Anyone new to the blog, or who hasn't done so yet, may want to check out the "About Me" page, where I provide a historical overview of all the meds and treatments tried on me since my original injury in December 2009.
There is no cure for this thing; there are just things you can do to try to feel better while you slowly recover. If you are newly injured, remember chances are still very good (80%) that you will heal in short order (a couple of weeks). If you're still in pain and/or numbness after several months, your nerve may have been more severed/nicked/bruised/cut and nerve regeneration will take longer. In some cases, nerve damage is permanent. To my knowledge, no one can predict whether you will heal completely or not. You just have to try to be positive while you wait it out and see.
Many of our friends on this blog have reported that the pain is excruciating, and described as a "10 out of 10", people are scared and want to know "when will I get better?" I don't have that answer, but I'm providing a running tally of what I've tried (with mixed success) so you can see if anything works for you. If you find something that works for you, please post about it and let others know!
Warmest Regards,
Jane
It is a way of life for me too Jane (9 yrs on), but I must applaud your tenacity at trying a variety of different treatments. I have tried some of those you listed, and haven't even heard of some of the others!!!! The good ol' chewing gum seems to be my standby when the burning is just too painful to ignore :-) Thank you for sharing your journey......it is very much appreciated
ReplyDeleteHi there! I just found your site and it's great to see that you are out there sharing your secrets. I have lingual nerve damage due to a dental injection. The throbbing cheek pain went away in a few weeks, but the burning tongue was unbelievable. I live in a small town and no one had a clue as to what was causing the searing pain. It took 6 weeks before an oral surgeon suggest I go to a neurologist. It's been a year and a half and the pain is dramatically reduced. I have been taking 1800 mg of Neurontin. Plus vitamin B-12, Alpha Lipoic Acid, and 20 mg of Amitriptyline. Plus 12.5 mg of Prozac thanks to the anxiety caused by this injury. I looked at your list of meds tried and saw that you couldn't tolerate some of them. I have a high sensitivity to meds, especially anti depressants and anti-seizures, bith of which I'm now taking. My doctor titrated me up on these meds so very slowly... and I mean, for the Prozac, it took six months to get to the normal person's tiniest dose. I had to take benzo's to counteract the side effects of both the prozac and the neurontin (Gabapentin) for months. And I had to take Temazepam to help me sleep. I was a disaster for a good 8 months. I've thankfully been able to taper off the benzo's and sleep aids, and now I have very few side effects from the meds. I think the Gabapentin makes me less focused and the Amitryptelene makes me hungry and a little tires. But I have to say that adding that med to my "cocktail" made a big difference in the pain and also helped with the depression. I just wonder if you could titrate up more slowly on some that you only tried for a week or two, maybe you would find something more helpful. But, unlike you, I don't have the cheek or jaw pain that you have suffered.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry to hear that this has been haunting you for so very long. My neurologist thought my nerve would heal within two years, but I'm not sure how he comes to that conclusion and I haven't felt a change in six months. He did say the majority of the healing would take place in the first year. And that nerves heal very slowly.
I wish you the best of luck and will check back!
Dear Jane
ReplyDeleteyou may have already seen our dedicated website for trigeminal nerve injuries
TRIGEMINALNERVE.ORG.UK
hopefully you and your followers may find it helpful / reassuring
looks as though you have already tried all known cures
bws
TR