Worth Every Shot

The day is finally here—Botox day. Every twelve weeks I go in for my migraine shots, and as I’ve mentioned before, the relief usually wears off around week ten. These last two weeks have been especially rough. Because my boss has been difficult about my back issues (though she’s been a bit more sympathetic the last few days—sort of), I haven’t wanted to ask to leave early for a migraine. I know I shouldn’t worry about that, but I also don’t want to cause further tension. So, I’ve mostly just suffered in silence.

Most people wouldn’t exactly look forward to 31–37 injections in one sitting—especially when they’re all over your head, neck, and shoulders. Honestly, though, it’s not that bad if the provider knows what they’re doing and keeps it quick and accurate. The only ones I truly dread are the shots in the back of my head; I’m told that’s because of the occipital nerve. It usually takes a couple of days before the relief sets in, but it’s worth every single poke.

If nothing else, it’s made me pretty fearless about other shots. When I got my monkeypox vaccine, the nurse warned me, “Everyone says this one really stings, so just bear with me.” After it was done, she looked surprised and said, “You didn’t even flinch.” I just smiled and told her, “Honey, when you endure 37 Botox shots to the head every three months, this is a piece of cake.”

I hope your week’s treating you kindly so far—hang in there, we’ll get through it together.