Trigeminal Neuralgia and Migraines

As I was saying in an earlier post, my doctors reckon I have Atypical Trigeminal Neuralgia and there seems to be a migraine element there too. So the Atypical TN bit I understand, but the migraine bit confuses me. 

Up until recently I believed that a migraine was a really bad headache that sent you to bed for a day or so and that was it. I have had these episodes in the past and I never realised that it could be connected to my TN pain. I was grilled while I was in hospital by countless doctors, but then a nurse came along with a different set of questions which shocked the hell out of me. Everything she said made sense! I suffered really bad headaches since my teens, the kind of headaches that make you vomit and send you to bed for a day or two. A migraine is not necessarily a headache, but it refers to nerves in the brain. The problem is that analgesic medications can make a migraine worse, so unless you are on preventative medication, you are in trouble.

I don't have those headaches as often anymore, but the nurse is convinced that some of my symptoms have a migraine and cluster headache aspect to it. She feels that once my migraine issues have been treated, it could in a way help my Trigeminal Neuralgia pain. Unfortunately she said that my pain will never go away, but she is confident that it can be reduced. I am awaiting an appointment with her boss, a specialist who may confirm the diagnosis. The Migraine diagnosis would certainly explain what has happened to my eye.

The statistics regarding migraines are staggering. It is a lot more common that I thought, but how many people with migraine symptoms have been misdiagnosed? Is there a Trigeminal Neuralgia element there too? There are several different types of migraine. 

They are:

• Migraine Without Aura
• Migraine With Aura
• Migraine Aura Without Headache
• Basilar Migraine
• Hemiplegic Migraine
• Ophthalmoplegic Migraine

There are so many doctors in the dark about TN that most facial pain is dismissed as a headache and thats that. It seems that we as patients need to do the research. 

I consider migraine and headaches as a horrific addition to my already hellish facial pain. Correct diagnosis is essential. 

If you are unhappy with a diagnosis, get a second, third and even fourth opinion. Nobody knows your body like you do, and you know when something isn't right. I have been fortunate so far with my doctors, but my battle has just begun. The medications have not even put a dent in my pain, and my symptoms are awful, and in addition to the facial pain, I have an eye with little vision, and a left arm that goes numb often and sometimes I lose the power in it. 

Here is the link to Migraine ireland's Website

Migraine Ireland

Trigeminal Neuralgia Vision Issues!!

For the last few weeks I have had major eye problems. One of the reasons I went to hospital was because I lost the vision in my left eye during a very bad attack When I say very bad, I mean that it was a 10/10. I was so scared, so scared that I was going blind! After some time in A&E and after I was admitted into hospital, I was sent to see an eye specialist there. The vision returned, but it is extremely blurry and I have permanent black spot there. 

There is nothing wrong with my eyes, but according to the Neurologist, the nerves at the back of my eye are under pressure due to the Trigeminal Neuralgia pain. So my Neuro was confident that once my pain was "managed" my eye vision would return to normal. So three weeks later, my vision is still blurry. Not only that, my pain is in the extreme and I cannot understand how I am staying sane. The meds are not working so far, and I am beginning to lose faith in my Neuro doctors. They all keep saying that I have to wait for the medication to start working, well it's been weeks and despite increasing the dosages, there is no change on the pain.

I am trying to remain optimistic, and keeping busy but it's not working so well any more. I am really worried about my vision. Living with this constant hellish pain is bad enough, but having problems with my sight is going to tip me over the edge. I have been on to my consultants and apparently their secretaries are doing their best to get me seen ASAP.

I am curious to find out how many people with Trigeminal Neuralgia, or in my case Atypical Trigeminal Neuralgia have this problem? I have tried looking it up, and rather than reading the medical side of it, people's own experiences would be informative and reassuring. 

I have also been told that I would be seeing a specialist regarding migraines and cluster headaches, but yep, still waiting. Maybe that is the source of my vision problems?