Time for an experiment

I saw my neurologist, Dr. Brasch, on Tuesday this past week to get the nerve analgesic that Tadd, my brother in law, had told me about. I really love Dr. Brasch as a person. He was the first, after seeing three previous neurologists, that was a) not weird and b) willing to spend the time and educate me about my facial paralysis. I had seen him two times previous to my current appointment. The first time I saw him was about 3 years after the paralysis and all I wanted was some answers about my prognosis and to gain some understanding of how this could have happened to me. During the course of taking my medical history, I related to Dr. Brasch the 10 day episode of facial pain that came with the infection of my facial nerve, however at the time of my appointment I was not experiencing any facial pain. I was there simply to gather information.

The second time I visited Dr. Brasch I saw him because I had facial pain and at that appointment he diagnosed me with trigeminal neuralgia and gave me Tegretol to deal with the pain. I never ended up taking that medication because Dan decided to see if maybe my pain was related to a bad tooth, which turned out to be the case. I did not have trigeminal neuralgia. However, I failed to call Dr. Brasch to tell him that my problem was dental related and not nerve related.

Fast forward almost 10 years, and now I found myself sitting in his exam room again for facial pain. However, this time I know for sure that it is not dental related. Dr. Brasch goes over my previous visits with me and I inform him about the previous dental problem that accounted for my facial pain, but I don't think he really heard me. He began to ask me questions and after doing a neurological exam, he gave me his impression of what was wrong with me...trigeminal neuralgia. In fact, he framed it as a re-occurrence of trigeminal neuralgia (TN). I told him that I didn't have this condition before, that it was a dental problem. We then began to have a discussion about how TN typically presents. People with TN are in constant pain. My pain is situation specific, related to mouth movement. I suggested that this might be the result of neural regeneration and muscle cramping of atrophied muscles. He was not particularly receptive of this idea, however he did state that it was a possibility. He seemed to be pretty attached to the idea that I have TN. He immediately suggested that I take a nerve analgesic, Neurontin, which was the medication that Tadd suggested. So I decided not to challenge the official diagnosis any further, because quite frankly he was giving me the medication that I had intended on getting when I made the appointment. Basically it was mission accomplished, with a tiny bit of frustration thrown in. We exchanged a few more pleasant comments (he really is a wonderful man!), he handed me my prescription, and I was on my way.

Here's where the experiment comes in. If my pain is coming from TN, then the Neurontin should do the trick by relieving my pain. However, I'm wondering if the cause of the pain is the cramping of atrophied muscles, then will a nerve analgesic take care of all the pain? Maybe it will, by blocking the pain impulses coming from the cramping muscle. So, I decided that I'm going to follow exactly the instructions of my doctor and see if the Neurontin does what the doctor says it will do. My sister, Lynnie, sent me some homeopathic oils that are supposed to help with pain. Bless her ever loving heart, looking out for me and my aching face! But I'm going to hold off using them so that if the pain does lift, then I know for sure that it is the Neurontin, and not the oils. If the Neurontin doesn't work, then I think my next option is going to be acupuncture and the oils.