Headache or Labor, Which is Worse?

Today my family and I went to the Dallas Zoo, which was a blast! I got a ton of walking in and my mom packed a healthy lunch for all of us. Aidan and my nephew really enjoyed all of the different animals. Aidan and I really liked the penguins - so cute! We were all worn out by the end.

About 30 minutes before we left I started getting a headache. This was the third day in a row that I had gotten this headache, but the previous two days I was at work and was able to pop a few Advil to make it go away. However, we didn't have any Advil with us and I, being super stubborn, thought I'd just wait until we got home to get something. Boy, was that a mistake. The entire ride home my head was in my hands and I was rubbing my forehead trying to make it go away or at least dull the pain. It hurt so bad I felt sick to my stomach - I really thought I was going to have to roll down the window and vomit while going 70 MPH on the highway. That would not have been good. My eyeballs felt like they were going to explode - it hurt to even open them! It hurt to hear Aidan talk and of course Rhys decided to talk and/or cry the whole way home. I have never felt this much pain in my head!!

As soon as we got home I took 3 ibuprofen and laid down in our nice dark room. My head was throbbing and the slightest movement made it worse. I made the mistake of laying on my back to see if that would help (I usually lay on my side) and I thought I was going to pass out. The pressure around my eyes and cheek bones doubled when I did that! I think I was able to get a couple of minutes of sleep, then woke up and started balling. Brad came in and asked what was wrong and if I needed to go to the doctor. At the time I wasn't sure and was having a hard time thinking straight. He asked if I had had any caffeine today and confused I said no. He brought me a small glass of Coke, then I jumped in the shower.

I can't even tell you how much better I felt 5 minutes after drinking the Coke. I really don't think it was the shower - I think it was the caffeine! How crazy is that?! I don't chug pop daily and especially the last several days, I've been good about drinking a ton of water. I got another glass of Coke and was a completely different person. One minute, I was totally incapacitated, curled up in the fetal position, crying like a baby, thinking my head is about to explode and 30 minutes later I'm in the kitchen making cookies with Aidan.

I have NEVER gone through such extremes so quickly in my life... well, maybe going from being in labor to getting an epidural is pretty close. I honestly don't know which is worse and I'm being completely serious. The labor pain was much more intense, but it only came in 20-30 second spurts every few minutes. The headache, though, was a constant, throbbing, deep pain that would NOT go away. Actually, it was really a "face-ache" because it wasn't my head at all - it felt like my sinuses were inflamed yet I wasn't congested in the slightest. The top of my right orbital bone is bruised because I was rubbing it so much trying to make the pain go away.

Well, I'm still feeling great and am about to get some Zzzs. Welcome to my world. I hope I didn't scare you. :)