Hello all! I will start off by telling you guys a little bit about my story. I was diagnosed with TN in 2010. For the first few weeks it was absolutely horrendous! I couldn't take tegretol or trileptal b/c of severe side effects so I was on Neurontin. After a few weeks it finally settled down to where I could tolerate it but then it quit working. I was switched to Lamotrigine/Lamictal and after about a week or so it settled down tremendously. It seems to be around January of 2012 that I realized "wait a minute, I'm not having any pain"! I was able to decrease off of my Lamctal and was absolutely pain free for a little over a year until just the last couple of weeks. I have started back on my Lamictal and it has helped somewhat. My question to you guys is do you find that if you lay down in bed on the opposite side of where your face hurts or lay on your back does it seem to hurt worse the next day vs. if you recline in a recliner so as your not laying all the way down? Sorry if this has been confusing! Thanks to all of you and hope everyone is well!
Definitely!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I sleep in a recliner every nite!!!! If I don't I also have facial swelling from sleeping flat in a bed... :(
I agree! I actually just got an adjustable bed, and it is heavenly!
Alas, me too. I take sleep meds ( if I get to sleep fast enough I get a decent amount). Can’t lie down in afternoon either, good side, bad side…wait, there is no good side for lying down:)
Adjustable bed does sound heavenly, ahhhhh
I too have spent many a night in a recliner. It has made a lot of difference in the pain and intensity versus laying flat. I can never sleep on the side of my face that the TN is on.
What about the back of your head coming in contact with recliner/adjustable bed? Anyone?
I can only sleep on one side but have to be propped up . I can't lay down or even sit when having bad pain. It gets exhausting..I have been wishing for a recliner lately thinking it would help.
I have to use a neck pillow that supports my neck with or without TN
The back of my head has never been a trigger point only the right side for me and that it doesn't matter if I am laying down or sitting,
I have slept with 5 pillows for almost 2 years now. I am all propped up and I always sleep on my left side (opposite side of my TN). Laying flat is horrible for me. When I had my MRI a few weeks ago it took me several days to recover because of laying flat for 1 1/2 hours. I also rest in my recliner but prefer to kind of be to my left side too. The back of my head is trigger point. If I feel really bad, I have to stand up as charlie commented - laying down makes it worse. I agree an adjustable bed would be nice. My pillows slip and slide once in awhile but I lay very still though so they usually stay put.