I've read quite a few discussions, blog posts and articles about people with TN controlling their pain attacks through diets.
I've only had pain attacks since October and can very much be considered a TN "newbie". But from what I have observed most (but not all) of my attacks came after binge eating by me, especially of junk food or very hot food.
Regulating and controlling my diet (but still eating healthy and making sure all the vitamins and nutrient requirements are met) has helped me limit the pain attacks but not eliminate pain completely.
I'm going to observe myself for a few weeks, especially weekends when I tend to eat a lot of crap.
And at the end I hope to document a diet / lifestyle composition that helps me control my pain.
If anybody has had similar experiences, I'm eager to read about it! (-:
- Sri
PS: I am not taking any exotic diets / medicines etc. but just regular stuff available in any typical supermarket.
I have had occasional TN for 8 years. After a bad, for me, bout, I found a diet recommended on a TN site which I have followed for 2 1/2 years which I believe has helped reduce the incidence of TN. Very simple. I limit my saturated fat to less than 5 grams a day. Period. It has also helped my weight and cholesterol.
Breakfast- 1/2 cup oatmeal with raisins, Svelty non-fat milk powder 350 calories, .5 grams sat fat
Lunch- Sandwich with turkey ham, low-fat mayo, low-fat chips 400 calories 1 gram sat fat
Snack- Non-fat fig bars 200 cal 0 grams sat fat
Supper- Potatoes with veggies 300 cal .5 gram sat fat
Dessert- Smoothie with fruit, non-fat yogurt 200 cal 0 gram sat fat
Sri,
That is a typical daily diet. My wife and I eat out a couple times a week, so I can eat more calories and sat fat and still stay under my target of < 5 grams saturated fat per day. I rarely eat candy, ice cream, nuts, butter, beef, have to find substitutes.
I've been on a no fat, no sugar diet since September and been having terrible TN pain this last week. So I'm not a believer that diet can help. Avoiding chewing gum and hard candy did help.
I've noticed after tracking for over 10 years that if I eat the 'wrong' foods within 24 to 48 hours my sinus's inflame and cause great distress including very sharp pain in nasal bone (I assume this is an inflammation of the trigeminal in this area); other effects are a progression of pain from frontal sinus area to back of head to total bodily debilitation lasting for a period of about 7-10 hours. I assume that once the trigeminal is what I call 'activated' or inflamed the activation travels along the path of the trigeminal to the base of brain and then into the brain in the form of a migraine type attack.
what I have done and continually do daily to avoid the trigeminal from 'activating' as above is to rinse out my sinus passages with saline rinse, up to 3 times daily. I usually make up the saline rinse from ordinary table salt in boiling water and allow it to cool.
Also i've found that black coffee helps to relieve the trigeminal. I've formed the theory that the coffee is reducing the blood vessels which is reducing whatever pressure is being physically put on the trigeminal from the expanded blood vessels (i suspect the lining of the sinus cavities is expanded).
For me the 'wrong' foods include biscuits of any type, pastry, most white bread, chocolate (I used to be a chocaholic).
thanks so much for this! i noticed when off of carbs my whole body feels so much better. i added vitamin b stress complex because i read where this helps support the immune system and we all could use this but more so when fighting a chronic condition when you get worn down from pain attacking your body.
i also had a huge vitamin d def. do all trigemnial/facial pain patients have this? well i did read pain meds can drain your body of d, and so many of us work or worked indoors, and when you are in pain with this facial stuff you tend to not be out in wind, cold air, etc. so lack of sunlight can be an issue with tn. but you really need to get tested for d levels first so dr. knows your base number and if deficiency. than he can form a plan of action to get it in the new norm levels of at least 30-50. so know your d number. it is a simple lab blood test very minimal charge. think mine was $25.00 some years ago but worth every penny. i still crave milk and my number is currently 44 so leads me to believe meds are causing part of def. of course i am not a dr. just stating what has helped me.
just doing one day at a time and learning what helps and doesn't is such a process but if shared with others and gradually seeing improvements than it is worth taking each day one at a time!
i checked into this and it seems to have some benefits for type 1 but not atypcial.
Frank Simons said:
Breakfast- 1/2 cup oatmeal with raisins, Svelty non-fat milk powder 350 calories, .5 grams sat fat
Lunch- Sandwich with turkey ham, low-fat mayo, low-fat chips 400 calories 1 gram sat fat
Snack- Non-fat fig bars 200 cal 0 grams sat fat
Supper- Potatoes with veggies 300 cal .5 gram sat fat
Dessert- Smoothie with fruit, non-fat yogurt 200 cal 0 gram sat fat
Sri,
That is a typical daily diet. My wife and I eat out a couple times a week, so I can eat more calories and sat fat and still stay under my target of < 5 grams saturated fat per day. I rarely eat candy, ice cream, nuts, butter, beef, have to find substitutes.
I have a typical TN & find my symptoms are somewhat worse when I eat very unhealthy (especially high fat diet0. the change is not dramatic, but enough for me to notice.
I am a newbie to TN, but it seems to run in the family as both my mom and two of her brothers have it. I was in intense pain for two months and decided to approach it holistically as I believe everything I had going on was connected…stress, hormones, thyroid…TN. I increased my meditation practice, balanced my hormones with macca and ashwaganda, took weekly B12 shots, acupuncture and went gluten free (to reduce inflammation). The pain reduced almost completely. Then started acupressure with stim in the TN area and got inflamed again. So decided to take Lyrica for two days and stop the stim but keep up the other things and I have been pain free for a month with no meds.
I am a strong believer in seeking out the source of any ailment and for me, it was stress and gluten. Wishing you all the best to find your way to pain free.
Hi Sri
I’ve had TN for four years. There is no doubt that certain foods are major triggers: anything spicy or highly seasoned, vinegar, anything acidic, sweets, alcohol, the list goes on. I do avoid the acidic and spicy because they trigger right away, but tend to go soft on the sweets and chocolate…it’s hard to give up everything all the time. I also feel better when I watch the gluten but that is only part of the problem.
Food is just part of a bundle of things that make me worse. Avoiding everything would be avoiding life. I make calculated judgements about what I can handle and what I need to do to feel alive.
I had an MVD in September which has helped quite a bit. I had compressions on both the fifth and seventh. I also have an offending artery snaking in and around the root entry zone of the ninth that can’t be decompressed so am considering having it cut.
My recommendation is to keep a journal of your pain and the likely culprits that make it worse. You’ll be able to figure out what to do…as much as you can.
I think everyone has different experiences. For me nothing cold, it sends me into misery. Brushing my teeth with warm water helps but still sends me into a tail spin. Medications help a little bit but I am ready for surgery. I am in pain every day. The nerve is being compressed by a vessel and I have constant pain. I eat on my left side and try to make everything stay on that side. I do wish I could change my eating to stop the pain but I have it constantly with exacerbations.
There is a member here,not around lately,that had complete relief following a strict low acidic diet.It was a lot of work and planning,but he swore by it.When i was at my worse(TN1)i completely gave up coffee,sodas, and tea and i was certain it helped.
Thank you Erik for sharing the research. I read the article and am willing to try it. As a a ER nurse I work 3 days a week and the rest of the days are in bed recovering and gearing up my energy for work. This really takes a toll on our bodies. I have looked into new research and clinical trials and have been offered try a nasal spray that is suppose the numb the nerves. It is not invasive and I am thinking of doing it.
Don, a low acidic diet sounds great as well, I am trying the new diet Erik talked about and hope to get some relief soon. I have an appointment with a neurosurgeon next month to see what options he can offer. I just know that I, like all of you have that have this is horrible. I am glad to be part of this forum and can express myself with people who get it.
What is the name of the spray they are giving you? I have used ketorolac thomrthamine or sparix. It worked with in a few minuets to a hour from me. I forgot to use it the other week on the last ride. I also use ketorolac in the pill form. That helps a lot but takes a few days to a week to kick in. I also use percocet and stops the pain for a few hours with in an hour. Let me know the nasal spray you are going to try.