Okay here is one for you… Are there professions that tend to trigger more pain than others?
What do you do?
High stress is a pain initiator for many people. Professional "environments" can have a role in that, though the nature or activity of the profession itself is not always a key factor. Stress is something that we "do to ourselves" in many ways. It is the "fight or flee" impulse turned toxic when it becomes dissociated with the situations that might justify such a choice. Like many other things, learning to diffuse or not accept stress from factors outside ourselves, is a learn-able skill. Learning not to create stress from INSIDE ourselves in our expectations, demands, need for (often imagined) control, or dominance over others, is also a learn-able skill, though experience suggests a much more difficult one to master.
Interesting and useful question. What has been the experience of other pain patients?
Regards, Red
I work in a very stressfull profession and some of my 'clinical collegues' say that stress causes this condition. However, I have been otherwise assurred that stress does not cause this illness but that once you have it, stress can be a trigger for increased pain. I am currently on sick leave and am still in considerable pain so it is difficult to say whether my work is a factor in my on-going level of pain. I do enjoy my job but incresed pressures have made it difficult for all of the team to complete tasks as we would like to do and everyone in the team were feeling very stressed out prior to my sick leave. I always thought I had a high stress level but maybe my body is telling me that I need to slow down.....only time will tell! The one thing I do know is that I'm not ready to go back to work right now and I just hope that once I do return that the stress of my job doesn't have an impact on my TN!
One difficult part of my work is communication. My staff and MD know that if I stop mid-sentance it is because of a spasm. This is harder to (OK impossible) explain on the phone or face to face with a client. Stress is a major trigger for me, I work hard on managing it, I fully know what Red describes is true and do-able, I just rarely manage to do it!!
Do you mean rarely or "barely", Jackie? Just thought I'd ask... word-finding difficulty goes with the drugs, of course... (and gently ironic humor was intended here, of course).
Be well, Hon. Your grace as a moderator and supporter adds much to this place.
Regards, Red
Actually dear friend on reflection I think it's both!
You know you are always a star here in my eyes and we would all be lost without our Red!
Regards , Jackie
I've been lost on Laramie many times, Jackie... {:-)
My profession is not necessarily stressful - controller of a small company. That being said, my job is extremely stressful. My boss has a brain tumor and his memory, excitability and sometimes, thinking ability are compromised. Therefore, he expects myself and the accounting dept to pretty run his whole business. Because he has memory problems, he forgets what he has done or said on a daily basis and then gets mad at everyone when we point out that he told us to do something. He changes his mind constantly and gets these pretty crazy ideas for "projects" etc. Needless to say, keeping him operating in the black and accounting for all the daily changes and problems is overwhelming at times. I have been with this employer for over 10 years and I think the stress I have been under finally signaled my body to break down. I have wondered since I got this disorder whether stress wasn't a cause. I swear, I think it is. I asked one of my doctors once if this entire disorder were psychosomatic because I thought I had to be imagining this. It just couldn't be "real". Guess it could be worse, I could be the one with the brain tumor.
Sabrina,
Diagnosed in January 2007 with TN1, in late 2008, I attempted to return to my profession as a Licensed Nursing Assistant, only after toxic epidermal necrolysis, and after a failed MVD at a nursing facility that housed pedophile Priests.
I worked for about 3 weeks, at my most rewarding employ; it wasn't the "guys", it was and is, trigeminal.
Professions, I've had a few -Sinatra?
In regard to "Stress & TN", also avoiding triggers - Dr. He said, Dr. She said-LOL!
Working was much easier. My best, bob
I work long 12 or 14 hours shifts,early mornings and lates out of doors, in all weathers, searching freight for Customs and Immigration.
I have been on long term sick for this and another illness auto immune illness (the both came on within 5 weeks of each other). I have been to see occupational health and the report was very sympathetic to me. They have advised I work in doors to keep me out of the cold. Otherwise It was advised I would need to wear a balaclava and this is not allowed as it looks intimidating to the general public.
I will now be doing an office job rather then the job i was trained for, and will work with different people. I worked as part of a close knit team before. But I welcome these changes as I know there is no way I could have returned to work to work out in the cold. I may also be at risk of redundancy in the future (not sure if my medical condition protects me, but will look into that if that ever happens)
I am apprehensive of returning in case I have an attack at work, the embarrassment of what it will look like to others, its such an unusual strange condition that others are not used to seeing, I almost want to hide away and continue to go for walks alone like I do now, just mixing with family who understand and not return to work.
But I know I must try to return to the real world, it may do me good, although I am scared of the long hours and tiredness bringing on an attack, I return on the 3rd week in January.
I am a cook by trade in an institution. Temperature was my first identifiable trigger. I’d walk into a freezer then back out to open a freezer and be overwhelmed with pain. Any stress made it worse and intolerable. My diagnosis came 18mos. after the first battery of episodes. I am sure if I could change to a temperature controlled environment, the frequency of attacks would decrease. But now, no trigger is needed to be uncomfortable.
Thank you all for your responses! I agree and understand now how stress affects me and have incorporated lots of yoga, meditation and careful responses to anything stressful, all with great success. But I talk for a living, two radio shows and there have been days when my medication, meditations and such don't work. I ask because I'm thinking about going back to school to learn something that may keep me "quiet" for longer periods of time. lol!
Hi - I am a high tech exec with an extremely stressful job, but I would like to add that this is by choice not by any other ogranic method uncontrolled by me. I get very bored easily so it if is not some chaotic, super strategic, I just cant get out of bed. I find that if I can drown myself in some extremely intense work (or play), my mind will actually block out thoughts of TN (for a certain period of time). If I miss a dosage or 2 of my current meds cocktail I am doomed of course to a massive pain episode
I am a cop, obviously incredibly stressful. But, I had this God aweful condition wayyyyyy b4 this job. I am not sure it stress related, could be I supppos. What I am about to say is going to sound abosolutely rediculous BUT, i notice an increase in my symptoms (tics) as the moon phases change. Is that even possible ??
Hi Scubachic,
I believe it could have a possible affect. The moon does have a affect on the changing tides, anyway you have given me something interesting to think about.
Scott
scubachic said:
I am a cop, obviously incredibly stressful. But, I had this God aweful condition wayyyyyy b4 this job. I am not sure it stress related, could be I supppos. What I am about to say is going to sound abosolutely rediculous BUT, i notice an increase in my symptoms (tics) as the moon phases change. Is that even possible ??