Hello, I have been developing , throbbing ear pain .. in my right ear.. where my TN is .. I have Tumors on my right side.. that causes my Tn... wasn't up till this past week that my ear started hurting...I'm on 30mg of Oxycontin twice a day.... 300mg of Gabapentin 3of those ,3 x a day... and it still hurts so bad , I have been crying , I refuse to go to the ER... they treat .. people with cronic pain like crap...
any suggestions on what I could do to help easy the pain....
Thanks Stormy
They say the rice in a sock or some such warmed up in the microwave works pretty good. I also think it would be a good idea to put in a call to your neurologist tomorrow.. it may be time for another mri. I hope you feel better soon!
((hugs)) Min
Stabbing pain in the ear can be more than one kind of thing. If ear infection has been eliminated, then geniculate neuralgia may be a possibility. It's a variant on TN, in a different section of the same nerve.
Overall, I'd say that your medication profile needs adjustment. If Gabapentin isn't helping you at 2700 mg per day, then addition of a low dose of Baclofen or Amitriptyline may be helpful. Alternately, some people are less sensitive to Trileptal side effects. Likewise: where exactly are the tumors and are they operable?
Regards and best,
Red
I don't think its a ear infection, My Tumors are on my right side at the base of my skull , sitting on the nerves... Which in turn cause my Trigeminal Neuralgia, So far I am Allergic to Amitriptyline and trileptal and most Meds for Trigeminal , which sucks big time.. I was also taking methadone at one time.. it was helping with the pain really well.... but my body said nope you can't take this.. I swelled up and was very itchy so my Doc took me off of that as well... Thanks min.. I think I have some of those heat packs left I'll try those .. I have already written my Dr ... but he probablly won't respond until monday... My Neurologist , told me to come back next year, and in the mean time have my regular dr. do proper pain management.... Heavy sigh
What specific kind of tumor are you dealing with, Stormy? In that area of your anatomy, my instinct would be that you might be one of the relatively few patients who can actually benefit from a Gamma Knife procedure -- to reduce the tumors, rather than put a lesion on the trigeminal nerve itself.
Regards, Red
I really don't remember what they called my tumors ...... I was to busy crying... because I really thought they would do something .. to help to releive my pain. Like remove the tumors ....instead of making me wait another year, and then we will revisit it with another MRI... and see what we can do then. I was very upset... because I don't to live life on drugs forever....
But the pain gives me no choice... I want to go out and drive my car, and be not afraid to eat in front of people or , to be scared to brush my teeth.... ect~
I do know they have told me that I also have Neurofibroma, thats where my body creates tumors involing nerve endings....
Back in July I had to have, a Thoracotomy , I had a huge cystic lesion , behind my windpipe.. also involing nerves.. I have nerve damage all along my right side .. and its almost been a year now .. I'm still in misery... I have had 3 nerve blocks so far.... for that...