Managing

So far this week, my head has been manageable.
On Monday I had some pain and took some sinus stuff.
After work, I was sitting on the couch reading and my head was hurting and I felt a little nauseated. I was thinking exercising would probably help, but it was too dark to walk or bike and I don't have a gym membership.
I keep thinking I should get one, but I already feel swamped with bills. It's hard to add another one. And in a couple months it will be light after work so I'll be able to get the kind of exercise I like best anyway -- outdoor.
Anyway, my instinct to go outside appeared to have been spot on. Before I went to bed that night, I stepped outside to take out the trash and the cold night air cleared my head instantly.
It's always so mysterious to me how sometimes the simplest little thing can cure a headache -- other times, it doesn't seem to matter what I do.
Yesterday I had a slight pain in my head that didn't get worse but didn't go away either.
I had a social obligation last night that I went to and was able to fulfill my responsibilities cheerfully. That helps.
This morning I got up and was still feeling some pain. I took sinus meds and that appears to have helped.
I really try to keep the medication at a minimum. For one thing, I worry about rebound headaches -- for another, my experience has been that medications seem to lose their effectiveness over time, so I try to use them sparingly.
One thing that really bothers me is that I've gotten to the point where I'm pretty happy if the pain is mild enough to work or do household chores or socialize -- even if I don't enjoy those things much because of the pain.
Another thing I don't like is that it's always there in the back of my mind -- the worry that I'll have a bad headache on a day I have something special planned or an important assignment at work. I've had weekends that I've spent languishing around the house, not because of a severe headache or migraine, but because of mild pain and malaise that I feared would flare up into something worse if I try to do anything.
Maybe that's the wrong response. Maybe I should make more of an effort to get out when I'm feeling poopy.