Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Face pain (TN?) help

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Face pain (TN?) help

    So for the last few days I've had horrible pain in all down the right side of my face from my temple to my ear and through the upper and lower jaw. I've had hints of this pain in the past, but never the whole side of my face at once.

    Gabapentin and tylenol help a little bit, but neither heat nor ice do anything. Do you have any tips for managing this?

    #2
    I started with TN about a year ago and my PCP dx it and sent me to my MS doc. He gave me Tegraltol which does work most of the time, however, I did end up in the ER once with the pain again really bad. After that he gave me lyrica to use as needed. If I were you I would go to the ER if you can not get a hold of your doctors. I waited out the pain way to many times and should have been in the ER.

    Comment


      #3
      art girl and starry1:
      Firstly I am so so so sorry you both have this pain!!

      I have it too and have some questions. Maybe sometime (of course, starry1 when you are feeling better) can we talk about it? I have so many question about TN (experiential questions rather than medical). Maybe we can meet in the chat room or a separate thread or something. Just an idea if anyone feels like it.

      (FYI I am on neurontin/gabapentin 900 mgs daily, since middle of august. Tried to get off of it but I can't seem to manage the pain without. Currently I still have a large amount of breakthrough pain at this dose but I can still function. The side affects make it hard though...)

      I hope you are pain-free soon!!
      Lynne
      *undiagnosed and just hangin' in there somehow*

      Comment


        #4
        Well the on-call doctor called me back and said it sounds like classic TN to her. She increased my gabapentin and told me to see my neuro but to go to the nearest ER if I need to.

        In looking up TN I saw its called the suicide disease and I can see how people can get to that point. This pain is way beyond childbirth on the 1-10 scale. I'm so sorry some of you know what this feels like.

        Comment


          #5
          tn pain

          i have had tn for 12 years, it is the most horrid pain i could ever imagine. when it flares i get heavy pain meds and ride it out. when it first started it was manageable with advil and vicodin and neurontin, but now that doesn't touch the pain. the dentist tends to set mine off. cold drinks are bad too. i think putting ice on it only makes it worse.

          I went to neurosurgeon after the last attack which ended up lasting 18 days, because oxycodone#10 did nothing. you can have the nerves repadded or cut depending on the condition. once you have it you learn to watch what tends to set it off. i have had all 12 back teeth cut out because i thought the pain was from my teeth before being diagnosed. it wears on a person and one should have a good support group of friends/family when it does flare. i personally think this is the worst part of my ms! once one has this pain, they will never forget it and fear it coming on again! there is a great neurosurgeon in cincinnati ohio

          Comment


            #6
            She increased my gabapentin and told me to see my neuro but to go to the nearest ER if I need to.
            Since the neurontin takes a while (at least for me) to really get into your system (meaning if you up your meds, it will take maybe even a few days to really get the full benefit) it's not really a good "acute" pain choice (more for long term pain management) INHO.
            If things do get rough go to the ER because the neurontin is probably not gonna pull you out of that hole fast enough.

            I hope you feel better soon!!

            pumpkin32: wow, 12 years. How awful. yuck.

            Best
            Lynne
            *undiagnosed and just hangin' in there somehow*

            Comment


              #7
              face pain

              Sorry you are having this pain. I am having similar symptoms. My neurologist thinks it is caused from a chipped tooth and suggested a root canal but the pain goes way beyond that. It covers the entire right side of my face. I have been tempted to go to the ER. Also, it always starts hurting in the late afternoon and goes into the evening. The only thing that has helped was increasing my dose of beta blockers. My neuro said to keep an eye on my BP and HR. Good luck.
              Katherine

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by KatW View Post
                Sorry you are having this pain. I am having similar symptoms. My neurologist thinks it is caused from a chipped tooth and suggested a root canal but the pain goes way beyond that. It covers the entire right side of my face. I have been tempted to go to the ER. Also, it always starts hurting in the late afternoon and goes into the evening. The only thing that has helped was increasing my dose of beta blockers. My neuro said to keep an eye on my BP and HR. Good luck.
                Katherine
                I have been to the dentist twice in the past year about the jaw pain and he was unable to find anything that could be causing it. I had one filling redone and it did nothing.

                If the neuro wants you to go the dentist to rule out dental problems, I'd just do it; then he can't blow it off as not his problem anymore.

                Comment


                  #9
                  So how long do your episodes generally last?

                  I ask because I'm still having some breakthrough pain, even though I've been slowly increasing my gaba all week. Today the pain is worse than usual (I think because its cold and snowing), but its still nowhere near the peak pain I got over the weekend. I can't really go ask for pain pills because I can't work on them, I fall asleep immediately.

                  Comment

                  Working...
                  X