Not feeling quite myself.

So, I reluctantly write this entry but I figure it is worth remembering since I hope it never happens again. I had a little trip to the emergency room last Wednesday that caused a bit of a commotion in our home. It started with the realization that I wasn't thinking clearing, specifically I found myself looking at my golden retriever and thinking, "what is her name?" I knew that was weird but after a few minutes of concentrating on that question I decided that something was very wrong and called a friend. Even weirder was that when she told me the dog's name, it didn't even sound familiar! Jessie? Really, huh.
I shrugged it off and decided I just needed a nap so I took a nap with my two year old. While laying down my hands started to feel numb and I thought that was odd too but again, not being much of an alarmist I figured it would go away. When I awoke I felt a small headache and my hands were mostly feeling all sensation again so I thought it would continue to improve. I drove to pick up carpool and once I got to the school I knew I was feeling a bit sick to my stomach. I figured as soon as I got home I'd lay down. I asked the kids to not be too noisy because I wasn't feeling well but with four kids in the car, what can you expect. I couldn't see clearly out of my left eye and generally wasn't feeling all there.
I felt a whispering feeling that I should stop the car and call for help so that is what I did. I just knew that I didn't want to take my chances with four children in the car. I felt a bit stupid calling for help but I did it anyway. I realized that my brain was having trouble when I couldn't remember the name of the mom I carpool with. I could remember her son's name either. I did know that I had her number programmed into my cell phone so I pulled the car tag down from my rearview mirror since I knew it had the kids' names on it. I typed it into my phone but even when it appeared it didn't seem familiar. Jessica later said I didn't sound like myself at all.
Once I knew she was on her way I called my mom to see if she could come help get the kids and get me to the doctor. I could hardly put a sentence together to explain where I was and what was wrong. She was very panicked by my inability to speak coherently. I was looking directly at a Fantastic Sam's sign, but couldn't read it aloud. I had to ask my son what it said because my brain could process the phonics to put the words together. She freaked and called for paramedics. The paramedics were actually right across the street so they arrived quickly and started checking me out. The other mom arrived and then my mom and the paramedics convinced me, reluctantly, to go with them because I was showing signs of a stroke. I was worried that it also sounded like the first symptoms my brother had had when he was diagnosed with MS so I was also freaked out wondering what was wrong with me.
After getting to the hospital all my symptoms got worse and I proceeded to vomit multiple times and my headache went from a 4-10 over the next few hours. They gave me three shots of morphine and it still barely took the edge off. The CT scan results indicated it wasn't a stroke and the doctor said he was thinking it was an extremely severe migraine.
Now I am not prone to headaches, and I'd never had a migraine like that before. But upon further thought I wondered if what I thought chemical poisioning a few weeks prior was a migraine also. They did a MRI to rule out MS and brain tumors and so the end result is that I apparently had a severe migraine. OUCH! What an experience. I am feeling much better now but have needed a lot of extra sleep lately. I have a new appreciation for those who suffer from migraines. It ain't just a headache!