In Bed

                 In Bed

Summary

   The essay, In Bed was written by an American writer Joan Didion. In this essay the writer describes her private experiences of having migraine headache while imparting some medical facts about it.

     At the initial stage of the headache, the writer used to conceal her problem thinking that it would reveal her chemical inferiority, unpleasant tempers, bad attitudes and wrong think. The writer doesn’t have any physical problems like eye strain, high blood pressure and brain tumor. However, she has had it since she was eight. Initially, she used to carry out her routine activities ignoring the pain. When it was unbearable, she would rush to her home wishing to have an operation of her brain.

    Both man as well as woman and the aged people as well as two years old child can have migraine. Anything like stress, fatigue, allergy, certain change in air pressure or any bad incident can trigger it. The writer has it not because of unpleasant temperature, bad attitude and wrong think but because her parents and grandmothers had it. The writer also imparts some medical fact about migraine. She says that some drug like Methysergide can be taken as preventive medicine but they have quite a lot of side effects. Once a person is under attack, no medicine touches it. The writer also says that it is caused due to abrupt fall in the level of serotonin in blood.

         Migraine headache brings quitter a lot of other problems like mild hallucination, temporary blindness, stomach disorder, pain in sense organs, fatigue and so on. When the writer has it, she drives through red light, loses house keys, drops whatever she is holding and looks as if she is drunk It also brings chills (cold), sweating, nausea and weakness.

         The writer considers herself fortunate in the sense that her husband also has migraine. As both of them have the same problem, they have very little room for misunderstanding each other. The patients of migraine have to suffer not only the pain of the headache but also the popular misconception of people. The non sufferers assume that it is an imaginary disease and can be cured by taking simple medicine aspirin. Correcting these popular misconception the writer says that it is neither imaginary nor can it be cured by simple medicine. According to some doctors the patients of migraine have certain personality called migraine personality. Migraine personality tends to be ambitious inward, intolerant of inner, rigidly organized and perfectionist. The writer partially agrees with the doctors and says that she is perfectionist though not rigidly organized.

     At the later stage of our life, the writer has developed an intellectual response to her pain. She has learnt how to leave with it. She doesn’t have it when she is in real problem, she can have it when she is in some minor problems of her life. She no longer denies it now she just goes to her bed and lets it happen and concentrate in her pain. It lasts for 10 to 12 hrs. After the pain is over she gets refreshed and continues her life as usual.

Questions

   1.   According to the author, how do migraines differ from ordinary headaches? What are their distinctive traits?

   Migraine headache differs from ordinary in the following ways:-

a.      Migraine headache is a distinctive type of headache which cause unbearable pain in one side of head, whereas ordinary headaches causes causes mild pain usually in the whole head.

b.     Migraine headache is a hereditary disease, whereas ordinary headache is not.

c.      Migraine headache is beyond cure, whereas ordinary headache can be cured by simple medicine like aspirin.

d.     Migraine headache brings quite a lot of other problems like mild hallucinations, temporary blindness, tiredness, fatigue, pain in sense organs, chill, sweating, nausea and so on whereas ordinary headache does not.

e.      Migraine headache lasts from 10-12 hours whereas ordinary headache lasts for shorter period.

   2.   What popular misconceptions about migraine headaches does Didion want to correct?

   Those people who are not suffering from migraine think that migraine is just an imaginary disease and it can be simply cured by Aspirin. Also the migraine patients ignore their disease and do not take precautions/medicine and invite the disease. The writer wants to correct the misconceptions and gives information that neither migraine is an imaginary disease nor t can be simply cured by Aspirin.

   3.   What once made Didion ashamed to admit that she suffered from migraines?

In the beginning stage of life writer was in confusion that whether she should reveal her problem (disease) or not. She thinks that if she reveals her problems people would think that she was having this problem due to her bad attitude, unpleasant temper and wrong think. This made Didion ashamed to admit that she suffered from migraines. If she reveals her problem people would evaluate her negatively because they would think that she was having this problem due to her bad behavior.

   4.   While imparting facts about migraine, what does Didion simultaneously reveal about her own personality?

   In the essay, writer is imparting some facts about migraine simultaneously also reveals her own personality. Doctor says that people suffering from migraine have migraine personality and that personality tends to be ambitious, inward, intolerant  of error, rather rigidly organized perfectionist. She says herself a perfectionist but not rigidly organized. She further says writing and rewriting essays helps to spend her time. She wants to achieve perfection through writing and rewriting essays but she is not rigidly organized. Even she can't manage her hair. Let alone kitchen. In this way while imparting facts about migraine Didion simultaneously reveal her own personality.

    5.      What intellectual response does she have toward her own migraines?

         In the beginning stage of her life she used to deny migraine and continue her daily activities. But at later stage of her life she has learnt how to live with her disease(migraine) same as that diabetes patients learn to live with diabetes. She has developed understanding with her disease. She describes that migraine never comes when she is in real problem like her house is burned down, her husband has left, there is gunfighting in the streets and panic in the banks. But it occurs when she is facing minor problems like during weeks of small household confusions, last laundry, unhappy help, canceled appointments, on days when the telephone rings too much,etc. So, now she no longer denies it and simply let it happen and go to bed.

   6.   Sum up in your ow words the tremendous experience that Didion describes in the final paragraph.

In last paragraph Didion describes that when headache occurs she lets it happen and go to bed. She totally focus on pain so it is like imposed yoga. During migraine headache tears flow down her eyes and pain last for 10 to 12 hours. After pain of migraine is over she opens window, feels air, get refreshed and resume her usual life.

   7.   Why does the writer consider herself fortunate that her husband has migraine? What would happen if he did not have it?

   The writer considers herself fortunate that her husband has migraine in the sense that both of them have same problems. Since they have same problem there is common understanding about each others. If her husband did not have migraine he would also become the victim of popular misconceptions about migraine like it is an imaginary disease and it can be simply cured by Aspirin. This could rise conflicts and misunderstanding between husband and wife. But both of them have same problem there is no space for misunderstanding between them. If wife has migraine husband can understand her problem and help her. F husband has migraine wife can understand his problem and help him. In this way the writer considers herself fortunate that her husband has migraine.