I am trying to use all my bags of tricks not see myself as a person with a condition or a chronic medical problem. I probably denied these symptoms for so long, believing I had strained a muscle, pulled "something" in my neck, or was just being hypochondriacal. I have lived my life believing that if I worked, exercised, ate well, and had excellent psychoanalysis, nothing would be insurmountable. So, I did all of that, am still doing almost all of that, but have come to a place that I can no longer deny- this is chronic and ongoing. I have trigeminal neuralgia, though all the specialists I have reluctantly seen couch their diagnoses in "if nothing else pans out."
Sort of a joke, being that I am married to a physician who always told me the limitations of medicine, as this situation has elegantly illustrated!
I went for extensive evaluations two years ago, having been in pain for probably two to three years before seeking help. I went to a neurologist, ENT, dentist, and a psychiatrist. I am a psychoanalyst and had my bet that she would make the accurate diagnosis! Well, she said to me, "you may be many things, but this would not be the neurotic pain that would be manifested." So, here I am, now seeing a rheumatologist who also found I had a positive blood test for Sjogren's Disease two years ago, but when retested, the test was negative.
The rheumatologist and neurologist in consultation have put me on trileptal, which I am now taking 1200mg. daily. Still having break though pain, days of facial gnawing behind my eye, and now having the pain on both sides.
So tell me if this is just bad menopause? Can I run this away? I would do yoga but I get triggered sometimes when my head is down- makes down-dog tough! Also, does this mean I am a bad candidate for a face lift?
I am warmed by the support this on-line community gives to each other. I feel that there is a limit to how much anyone wants to here about this situation.Thank you for existing, and becoming an often-visited site when I am on-line.
Painfrie