'I'm living with a tumour as big as a golf ball in my head

David Aird had suffered from migraines for years when he learned his diagnosis. It blew his world apart, but also means he no longer sweats the small stuff

- Charlotte Cripps

I’d been suffering from migraines that made me feel nauseous for about five years. When they hit, I knew I’d have to curl up in a dark room until they passed – sometimes for a whole day. After a particularly bad episode in 2017, I finally went to the GP. It hadn't crossed my mind that anything serious was going on.

At the time, I was married and living in Kilburn, north London, with an eight-year-old son and a 17-year-old stepdaughter. I was working in the building industry and as a musician, but when the blinding headaches hit about twice a week, life just stopped.

I'd tried all sorts of holistic remedies: CBD oil, a healer, various supplements. I considered whether it might be stress, but it also happened once while I was relaxing on a beach holiday. I tried to eat less sugar and dairy, thinking it might be diet-related. Nothing worked. I just took the approach that once an episode was over, I'd just get on with things again.

I told the GP everything, and she sent me for a scan. It took about a month to get the appointment, but I still wasn't worried. The GP asked me to come in for the results. I went in on my own, and she told me I had a meningioma, which is a brain tumour. I felt numb; I had a delayed reaction. I've always been the kind of person who is present, but my feelings travel in a bag three days behind me. The GP said it looked benign, but I needed to see a consultant.