Snippets and Stories: Claire's advice for her crying Mom

One of the harder aspects of this pregnancy has been an unbelievable number of migraines and headaches. I get both on a semi-regular basis when I'm not pregnant ("real life," as I often refer to it), so I'm well-versed in the treatment and maintenance that my body responds to. This pregnancy, however, has given me a run for my money. I remember a couple of really bad migraines when I was pregnant with Claire, and near the end- when I developed preeclampsia- I had some pretty constant headaches (and no, I don't conflate those two different kinds of cranial assaults. They are very different beasts, headaches and migraines.), but this time around has been much worse, neurologically-speaking. I've had migraines that have lasted for days and kept me in bed, dreading having to sit up to take my medicine or worse- drag myself to the bathroom (as one does ALL THE TIME when pregnant). I've had sinus-y headaches that will not be tamed by Tylenol and make me extremely cranky. For the past few weeks, I've had a headache across the front of my head that will. not. budge. Sometimes, it's just an annoyance, but often it is a throbbing, aching, nausea-inducing menace that keeps me from doing anything productive. (not to be dramatic but this is real life)

Two Saturdays ago was one such day. I had been treating it with my pregnancy-friendly prescription medication and had seen zero improvement. I'd spent time lying down with my cherry pit bag, I'd eaten protein, I'd had caffeine, I was guzzling water, and I was getting no where. We had plans to visit with some new friends Saturday night, and I was bound and determined to make that happen. We're finally getting some traction with a social circle in Durham, and I was not going to let an opportunity (a child-friendly one, no less) pass us by. So, I took my meds, we drove through McDonald's for a monster-sized Coke, and off we went.

We had a really good time! The food was yummy, the conversation was fun, Claire was extremely well-behaved, and it was a great visit. I ignored my head as well as I could (it's a little easier for me when I'm having to focus on conversations), but it never abated and started gaining momentum with gusto. After about an hour and a half, I realized I needed to let Brad know that we needed to wrap things up ASAP; it was only getting worse, and I definitely didn't want to end up sick at a party. It was a bad sign when I took Claire to the potty and found myself dry heaving while we were in there. 

Being the awesome parents that we are, we claimed Claire's bedtime as an excuse (which wasn't actually a lie- it was bedtime) and headed out. Once we got in the car, I realized just how bad it had gotten. It hurt so bad I needed to cry, but crying only makes it worse, so I tried to hold the tears in. Holding in the tension of needing to cry also makes it worse, so really, I was just up a creek. 

Claire is very sensitive to the needs and hurts of others, so she was aware that something was amiss. She asked a few questions to figure out what was going on and what was wrong with Mommy. Her advice?

"Be calm, Mommy. You can go upstairs and rest in your bed and you will feel better."

Can't argue with that. Solid words to live by. That's exactly what I did, too (leaving Brad to take care of bedtime routine and clean-up...sorry about that.). I wasn't calm immediately, didn't rest immediately, and didn't feel better immediately, but all of those things eventually happened. It was a headache for the books, y'all, but at least I know that my daughter has a good head on her shoulders (and hopefully hers will stay mostly pain-free). :)

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A week after this conversation, I STILL had the headache. It was awful, and I found myself in almost the same situation of needing to drop everything and go to bed. I was sitting on the couch, trying to finish up something with Claire before heading upstairs. Claire asked what was wrong, and when I told her that I wasn't feeling well, she answered with, "Jesus will love your heart, and Claire and Daddy will take care of you. Don't worry." More solid words. Bless her. She's a good girl.