# Do any of you get told you are too young for TN?

**URL:** <https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919>\
**Category:** Uncategorized Older than 1 year\
**Created:** [January 13, 2012, 10:58pm UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919 "2012-01-13T22:58:20Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 11\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![amberzak](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex027/user_avatar/forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/amberzak/32/3579_2.png) [@amberzak](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/amberzak)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 10:58pm UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/1 "2012-01-13T22:58:20Z")

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Hi. I’m new to all this, but my husband and I went to a pharmacy tonight in desperation of the pain. I was willing to try absolutely anything regardless of the side affects. And the pharmacist looked at me and said ‘you’re too young to have trigeminal neuralgia’. Am I going to have these comments forever?

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**Author:** ![Tali](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tali](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Tali)\
**Post date:** [January 25, 2012, 3:42am UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/2 "2012-01-25T03:42:10Z")

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I get this a lot. Especially from people at doctors offices or just people I meet out and about. Its just one of those things and Ive learned to ignore it. Even in the hospital when I was diagnosed the nurses and doctors kept saying that I was too young. People have just grown accustomed to certain age groups having certain illnesses and some of us break that mold. In 2011 I had shingles and gout AND got diagnosed with TN. All of these are usually found in people 50 or older. I just happen to be the lucky one who can get it all over with now I guess.

My reaction to the comments are to just smile and move on. It gets easier to ignore and eye rolling helps. :) and just think once we are in the right age bracket the comments will end...hehe!

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**Author:** ![Janet\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bc79bd/32.png) [@Janet\_E](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Janet_E)\
**Post date:** [February 20, 2012, 6:00pm UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/3 "2012-02-20T18:00:32Z")

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It took 2 years of actively searching for an answer to my pain to get diagnosed and they said I couldn't possibly have it cause I'm in my 20's. Then they finally said it was atypical

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**Author:** ![LeDiskoLove99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f17d59/32.png) [@LeDiskoLove99](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/LeDiskoLove99)\
**Post date:** [October 7, 2012, 3:53am UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/4 "2012-10-07T03:53:51Z")

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I've gotten this mostly from doctors. It does get tiring and I haven't been dealing with this for very long. I suppose I have a lot more of those sort of comments to look forward to.

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**Author:** ![Spiritual\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d2c977/32.png) [@Spiritual\_soul](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Spiritual_soul)\
**Post date:** [November 6, 2012, 5:48pm UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/5 "2012-11-06T17:48:13Z")

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When I was 19 my consultant neurologist said how come that you have TN you are very young ! I said what can I do ! . he said but I can't believe & your MRI clear ! how can you accomadate ?, I said I am the one who should be in denial situation not you doctor hhhhhh

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**Author:** ![Roselyn](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex027/user_avatar/forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/roselyn/32/3597_2.png) [@Roselyn](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Roselyn)\
**Post date:** [November 16, 2012, 7:32pm UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/6 "2012-11-16T19:32:18Z")

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I keep getting this too! I'm 28 and the first three doctors I saw kept saying "well, it seems like it could be TN but you are too young so I'm going to diagnose you with something else". I got ear infection, TMJ, something I can't remember the name of but that involves a skin flap in the ear drum....everything BUT TN, because I'm too young.

Argh.

I figure since I was born with a ridiculously rare birth defect, it's open season for any weird illnesses that may come my way. Other than the Mayo Clinic where I was diagnosed as a baby, I have yet to meet a doctor who has any idea what I'm talking about when I mention I was born with acrodermatitis enteropathica.

Less to be learned there: Doctors are not all-knowing gods!

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**Author:** ![Alyssa\_Fr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/839c29/32.png) [@Alyssa\_Fr](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Alyssa_Fr)\
**Post date:** [April 6, 2013, 12:10am UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/7 "2013-04-06T00:10:41Z")

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I hear this all the time, especially as I was diagnosed at 20. My doctor says "Well, it just means you're special." Gee, thanks? I'll keep that in mind next time I'm mopey over how I can't get my pain under control and worrying whether I'll ever be able to go off medication long enough to consider having children with the man I married. I guess I'm just special. How comforting.

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**Author:** ![Janet\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bc79bd/32.png) [@Janet\_E](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Janet_E)\
**Post date:** [April 6, 2013, 12:17am UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/8 "2013-04-06T00:17:18Z")

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They said that to me. They only considered TN as what I had cause they ruled out everything else. I have atypical tn cause nothing shows up as touching the nerve on my cts and MRI’s. And I have pain on both sides. So ya, I’m ‘special’ too, most days I’m more inclined to say I’m cursed cause I have fibro, bilateral tn, had tn since I was a kid and am bipolar. It would always be worse. I once had a doctor say to me “oh, well atleast those disorders aren’t going to kill you” I remember thinking you don’t know that tn’s the suicide disease and I’m already mentally ill do you? Lol

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**Author:** ![Alyssa\_Fr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/839c29/32.png) [@Alyssa\_Fr](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Alyssa_Fr)\
**Post date:** [April 6, 2013, 12:25am UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/9 "2013-04-06T00:25:43Z")

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Oof, Janet. That sounds so difficult. I feel for you, though. I have atypical, type 1 and 2. Bilateral and random. As an added bonus, I struggle with depression. At least we can reach out to others in the more difficult times. There's something to that.

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**Author:** ![Janet\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bc79bd/32.png) [@Janet\_E](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/Janet_E)\
**Post date:** [April 6, 2013, 12:39am UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/10 "2013-04-06T00:39:25Z")

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Ya, I’ll be the first one to admitt this site probably saved my life when I was diagnosed. My pain was to the point I would lay on a bed, crying all day with ear plugs in and sunglasses on, in a darkened room with no tv, radio or books. I was in agony. And better yet, my jackass boyfriend broke up with me because I was diagnosed with it. So I was in a bad place mentally and felt like a freak but because of this site I found others in my city and started a tn group! This site is too important.

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**Author:** ![itwouldntbemakebelie](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex027/user_avatar/forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/itwouldntbemakebelie/32/6261_2.png) [@itwouldntbemakebelie](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/u/itwouldntbemakebelie)\
**Post date:** [August 11, 2015, 9:55pm UTC](https://forum.livingwithfacialpain.org/t/do-any-of-you-get-told-you-are-too-young-for-tn/1919/11 "2015-08-11T21:55:07Z")

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I have gotten this most my life.

I had my first kidney stones when I was 15 and the ER doc couldn't diagnose me before my right kidney blew out like an over filled balloon (possibly preventable if he had known what was happening) I remember him saying "it presents like a kidney stone but she is too young..." the Children's hospital doc was really angry when I finally got there after 14 hours of the worst pain of my life.

Now I have ATN at 24. I say my TN2 pain is equally as bad or worse than my 6 average kidney stones, but not as bad as my popped kidney. (in case you were wondering...\>.\<)

I have heard "you are too young" 3 times since I started hurting 10 months ago, even the doctor who finally suggested TN was skeptical because of my abnormal symptoms and young age. I do what just about everybody does, try to laugh it off, and complain when I am really irritated about it. We should all make not hearing this the goal, because that means we survived to be old enough.

@[Janet Elg](http://www.livingwithtn.org/group/fortnpatientsintheir20s/forum/topic/listForContributor?user=2pywsnpn8606n)

I am glad you found this site and can be here with us. As my problems add up I have gone to doctors mentally wishing for something terminal, because living with the pain of being me feels like too much sometimes. I try to remember the bad days are many, but there are good ones, and good people who love and need me.

I wish you all good luck and low or no pain!