Last week doctors thought I’d had a stroke. Turns out it was a hemiplegic migraine, which mimics the signs of a stroke but resolves over a couple of days. Now for the bill…sure that won’t be stressful at all.


The Mimic

The warnings were there,
but I heeded them not.
Aging, I told myself.

The storm on land meant
pushing myself to keep moving,
the constant scrolling for breaking alerts,
the yard needing grooming,
the house needing cleaning,
the people I had brought together
needing the person I wanted to be for them.

It was mine to do,
all of it,
or so I believed.

The wave was growing,
each increase in size signaled
with physical symptoms I pushed aside.

The wave rolled through my right brain,
washed through the synapses,
short-circuited the connections
between brain and body,
a cortisol wave of depression,
but not destruction,
not a tsunami but a surfer’s dream.

Unable to ride it, I crashed upon the shore,
disoriented and weak,
the wave with a name of its own,
not caused by age.

They tell me: manage the stress,
as if naming the cure is not itself
just another wave to ride.







Poetry by Melinda K Zarate The PoetBay support member heart!
Read 9 times
Written on 2026-09-14 at 18:36

Tags Migraine  Health  Stress 

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lunarlibrary23 The PoetBay support member heart!
Hi! I came across your poem and could instantly picture the stanzas as connected visual scenes.

I’m a commission artist with 3 years of experience, and I’d love to illustrate each stanza while keeping the visuals flowing naturally from one to the next. I think it could give your poem a fresh visual identity and help you share it with a wider audience.

I’m currently offering discounted commission rates, so we could even start with a few stanzas as a small paid project.

If you’re interested, I’d be happy to show you my work

LunarLibrary
Instagram: @lunaartsoul
Email: llunarlibrary@gmail.com
2026-09-14


lunarlibrary23 The PoetBay support member heart!
Hi! I came across your poem and could instantly picture the stanzas as connected visual scenes.

I’m a commission artist with 3 years of experience, and I’d love to illustrate each stanza while keeping the visuals flowing naturally from one to the next. I think it could give your poem a fresh visual identity and help you share it with a wider audience.

I’m currently offering discounted commission rates, so we could even start with a few stanzas as a small paid project.

If you’re interested, I’d be happy to show you my work

LunarLibrary
Instagram: @lunaartsoul
Email: llunarlibrary@gmail.com
2026-09-14