Pain is and put me on antibiotics but nothing seems to help.
I can relate to so much of what you are all saying. I have TN and ATN. Right now itfeels like most of the teeth of my right side are infected, there is an ice pick in my ear and my tongue feels like I scalded it on a hot but super yummy caramel latte from Starbucks. I had MVD surgery in September and have reduced my drugs to 200mg slow release morning and evening. On days like this I am seriously thinking to upping the meds again. I have had a pan xray recently and it confirmed, yet again, that my teeth and gums are fine. Hang in there folks.
Thank you everyone for all the support today. It's been a rough day.
The responses really made a difference.
Rest well and let's have a better day tomorrow.
Thanks to everyone for replying to this post. There are so many people out there with similar pain to mine. It is a terrifying experience to endure and the pain makes me feel completely nuts!
My medication is working REALLY well for me now. I have been pain free for almost a month. I am taking 40mgs of Amitriptyline. I took about two months to increase to that dosage and even then it took a good 3 more weeks for the pain to subside.
I know it is still there, though. The one bottom left molar that all this started with is STILL ultra-sensitive if I touch it and I don't eat on that side. That tooth is root canaled so it should have NO feeling. Sometimes I can feel the slightest tightening around that tooth and the others' that the pain always seemed to follow.
I am so thankful, though, that I have found something that is working. I hope all of you find some type of relief from the pain you are suffering. This website is an amazing resource and all of the people on here are so welcoming and empathetic towards others.
Darlene,
Your situation sounds very similar to mine. I was always pain-free in the morning. It would start creeping back sometime in the afternoon and by evening I was usually exhausted and just ready to go to bed to get a break from the pain. I, too, thought the pain was related to talking, or eating, or if I was tired...A few months in I gave up on that. It didn't matter what I did, or didn't do, the pain came and went when and where it wanted.
Darlene Peterson said:
Hello justjane37. Your story sounds just like mine. I went to 4 dentists. Started with crown, then root canal, then pulling. Antibiotics twice. I also felt like my cheek was punched. Even though all the dentists said it's not dental, it's hard to accept something more serious. My pain is more constant after 3:00. I believe it has something to do with talking all day at work. I am currently on tegretol working my way up to 3 times a day.
I wonder if others have pain similar to my ATN. My pain comes down into my incisors, or where my incisors used to be, on both the right and left sides. It then spreads out. It gets worse as the day goes on. Of course my dentists and I thought it was dental at first so I had root canals and eventual extractions. Implants have been put in, but my neurologist and neurosurgeon don't want me to go further with caps being put on. I didn't tolerate the tegretol so now I am on Lyrica and Cymbalta and pain meds. I had three nerve blocks and based on those, the neurosurgeon said I am a candidate for gamma knife surgery...so I am considering that right now. I've also seen an ENT...he said I may have cerebral spinal fluid leaks that could be the problem, but none of the other docs think so. He also said we could try some balloon procedure. I am very confused...
My TN mimics tooth pain. It is one of my molars and sometimes all of the teeth on the left side. The pain switches from top to bottom. It also goes into my jaw, cheek and ear. The pain does come into my top incisor on that side.
I had a root canal done on my tooth before conceding that it is TN. I am supposed to have a crown put on it but so far have decided to leave it be. I don't eat on that side of my mouth now anyways, for fear of causing myself pain. That root canalled tooth still hurts too. Many people with TN start out in the dental chair having unnecessary procedures done. It definitely mimics tooth pain.
Hi! Sorry I haven’t been on for a while. Been dealing with other health problems…I’m so glad to hear the amitriptyline has done the trick! I filled my prescription just as my other issues started to I haven’t taken it yet. I’ve been having severe torso pain. I can’t even call it abdominal because of how it moves and feels. It started in my left lower left side and now it’s everywhere. It feels like everything hurts, muscles, bones, organs everything. It’s been pretty scary. But…My TN is virtually gone, weird right? This sounds crazy to say but I’d trade it back. At least when it was in my face I knew what it was, and there are no vital organs in my face so this (so far undiagnosed) pain in my body not only has me in pretty severe pain but it is accompanied with great anxiety over the possibility of this being a problem with some of my very important guts. I’m having two more diagnostic procedures on the 5th so I’m hoping to have some answers. I’m eager to start the amitriptyline not for my face right now but because it seems to treat so many painful conditions so I still feel like this is the answer but I want to rule out everything before starting it. Sorry for going on about myself. I really wanted to tell you that I’m happy for you but we were going to keep each other posted and I didn’t keep up my end of that. So glad you’re feeling better! 
Hi Bells
Don't worry about not staying in touch. Life is busy! Glad you are checking in though and so sorry to hear about the health problems you are having. It is strange, what you said about the TN being virtually gone. The body works in mysterious ways and I have heard other people say that when they are having other health problems there TN goes away.
I truly hope that you find some answers about what you are going through. And do keep me updated. And thank you for your kind words regarding my medication. It is amazing!
bells said:
Hi! Sorry I haven't been on for a while. Been dealing with other health problems...I'm so glad to hear the amitriptyline has done the trick! I filled my prescription just as my other issues started to I haven't taken it yet. I've been having severe torso pain. I can't even call it abdominal because of how it moves and feels. It started in my left lower left side and now it's everywhere. It feels like everything hurts, muscles, bones, organs everything. It's been pretty scary. But...My TN is virtually gone, weird right? This sounds crazy to say but I'd trade it back. At least when it was in my face I knew what it was, and there are no vital organs in my face so this (so far undiagnosed) pain in my body not only has me in pretty severe pain but it is accompanied with great anxiety over the possibility of this being a problem with some of my very important guts. I'm having two more diagnostic procedures on the 5th so I'm hoping to have some answers. I'm eager to start the amitriptyline not for my face right now but because it seems to treat so many painful conditions so I still feel like this is the answer but I want to rule out everything before starting it. Sorry for going on about myself. I really wanted to tell you that I'm happy for you but we were going to keep each other posted and I didn't keep up my end of that. So glad you're feeling better! :)