A Cold Front Moves In…and Moves Me

There is nothing like a good ol’ fashioned sinus headache. The kind that, at best, steals hours away from your life. For much of my life, a sinus headache meant taking Sudafed® and ibuprofen and retreating to a quiet, dark room; waiting out the storm in hopes to see the sun again. They would usually present themselves with weather changes, and along with a pot of coffee and OTC drugs, fall silent after mere hours.

Since making many lifestyle changes, the frequency of sinus headaches has decreased, but today’s sinus headaches are a different breed. They still bring on the same symptoms as they always have, but they add something new to the mix: increased balance and vestibular issues. In addition to the physical pain, I now also need to be extra careful not to head into an unexpected tailspin and possibly hurt myself.

But these symptoms are not limited to just sinus headaches; I suffer daily from balance and vestibular issues. The issue is how they become much more pronounced with any sinus-related condition, like the common cold.

Yesterday, I suffered a rather rare sinus headache that forced me to miss life. I only took one ibuprofen to help lesson the suffering as I made my way to the bedroom to wait for it to be over. After many hours I started to see the clouds part and made my way out to the kitchen to get something in my stomach.

Bam! A short bout of vertigo overcame me. I quickly reached out to grab on to something, anything, to help brace for the fall. As luck would have it, I grabbed on to the kitchen counter and immediately began to look for a detailed item to focus my eyes on. As I have done in the past, it helps to focus on an object of detail with both eyes, staying still while your brain attempts to recalibrate your eyes. After a couple minutes I could see that my eyes were no longer on their own courses, but rather attempting to convene on the same trajectory. Success, I could stand again without physical support.

This exercise has reminded me that even the common cold can make my symptoms dramatically worse. It has also reminded me what I used to feel like just a few months ago. Since I started the Cutler protocol I have noticed subtle improvements with my vestibular and ocular faculties. While still suffering from the same symptoms, some are less pronounced, while others take longer to fully inflame.

This journey hasn’t been easy, but I am starting to see the benefits of my hard work. I know I have a long time left on this protocol, but I am in a better state of mind, which allows me to realize that it is working. I just need to stay the course. As Dr. Amy Yasko says “It is a marathon, it is not a sprint.”