My surgery was may 3 and I am still having the same consistent pain just NON STOP ;(. I have to admit since I had my staples taking out I have been overdoing it. I asked the doctor “what are my limitations or restrictions” he said 2 things: no heavy lifting, no sun. thats it, easy enough. so since then I had been bending over, doing dishes, laundry you name it I was back in business until…it caught up with me. It started with a headache right in the front of my forehead it just wouldnt go away this went on about 4 days. My nurse then advised me I still should not be bending over and to stop doing any extra housework for a while. Saturday I woke up in agony my head felt like it was going to EXPLODE. It was a definite 10 on the pain scale. thats how it felt right after the surgery for me. even the top of my neck was killing me. the slightest touch of my hair or the pillow was excruciating however after i set up for a while it would get better but sure enough if i laid back down it would start again.My home health nurse came out saturday and called the neurosurgeon on staff and he said I needed to go to the ER and get a cat scan. When i went to the ER the ct came back clean didnt see anything abnormal. they did give me a shot of phenergan and dulontin? in think thats what it was. slept like a rock that night. i am still having the issue with the discomfort of trying to lay on a pillow so it makes it difficult to sleep but it does seem to be easing up a little now. Its so odd because i really having had any head pain or headaches since a couple weeks ago, approx. Has anyone else experienced anything like this? was it from overdoing it? I would love to know.
Vickie,
I’m sorry. I don’t know. I didn’t have anything like that. I was never totally out of pain but the pain has greatly diminished. I did have a nonstop headache after surgery for a couple of weeks but the headache was mild and more aggravation than pain. Is it my atypical pain or the sharp typical TN pain?
Liz
Atypical /typical not sure. i only rarely have the shooting pain so hard to decide. he says typical but mine is constant 24/7 like the atypical. My pain for some reason is actually worse than it was before the surgery. i was almost unbearable before, now i am really struggling to maintain any hope and the pain meds aren’t controlling it. what was odd about the pain before the er visit is like you i had headaches and pain for a couple weeks. all of my head pain had been completely gone when i woke up with the pain feeling like my head was going to explode. that actually lasted a few days it just gradually got better. i was hoping i would wake up from the surgery better but instead its worse. i really am regretting it now the dr said it would be several months if not longer before i got any relief. its just hard to be patient in so much pain.
Vicki,
I know you are going to feel better soon. Don’t give up hope. It’s so hard to be in the place you are now…where you no longer feel there is hope…I know too well…it is terrible. BUT I know you are going to feel better. Your nerve is healing. I am hoping and praying for you!! Don’t give up hope. You and I went into surgery just a few days apart. I feel a connection to you and I care deeply. You are going to make it through this.
thank you so much jamie. you are so kind. i feel the same way. it was scary for both of us but was not as bad as we imagined atleast the surgery part. it actually eased up a bit the last day and a half. mind you still having to take meds but not quite as much and didnt wake up in pain last night. yee haw. so lets hope it is getting better. i have really bad days then sometimes a good day but it hasnt been lasting so lets pray it is healing. unfortunately when they put the dang tube down my throat they messed my jaw up so i have to go to an oral surgeon hopefully they can pop my jaw back into alignment. never saw that one coming. wasnt a risk i heard about but hopefully will be an easy fix. my surgeon assured me that isnt possible but obviously it is. i had a catscan by an oral surgeon right before the surgery so i will be able to prove him wrong.
I havent given up but you know for yourself when the pain is bad you gotta wonder…did it really work. i have no doubt it will just gonna take tiiiiimmmmeee blah!. i am just not a patient person by any means. i admit that but even worse when pain is involved. i like being in control and pretty fast paced in life expecially at work. this is definately a major adjustment for me.
i did actually venture out today went out for lunch and a movie with a friend. first time i have really done anything besides grocery shopping, drug store or drs appts, etc. lunch was no big deal, since i dont last long she dropped me off out front and the resteraunt and at the theatre. now the funny part. got to the movie theatre and by the time i got to the ticket window i was tired, pitiful i know but soo hot outside it didnt help.got my ticket, went to the ladies room. i know where an elevator is in the theatre(of course way on the opposide side of where we were) but wasnt sure which rooms it accessed so i asked an employee if i took it would it give me access to my auditorium. of course he said yes. on my merry way i go…exhausted weak, to the point i just want to pass out. so get up stairs and look around and no access to my theatre. energy wasted :P. so after all that i felt like i was going to have to crawl up the stairs to see the new Shrek but i made it. fortunately i had plenty time during the movie to recuperate. lol. got home and took a 6 hour nap. lesson learned:dont listen to theatre employees.
Your first paragraph describes me exactly. I know I need to rest but I am so sick of lying on that couch that I get depressed! In the past when I faced difficulties I would train for a 5K or redecorate my house or do yard work. Now if I handle my stress/anxiety/depression this way I suffer with more pain. I felt good over the weekend and people said things like, “There is the old Jamie!!”. It makes me want to cry though because I have been gone for so long and when I am my old self I suffer with pain later and have to stop talking, laughing, smiling and hugging. One day at a time…but this really does suck. I keep praying and trying to think positively but sometimes it gets the best of me.
its tough but look at this way, when you are having those good times and feeling good laughing and smiling with friends at some point you will be that way all the time. we just have to be patient as hard as it is. i am just glad that i have the ability to be home now so i can take a nap if i am hurting. i worked for a long time dealing with the pain until i couldnt do it anymore. sadly i have a reminder of how it could be worse that keeps me grounded. i have a brother struggling for his life with pancreatic cancer. took to long to get a diagnosis. we are just gonnna have to take it one day at a time like you said. i hate it too. i was hoping the mvd would be a quick fix but you know what they say about “if it sounds to good to be true…” we made it past the fear of the surgery and actually going through with it so for that we made a major step. now its just going to be time. i have been on antidepressants for a long time. the pain has kept me depressed for a long time so i take it daily along with all my other meds. stay strong. we are going to make it through this. hopefully we will have full relief soon 
Thanks Vicki,
Maybe I need an anti-depressant also. Do you mind telling me what you are taking?
Jamie
i take cymbalta. you will just have to check with your doctor to see what will work best for you. i tried paxil years ago not a good thing and of course now they have lawsuits out against them because of all the side affects. i have taken prozac in the past but under these circumstances it wasnt enought for me.
Hi Vickie,
I’m not sure how this website works sometimes. I only found your message to me by browsing through the blogs. I saw yours and opened it and found you had written a comment to me, so sorry it took me so long to answer:) I too am healing from the surgery pain, very slowly but still have pain. My dr. wants me to start neurontin but I am holding off. I just don’t want to become a zombie like I was on tegretol. But my teeth really are hurting more, so I just have to take it day by day. My surgery/hospital stay was horrific. I would love to talk to you on the phone. Do you want to send me a message with your phone number? It sounds like we have so much in common.