I have been lax about sharing my experiences lately. Holiday buziness took over, I guess. I've been reading all my emails and posts with interest, though. I've learned so much through this site, to the point that I can answer my doctor's questions. He's a good guy and wants to learn more. He only has two other patients with migraine, but I will keep him. He listens and believes what I tell him.

I'm happy to say I have suffered only three migraines during the entire holiday season. Two came at the end of my period, which also coincided with the passage of a strong cold front and major change in the weather. The other came after a night of too much food, spirits, and good times at a local yacht club. The big test came on New Year's Eve. My husband and I sailed down to our yacht club 20 miles south, stayed up until 1 AM, slept on the boat, got up at 8 AM for breakfast, and then sailed back home against a strong north wind associated with a strong cold frontal passage. No migraine. I purposely had only two drinks the entire night including the obligatory champagne at midnight, and stopped eating when I was no longer hungry.

I credit my good fortune to several things. I think the combination of acupuncture, Bikram's yoga, and massage therapy was a major factor. I no longer get acupuncture treatments, but continue with the yoga two days a week and massage therapy one day a week. I also think that giving up sailboat racing and taking up sailboat cruising factored in. I've settled into a quiet life with my husband - a life that works for a 'clear introvert' and her introvert husband.

I would like to talk abit about being an introvert. About three years ago, our division had a retreat. We took many personality tests prior to the event so we could learn about ourselves and appreciate the differences in each other. I believe it was the Myers-Briggs test that revealed to me my 'Clear Introvert' status. I was horrified at first. The moniker 'Introvert' has a negative connotation in our society. Then I learned about the difference between introverts and extroverts. Extroverts collect their energy by being around people, making small talk in large groups, having parties, etc. The extreme extroverts need to be around people all the time and are always talking - mostly about themselves. Introverts, on the other hand gather their energy by being alone. We like to sit quietly by ourselves and read or watch TV to recharge our batteries. We can hold deep, meaninful one-on-one conversations for a long time, but can tolerate many people at once only a short time.

The extroverts in our society, and even the world, get all the glory. They are the politicians, the fund-raisers, the people who are out in the public eye all the time. They do this in order to gain energy. Obviously, we need extroverts to do these things. The introverts tend to be the thinkers, the university professors, scientists who contemplate their results. Obviously, we also need introverts.