,

I am sorry about your health problems. I am so very happy and proud of you for your decision and recent success to quit smoking. Keep it up! You can do it! Cheers! I am very fortunate that I have never been addicted to anything. Especially since due to my migraines and neck problems I have been on lots of miscellaneous medications throughout my lifetime.

I am also new here. I have had major migraines and neck pain since I was 10 years old. I am now 53 so for 43 years... can't believe I have dealt with the intnese pain, nausea, loss of family and work time, etc, for pretty much a lifetime. After MANY Doctors and specialists they all came to the same conclusion, it's genetic. The aura that I experience, I can only explain as horizontal blinds flickering in the sunlight and a breeze. When my migraines are bad enough I suffer major memory loss. I also experience numbness on the left side of my face and jawline.

I hope to at least be able to share our experiences and be a good listener. Comparing notes of migraine symptoms is very interesting to me.

I came to this site due to another issue that is new my c4 c5 c6 fusion on June 2, 2015 left me with c5 palsy. I cannot use my left arm, but can use my left hand. My right arm and hand have some dexterity and coordination issues. Major nerve pain in my neck, shoulders and upper arms. I am currently in physical and occupational therapy.

There are many intelligent, helpful and caring folks on this site. Everyone is genuine, that is so refreshing these days I am thankful to my Neurosurgeon for referring me here.

Keep up the good fight!

Hello Outlaw! Welcome to the forum yourself.

Thank You for the encouragement for me overcoming my addiction(s). The smoking thing is actually getting easier all the time. It is kind of you to be sorry about my health but as far as I can tell I can't complain compared to you. They did an MRI of my neck when they did my head and said they found something around c4 or c5, a bulge maybe, but they didn't make a big deal of it. It does sound like someone is crinkling a bag of chips between my ears when I turn my head slowly in the quiet. I don't share your pain though. I am also very sorry to hear about the new post op palsy. It must be hell.

I can't relate to all the physical pain you have gone through. What I deal with is mostly fear and anxiety brought on by something in my brain that no one seems to understand. Only about 6% of men suffer from migraines and only about 1/5 of those experience auras. How few is the number of those that don't experience the headache, what I am now finding out is more commonly called 'silent migraine'? I bet it is even more rare in men. I still get irritability and confusion, problems communicating, nausea, increased urination, thirst, chills, and diarrhea. Then comes the weird visual stuff jagged, colorful, wavy lights and flashes and sometimes double vision, chemical smells and numbness or pins and needles on one side of my face or arm. How could it be exactly the same thing if I don't get the terrible headache? I mean, I'm glad I don't, but it's very disconcerting being an medical anomaly. You know it's like you live next to the train tracks and when there's a heavy thunderstorm and a train goes by, how do you know it's not a tornado? The tornado in this analogy would be a stroke. My doctor says the auras are a risk factor so when it happens it scares the hell out of me. I have to take ativan to calm me on top of the depakote (an anti-seizure / anti bipolar) drug they're giving me because they don't know what else to do, and a statin to control my cholesterol.

I Would be interested in talking to others who have so called silent migraines if you come across them in your travels here. I am also grateful that you have reached out to me and took the time to read part of my story. I hope we can continue the conversation and I hope you can find some relief from your pain,

Well the sun is coming up now. Time for this vampire to crawl in his hole.

Fox

I hope pam836 sees your Love Bears, Darlene!

Hi Pam! Im sorry your question got lost in the comments on my introduction post. I think someone may have suggested that my new double vision problem might be a result of the onset of Ocular MG, but I don't believe that to be the case. The search engine probably directed you here because of a reply. I hope you found someone with some experience. I am still trying to figure out how to navigate the whole Post/Reply/Quick Reply/Thanks/Thread thing.
Good Health to you
Fox

Hi Fox.

Not sure if you've seen it yet or not but there is a FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
that may be of help to you navigating the site and posting etc..

It contains sections for -

• General Forum Usage
• User Profile Features
• Reading and Posting Messages

Hope that helps.

Yes Lara Thanks for this!
The number one recommendation I would make for the OCD minded like myself Is that they switch the display mode from linear to thread (or hybrid) mode. Once I saw the "tree" it all made sense. I also see that there are others that aren't sure where to post their comments or replies on just this one post, so I can imagine the chaos my poor mind will endure as I explore the forums. Just kidding. I almost missed OutlawzLikeUs' warm welcome to me because it was attached to Darlene's joining you in welcoming Pam Who had started a whole new branch. It all gets very messy but I'm sure I'll get used to it. It's the Kindness, thoughts, sharing, info, helping and respect that it's all about. I just don't want to miss any of it.