Job Fairs and Migraines

Well it's really spring, the weather in Toronto this weekend is gorgeous. Mid 20s (C) and mostly sunny. And I'm sitting indoors, cause the damn sunlight is killing me.

First off Friday.

Friday there was a job fair at a local civic centre, which is very close to my home. I planned to arrived about half an hour before opening, as I expected there to be a line up. I was right.

I arrived, actually, about 20 minutes before opening to find about 300 people already in line waiting to get in. I joined the line right away, it continued to grow and by the time the doors opened I would say the line was easily twice as long as when I arrived.

Apart from the economy being so bad and so many people being out of a job at the moment, I suspect the real draw was that the Toronto Transit Commission is hiring. This is an organization the runs the transit system across Metropolitan Toronto. As soon as the doors opened, and the speeches were finished (the job fair was sponsored by local politicians and they had to have their say - you always have to pay the piper eh?), there was a mad dash to the TTC's booth. I choose to go the other way. As a result, I was able to get in early at several booths that were under attended at the beginning. I worked my way around the to pretty much all the available booths, skipping only those that were only seeking seasonal help (Centreville on Toronto Island - a small theme/amusement park on Toronto's Island Park and The Metro zoo - Toronto's big zoo).

The longer I spent there though, the more crowded other booths became and the competition to speak to individuals at the booths was fierce. A tiny little Chinese woman, that stood all of 4'11" and must have been at least 60, nearly bowled me over to get to a booth, just to get one up on me at a booth for a local commuter airline that is hiring and I'm a pretty big solid hard to move guy.

I had a couple of on site interviews, one with a company selling investment plans for Parent to build RESP (Registered Education Savings Plans) for their children. It was all good until they told me it's all commission based on how much I sell and that I have to pay them almost several hundred dollars up front to become licensed to sell their products. Yeah I'm going to pay you to sell you shit. Don't think so.

I've got a few leads and am expecting a couple of call backs early in the week. So it may have been a good deal that I went. One of the call backs is at a company that is very close to my condo, in the summer, I could walk in 20 to 30 minutes. It would be great.

I'm glad I went but I nearly missed it. I put the date on my calendar to remind myself and using the sticky notes in the sidebar in Vista I put a note on my desktop to remind me of it. And still only remembered when I went to bed on Thursday (technically Friday morning around 2). I did get up and got there early as I planned.

Fingers crossed and thinking only positive thoughts.

However, coming home from the fair I started to get a bit headachey. Nothing big, I thought, just tired didn't get a full night sleep after all, after going to bed at 2 I was up at 7:30. That's all it is I thought. I got home and the SU had been up early and wanted us to go have a nap (a real nap - no euphemisms here) before he had to go to work. So still feeling headachey I took some Tylenol and I lay down with him and tried to sleep.

By the time we got up and he got ready to go to work, my headache a blossomed into something more. Every movement hurt. I was nauseous. I couldn't stand the volume on the TV. I laid back down as the SU busied himself with getting ready for work.

By the time he left I was in agony.

I've been getting migraines all my life, the earliest one I remember I was 7 or 8. Usually I have warning signs and I can head them off but not on this day, it came out of the blue, I had no warning signs at all.

Left alone in my pain, I pulled all the blinds closed, shut off the TV, shut off the computer, my phone, tried to lay very still on the sofa - then the screaming started.

OMG can these people not control their child????

We have a neighbour that leaves their child/ren with the grandmother during the day as both parents work. I believe the grandmother let's the child/ren run in the halls to burn off energy. Well yesterday he/she/they started wailing. WAILING!!!

Christ!!

If I opened my door, I probably would kill someone so I tried one of my old remedies, I don't know why this works for me (and it doesn't always but does sometimes), I filled a hot bath and submerged my head, leaving only my nose above water. For some reason, this seems to ease the pain for me but not yesterday.

I soaked for nearly 30 minutes in hot steamy water, keeping my head submerged most of that time. By the time I got out the migraine was not any better but the damn kid(s) had shut up. Quiet resumed.

I tried to doze on the sofa (after taking more Tylenol) but was not able to as the pain just got worse and worse. After about an hour, I decided that even though I'd had 4 Tylenol in 4 hours, that I would take Excedrin for Migraine. They don't sell this in Canada, so I have to get it in the States (or have someone get it for me), as such my supply is limited and I try to not take them unless I absolutely need to. Yesterday I absolutely needed too.

It was now approaching 6 and I'd been in pain since noon and feeling miserable. The sun outside was mocking me with it's brightness and warmth. I had planned to spend a day with my notebook at a park or the Bluffs writing and being inspired by being outside in the beautiful weather. Sadly I was in bed.

After taking the Excedrin, which almost always works for me, I curled up in bed with the room as dark as I could get it and lay very still. And mercy of mercies I slept. Sleep is the cure all for my migraines. If I can get to sleep, I will almost always wake up pain free. Almost always.

The SU came home from work around 10, he'd texted me several times but I was out. When he got home he was confused as to where I was and poked his head into the room, where he spotted me just beginning to stir.

It was good when I first woke up, I was pain free. Of course, I hadn't moved yet. I've had that happen before where I'll be still and have no pain but as soon as move - bamn! pain. Luckily yesterday was not one of those days. I was tired, drained, worn out but pain free.

I spent a couple of hours with the SU, he ate, I had no appetite but forced a few mouthfuls of Fetta (an Arabian dish of bread, rice and chicken) down but that was all could manage. I began to feel a dull ache behind my eyes again and though shit will this never end.

At 2, we both tried to go to bed, as the SU had to be up for work this AM at 9. I couldn't sleep at all and ended up getting up and staying up for most of the night.

It's now Saturday afternoon, outside the temperature is in the mid 20s C (high 70s low 80sF) and the sun is blasting down, it looks great out. I'm still headachey though, and somewhat sensitive to the light, so I'm not venturing out today which is killing me.

Pain on this scale is hard to deal with. When I was diagnosed in my late teens with Migraines, they told me that the bright side is that they would happen less often and become less intense as I grew older. While the less often part has become true, I think they're more intense, if anything. Or perhaps just as intense as they ever where but as I don't get them as frequently as I less acclimated to the level of pain.

Don't know. It's just something I'll have to cope with and not much to do about it.