Honorable Mention:
    

Rx: Honey
by Sheila Carey


My little girl,
She speaks to me
Her voice as sweet as honey.

But not today.
Her words are jagged shards of glass
My ears reject them,
My brow furrows.
Turn down the volume, Please!

But it is my delusion.

My temper is short
How unfair for her
She looks to me for guidance.

Be strong, I think
Set a good example!
Yet, I lay on the floor next to her,
And the T.V. becomes her nanny.

Her most basic needs are met,
But the guilt, it overwhelms me.
Why can't I be like everyone else,
All those without this crippling pain?

And when it seems too much to bear,
A fatal end seeps in my diseased brain.

But in the fog, I hear her voice...
Like magic, the glass melts into honey,
And her voice-
It is my painkiller.

© 2001

Ice pick stabbing at my eye
by Lisa Allen

Ice pick stabbing at my eye,
Why’d you have to pick today?
I have a million things to do.
Class to teach, bills to pay,
Groceries to buy.

Can’t see.
Aura of floaters and stripes
Dancing in the periphery
of my vision
Colors too, all the rainbow,
My own private show.

Ice pick stabbing at my eye,
Why’d you have to pick today?
I’m griping at everyone.
Kids are trying to be quiet,
But it’s hard
when you’re an 8th grader.

Can’t see.
Want to go home and lie down,
But I can’t get the key
in the ignition.
Spots are bigger,
And the stripes are multicolored.

Ice pick stabbing at my eye,
Why’d you have to pick today?
I have a million things to do.

© 2001

Trust
by Sherrie Pryor

I remember the day that they first hit,
I was playing with friends, and just had to sit.

I remember the moment, and how the next one starts, and how my only
relief is found in the dark-

I end up crying and wrenching with pain..
Always left wondering if I'll ever be the same.

The pain that made me unable to play,
has consumed my life to this very day.

I suffer from this unbearable trend,
of waiting and wondering when will this end?

I take the advise of family and friends, going to specialists that I
know all intend...
To make me feel better and find some relief,
from this unwanted culprit, this unwanted thief.

So until the day they find that magic cure,
I will continue to pray and to make sure..
that the life that I lead is not because of them, it is because I have
faith in God and trust in Him.

© 2001

Weekend
by Rosemary Clark

6:30 am Saturday morning
standing in the bathroom
my sweet kitty weaving through my legs
as I throw up water into the toilet
and I avoid looking at the sunshine outside

good thing I didn’t try to eat breakfast

a beautiful day for drawing the shades
turning off the phone
another Imitrex injection
some narcotics for good measure
(if I can keep them down)

my best friend, boyfriend, family
all of you
nothing but obligations today
please speak well of me to each other
but leave me the hell alone
I want nothing to do with you today

how many weekends of my life have I spent this way

© 2001

A child's life with  migraines...
by Kristee

When I look into their faces..
Their first question to me "Why?"

If your head hurts this bad..
"Mommy will you die?"

Can we play a game..
Or "please read me a book."

And then their smiles fade...
When I give them That Look...

Yes, I have another migraine...
And I feel their excitement drain...

Will our happy little family...
Ever be the same?

© 2001

Symphony of Pain
by Marie McCann

Orchestrated agony
performs inside my head
peaks of screaming terror
lows of crying dread.

Strumming through it's
symphony,
plucking out it's pain
distorting fugues of agony
that climbs and dives...
and then...
fades into a softness
of suicidal whispers.

© 2001

Out Of The Blue
by Oklahoma Rose

Driving along
On a beautiful day
Errands to run
Things to say
Out of the blue
Demons take flight
Crushing my head
With all their might
Pressure builds in my skull
Life becomes dull
Wanting to cry
Knowing the price is too high
Rushing home to bed
Putting ice on my head
Begging sleep to come
So the pain will numb
Life will have to wait
Until the demons abate

© 2001

Life as a Migraineur for 20 years
by Lesley

The sun once my warm bright friend
Now is viewed only from behind dark glasses,
My eyes are but slits, trying to deal with the ever present glare of ever present  bouncing light,
Everyday noise is now a booming thunderstorm in my head,
Why is everyone talking and moving about so fast,
The yawning has begun, the light show follows as I fight accepting what is to come- it can't be, not again, but it is a definite migraine about to disable me and disrupt my life!
Quickly I panic as I try to reach a safe place for I will be useless in no time. My thinking is now clouded, my mind races-did I do something to trigger this one, how bad is it going to be, how many things will I have to cancel now , will I ever have a normal life again? Resigned to do battle I take my medication and hide from the world til this migraine subsides.

© 2001

You can't come in.
by Ellen Costa

You can't come in. 
        I can't get out,
              and there's no changing that. 
                     I feel as if my head is the hippest club in town,
too selective for just anyone to get in or
understand. 
There's only me,
I'm all alone. 
I'm all alone in my own world.
There is no helping me,
there is only the pain,
 and that never ends.
The pain lasts forever. 
Sharp needles in the back of my neck,
in the back of my head,
in my hands,
in my arms,
and in my eyes,
never stopping,
always hurting.
A circle of pain surrounds me,
and draws me in. 
Then a flash of light
 A cold sensation hits the back of my neck,
I struggle to sleep. 
My throat closes,
I can't breath. 
I can't sleep if I can't breath. 
Spinning in circles,
spinning,
spinning,
falling,
and falling.
A nauseous feeling grabs my stomach,
and never lets go. 
Every muscle hurts.
Every sound,
Every vision,
and every light hurts. 
Lying in a dark room
with nowhere to go. 
I feel so helpless,
so powerless,
as if nothing is under my control.
There is no control,
they hit,
and I hurt,
there's no stopping that.
My muscles tighten
I scream. 
My shoes are taken
cold hands and unfamiliar faces
holding down my arms and legs.
Suddenly a prick... and prick in my arm. 
All I feel is that coldness,
that uncomfortableness.
The room begins to spin
the medication sets in,
spinning
and spinning,
    falling
and falling. 
Then darkness...

by Emma
© 2001

t Stays
by Ashli

It taps me on the shoulder
I ask it to go away
It ignores me and lingers anyway
The days pass and it continues to eat
You would think it is full by now
Piece by piece it craves more

On my knees begging it to leave and once again it stays.

© 2001

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