I’ve been getting these headaches lately.

They aren’t migraines, but they come on fast and radiate in my eyes and ears and jaw.

It took awhile to figure out what was going on, but after calling a doctor friend of mine and doing some research, I think I have chronic sinus infections, exacerbated by the weather courtesy of the Deep South in the summer, i.e., a constant state of extreme heat exhaustion and dehydration.

So, I’m making a concerted effort to stay hydrated, sleep more and stock up on natural anti-microbials, germ-fighters and nasal sprays.

And then I Googled.

I know better. I really do. After the last time Dr. Google convinced me my child had some kind of nose cancer because she had a bloody nose, you’d think I would have given it up by now.

But like a scab you can’t help but pick, I typed in “chronic sinusitis” one night.

At first, nothing was truly alarming. I might have latent allergies I’m unaware of or some kind of nasal polyp. Nothing terrifying,

And then, I read it:  “Chronic sinusitis left untreated can cause brain aneurysms.”

Excuse me?

I shut the browser on my computer, as if I’d seen something I shouldn’t.

The freak-out commenced pretty quickly after that.

My husband is deployed. I am alone with my children. My brain is going to explode and I haven’t taught my 3-year-old how to call 911 yet.

This can’t be good.

In about 90 minutes, I wondered if I could skip all the Tricare referral mess and just call a neurosurgeon and ENT the next morning. It was urgent, after all. My brain wasn’t going to hold on much longer.

Another 30 minutes later, and I had convinced myself to move in with my parents – blissful empty nesters for quite awhile, mind you – for the rest of the deployment, just in case I had an aneurysm. That way someone could look after my kids.

And then my youngest woke up, and my morbid doomsday plans had to take a backseat while I settled her back to bed.

The next morning, I awoke headache free and feeling sheepish.

But now, if I feel so much as a twinge in my temple, I worry. I panic, almost. I hear “Aneurysm!” echoing around the chambers of my rather delicate skull.

I feel my trigger finger itch, and wonder if I should talk to WebMD again.

It’s maddening.

And thus, I have instituted a new rule for deployments, ranking right up there with “You may not watch Law & Order: SVU marathons while he’s gone.”

No more Dr. Google during deployment.

At the very least, my PCM will thank me.