Hi everyone. I'm new to this site and I am sure that this has been discussed a million times so I do apologise, but how the heck do you wash your face? Has anyone come up with any ideas? I can't touch my right cheek even with the pads of my fingers without screaming.
Hi catwoman! I'm fairly new too. I have zero advice for you (sorry to get your hopes up). I have the same issue with brushing my teeth. I am so scared to brush my teeth, but I don't want to get cavities to then go to the dentist and get more TN pain triggered! What a tricky life we lead!!!
Can you handle water running over your face?? Sometimes we can't do all that we want to do but good enough really is good enough!
Hi LGHiker, no not really. It's not just the washing for we women, is it. I have had the teeth brushing thing too, where you're sobbing while you're doing it! Not good.
Try to figure out if triggering your pain is “directional”. I discovered that I could wash with downward movement but not upward or circular.
Sorry not much help here either. Like LGHiker, I would let water run down my face at that was on a good day. And brushing my teeth would have to be done in the shower as well. It hurt to much to bend over and dont get me started on trying on rinsing. Found it easier just to brush my teeth then shower. Its not a pretty picture but you have to do what you have to do. Sorry I was not of more help to you. But stay strong and it will pass. You have to stay calm because stress will set you off. Take care and get better soon.
Thanks, guys! The directional comment was a good one, I find that I have more sucess swiping up and too the left with a cleasing wipe. It freaks you out but when you think you're getting away with it then Pow!! Happy days.
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This was an earlier copy of a post that I wrote:
I went through an 8 day period where brushing was difficult. Lessons Learned: 1) I used a baby toothbrush 2) brush where you can and avoid the triggers. 3) floss where you can and avoid the triggers 4) I used baby toothpaste which you can swallow due to swishing caused pain 5) brush your tongue- this gave me a refreshed feeling 6) use toothpaste on a q-tip on the painful teeth. 7) I used mouthwash which I sipped through a straw and then let back through the straw when finished 8) I drank water after food and try to swish as much as possible 8) used non sugar breath strips 9) rub your painful teeth with your finger that has toothpaste10) use your tongue as much as possible as that saliva helps prevent tooth decay.
Remember to go very slow. If the tinniest portion can be brushed that is an accomplishment. On the painful part I switched to a q-tip with toothpaste. What I found is that there was more to brush without pain than I thought. At the worse point of my pain I probably spent a good half hour brushing my teeth. I would get all my brushing tools with the tinniest of toothpaste and a glass of water with a straw (because otherwise I would wiggle my mouth) and I would sit it my easy chair with the most relaxing of music. I gave myself really big mental "gold star" for this accomplishment each day! Obviously I must believe my brushing teeth is important! LOL.
Hope some of these ideas can help! Not being able to brush my teeth was worse than not be able to talk or eat solid food!!
Wishing you the best! Tina
PS Breath strips helps when all else fails
Thanks Tina, you're a star. At the moment brushing my teeth is OK although that hasn't always been the case. My lips, toungue, chin and inside my mouth are numb at the moment and not in a good way. It makes me very light headed as well.
Hi I’m new here but already trying to figure out how to wash my face and brush my teeth without triggering an attack. I am using prescription strength sensitive toothpaste and I add a little warm water to the mouthwash.
I saw someone else write earlier in this thread that bending over was a trigger. I am having that as well. Does anyone know why?
Hi Jenn - yes bending over for me, strenuous exercise and heat (as well as stress in general) triggered pain in my lower right check. I figured it was the blood vessels getting bigger that was touching the trigeminal nerve. Currently in pain remission for the last month thank goodness. Strangely touching my face did not trigger pain. But I could not eat, talk or brush my teeth.
Catwoman sorry for the numbness. The TN symptoms can be frustrating and disorienting. When in my last pain episode I was trying to narrow the pain to very distinct parts. So instead of my mouth I would think the lower bottom two molars. I was not sure where I was going with this mental exercise but some how it gave me more mental freedom to very specifically label what was was painful and what was not. Of course the pain shifted. One thing my Dad told me that helped was that this TN pain was not like most pain -- which is there because there is something physically wrong. TN is confused nerve signals, but nothing really life threatening. No sure why this helped but probably because I feared what the pain meant. But TN is sort of stupid pain, in the sense that there is nothing to fear but the pain itself. Which is enough. Not sure this rambling helps any but wanted to share. Sending you and everyone warm feelings of love and comfort. Tina
That makes sense about bending down. I am trying to just move real slow now. That seems to help a little.
Hi, Tina. I didn't think you were rambling at all, actually. I'm also wondering where this experience is going to take me. I started out with the pain in my lower jaw and two bottom molars, my toungue joined in the fun and now(at the moment at least) I can eat! But God help me if I forget and brush my face with the cord that holds my glasses around my neck at work. Fear of the pain is the most humbling, isn't it; it's like being tortured by your self!
Hello everyone! I also just started to get burning pain when I bend over. I’ve had tn for 6 months, this started about 3 weeks ago. Does that mean that it’s getting worse? Also my teeth are clicking together or jerking sideways as like a spasm? Did anyone else have this
Hello fellow sufferers:
This past summer my TN relapsed severely. While titrating up the dosage of my meds, I was in increasingly excruciating pain for about two months (finally went to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN). At the worst, I was in constant pain and could not even blink my eye on the side that was affected without having even worse stabs. My diet consisted of sipping liquids thru a straw and taking small bits of ice cream thru my carefully opened mouth that were then allowed to melt. I couldn't even turn my head or brush my hair. Walking softly jolted my whole body enough to make things worse. The only way I could talk or move my head any more than already described was to dig my fingernails into my face right along the rootline of my upper teeth or alongside my right nostril (great for my wrinkles!). Kind of like the old joke "why do you beat your head agains the wall? - because it feels so good when I quit!" I guess the "real" pain of this nail digging distracts the nerves from the TN false pain signals. Anyway, this technique also helped with tooth brushing an face washing. The other thing that helped with face washing was instead of wiping or scrubbing, was just to gently press a wet warm cloth against my face, repeatedly. My face was so sensitive that I couldn't even wipe the part that wasn't affected by TN - just the "pull" on any skin on any part of my head was enough to challenge that area that was attached to the nerve that was affected. Fortunately, the meds finally got up to an effective dose, so I can postpone a surgical intervention for a while longer. Best of luck to you! Cut out the caffeine and stress - that was really helpful for me at the margin, when the meds were finally beginning to take effect.
Thanks for that! I'm so very sorry you had to go through that though.
Hi Darlene, I think because of the nature of the TN condition I would not label your condition as worse, but rather as changing. The pain may come and go and change but the condition other than the pain it causes, is not worse necessarily in the case of TN. In other words the symptom of pain directly reflect TN seriousness.
Also you might want to follow this link on hemifacial spasms.. It says in rare cases TN can be found with hemifacial spasms.. http://www.nspc.com/hemifacialspasm.html Also both cases may show a link with MS or tumors so you will want to be sure your neurologist rules these out.Just be calm as possible about your changing symptoms. I fear the stress and fear in our early days of TN just compounds the problems (as that I am about 6 months in as well). Think of this as a marathon not a sprint. Hope this helps! Tina
Thank you Tina, any info I can get helps.