On Tuesday, my first delivery of Aimovig arrived. The box was packed to the brim with ice packs and I stashed the meds in the fridge for later. M wanted me to wait until he got home just in case of an allergic reaction.

While cooking dinner, I removed the meds from the fridge to let them cool for about a half hour. I kept glancing at them nervously. The two injection pens just sitting on my counter might completely change my life.

I’ve lived a long time with migraines. Years. Migraines sent me home from school vomitting my guts out. I once had to get off a bus to throw up before even arriving home. My now-MIL once drove me home because I had a migraine and I vomitted in a plastic bag right as we entered the driveway. I’ve grown to associate sunshine with pain and discomfort. On bad days, life seems hopeless and I go into a deep depression. I’ve often felt like a burden.

Regardless, I’ve found ways to cope and I’ve managed. I’m a freelance writer, so I can work around my migraines. I still manage to find the will to train. I just have to be careful. Loud venues are a trigger. Weather fluctuations are a trigger. Heat is a trigger. Too much sleep is a trigger. Too little sleep is a trigger. Running and migraines have taught me to listen to my body, and I’m damn good at it. I know when a migraine is coming. I take abortive triptans, but even those meds don’t guarantee that a headache will dissipate. The side effects leave me slow, sleepy, and achy. The day after an attack, I experiencce what’s known as a migraine hangover.

Even when I’m not having a series of migraine days, I feel off. Some part of my face or head hurts. I imagine it’s similar to what someone living with bi-polar disorder feels. Bad days are deeply unsettling, sad, and depressing. Good days feel exquisite. Because of the contrast, I often feel hyperactive on a good day. If I’m working, I become ultra-productive. If it’s a day off and I’m relaxing, I feel restless and bored (and I’m rarely bored).

It’s how I’ve been feeling since Tuesday’s first two unpleasant injections. It’s a wonder in all the training materials that there’s not one single mention that it’s going to hurt like a bitch to stab yourself in the thigh. Whatever. It’s better than a migraine!

Right after the injections, I felt fine. No reaction. I felt hopeful, but I’ve gotten so used to trying different meds with serious side effects that because there was no immediate bodily reaction I sort of forgot about the injection pretty quickly and expected to wake up the next day with the start of a migraine. The weather has been acting crazy lately and with precipitation on the way I was bound to wake up with the familiar stabbing pain in my left nostril.

On Wednesday I woke up feeling…oddly refreshed. When you wake up almost daily with a migraine, even a good night’s rest doesn’t really leave you feeling bright eyed and bushy tailed. January and the start of February had been bad months for me migraine-wise. I was definitely surprised to wake up feeling good, almost energetic. I rarely feel energetic. Migraines sap the life force from you. It’s as if your entire body is channeling its will to combat the pain and when it’s done, you’re left crumpled and broken.

It’s Friday now, and still no migraine. I wholly expected it when a snowstorm came along. Day 3 and it’s early to say whether this is a placebo effect or just a random coincidence, but I truly haven’t felt this good in a long time. It feels as if a fog has been lifted.

I’m left in awe thinking, ‘Is this how normal people feel on a daily basis?’. This energy and vitality feels new and I truly hope it’s not just a fluke. I already feel excited about everything and about nothing in particular.

After a more than a decade of feeling eternally exhausted, I’m ready to be awake.