I AM in agony.

I have a pain in the neck so sharp that I can't turn my head to the right.

It took me about half an hour from waking to getting out of bed the other morning, because I felt like I had become paralysed overnight.

I didn't Google the symptoms but shovelled Ibuprofen down my throat as fast and frequently as advised on the back of the packet.

And anyway, this year has been so challenging that I am surprised my neck hasn't completely disappeared, so scrunched up have been my shoulders.

Anyway, when I finally made it to work last week (probably contravening all manner of health and safety rules) where my colleague assured me it was probably knots, and proceeded to prod and poke it for a few agonising seconds, leaving me to move my head by a further millimetre.

That night a ball shaped swelling appeared on the back of my neck. The following day I made an appointment with my GP.

So now I am a hermit in my home because I can't drive, I have a hot water bottle tied around my neck with one of Dad's old, mothball scarves and today I must Google long term damage of Ibuprofen.