I am trying not to feel as though increasing my Cymbalta again is a defeat. I have been fairly debilitated by depression for about six weeks; I’ve waited long enough. I’m hoping that the improvement will come soon.

A longtime family friend commented on Facebook today that she thinks of Migraine365 as a “graphic journal.” I thought that was really perfect, very apt for our book project as it continues to evolve. I have ideas I hope J will implement: a sort of “profile” page for each of the four of us; a family tree page for which I already have some photos of my maternal grandfather. I am going to start using the term “graphic journal.”

I also hope, as my optimism and energy increase, that I can sit down finally and expand on “The Migraine Diaries” stories I began here in my blog, and publish them on Kindle. We desperately need to change our financial situation. J is starting to look in earnest for a higher paying job. Money can’t buy happiness, it’s true. But I am ready to stop feeling constantly ill and ashamed, on every form of assistance available, borrowing and taking and burdening, accepting charity, hiding my head.

Money buys freedom from fear.