Yesterday morning I started getting the feeling that something wasn't right. Given that I have a history of migraine denial (which basically consists of me saying to myself, "I'm not the kind of person who gets migraines, this must be something else." I also do this with food allergies, which means I get hives more often than I should.) it took waking up this morning with my head still throbbing and my digestion still wonky and my stomach still nauseous and my eyes still sensitive to light for me to get the picture.

Yesterday's yoga felt like a triumphant return to the mat. I pushed myself a little harder than usual in the active poses - sank deeper into virabhadrasana (warrior) I and II, and felt my thighs quiver before pulling back up. I really focused on contracting my triceps as I lowered myself down from bhujangasana (cobra), which gave me a wonderful feeling in my arms - a combination of intense burn and growing strength. All of this just came from trying to be really mentally present as I did each pose.

As the day wore on, I noticed that my symptoms got worse and worse. By the time I went to bed, my head was throbbing, my nausea was pretty bad, and a big dose of Advil did very little. I climbed into bed and closed my eyes, hoping the worst would be over soon.

I dreamed of yoga. Specifically, of how yoga was strengthening my body. In my dream, I flexed my arm, and muscles started to bulge beneath the skin. When I looked again, the place was covered in huge, wart-like hives, almost like a poison oak infection.

The first part of this - the strength part - was the yoga talking. The second part - the hives - was the migraine.

Now I'm hydrated, caffeinated, fed myself some complex carbohydrates and protein. I'm feeling a little better, but still feeling a bit fragile. Some research on good yoga poses for the way my body is feeling today is in order. And hopes for a good weekend. I want to get up early and go to the morning yoga class tomorrow - we'll see whether my body cooperates.