- i haven't been feeling well lately which should not come as a shock if we're well acquainted or you may have oicked up on some things if you're fairly astute...now it's time for a story. on February 8th 2009 i woke up with a migraine level headache that never went away (the intensity does vary from day to day), random body pains, random ringing in my ears, vertigo, needles & pins nerve pain, etc... that was FOURTEEN years ago. i had been seeing doctors who told me i was very healthy & could not explain my pain (and accused me of drug seeking)... i had been on all kinds of drugs with off label uses to treat headaches (many with unacceptable side effects, none of which were effective)... i had seen chiropractors and massage therapists (weekly for many years) just to be able to function with LESS pain. the only times in 14 years that i have not been in some kind of pain was when i was so drugged up i was useless and mostly, in that uselessness i just didn't care that i was in pain but it was still there. just before the pandemic started, the working theory of what was causing my pain was changing. they started to say that they thought it was all post-viral symptoms from when i had viral meningitis about 15 years ago. i constantly lament the life i had and the life i could have had if i wasn't constantly battling to simply function. so if i seem more cautious with my health risks this is why. i have lived this for well over a decade. i HAVE TO do everything i can to not get sicker than i am... cause i don't know that i can handle that... cause i feel like i'm already behind the 8 ball. #sometimesithinktoomuch #disability #fourteenyears #FortyTwos #imnotokaybutitsokay (at Chicago, Illinois) https://www.instagram.com/p/Coc8oYHPwv_/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=