Trigeminal Neuralgia and Migraines

As I was saying in an earlier post, my doctors reckon I have Atypical Trigeminal Neuralgia and there seems to be a migraine element there too. So the Atypical TN bit I understand, but the migraine bit confuses me. 

Up until recently I believed that a migraine was a really bad headache that sent you to bed for a day or so and that was it. I have had these episodes in the past and I never realised that it could be connected to my TN pain. I was grilled while I was in hospital by countless doctors, but then a nurse came along with a different set of questions which shocked the hell out of me. Everything she said made sense! I suffered really bad headaches since my teens, the kind of headaches that make you vomit and send you to bed for a day or two. A migraine is not necessarily a headache, but it refers to nerves in the brain. The problem is that analgesic medications can make a migraine worse, so unless you are on preventative medication, you are in trouble.

I don't have those headaches as often anymore, but the nurse is convinced that some of my symptoms have a migraine and cluster headache aspect to it. She feels that once my migraine issues have been treated, it could in a way help my Trigeminal Neuralgia pain. Unfortunately she said that my pain will never go away, but she is confident that it can be reduced. I am awaiting an appointment with her boss, a specialist who may confirm the diagnosis. The Migraine diagnosis would certainly explain what has happened to my eye.

The statistics regarding migraines are staggering. It is a lot more common that I thought, but how many people with migraine symptoms have been misdiagnosed? Is there a Trigeminal Neuralgia element there too? There are several different types of migraine. 

They are:

• Migraine Without Aura
• Migraine With Aura
• Migraine Aura Without Headache
• Basilar Migraine
• Hemiplegic Migraine
• Ophthalmoplegic Migraine

There are so many doctors in the dark about TN that most facial pain is dismissed as a headache and thats that. It seems that we as patients need to do the research. 

I consider migraine and headaches as a horrific addition to my already hellish facial pain. Correct diagnosis is essential. 

If you are unhappy with a diagnosis, get a second, third and even fourth opinion. Nobody knows your body like you do, and you know when something isn't right. I have been fortunate so far with my doctors, but my battle has just begun. The medications have not even put a dent in my pain, and my symptoms are awful, and in addition to the facial pain, I have an eye with little vision, and a left arm that goes numb often and sometimes I lose the power in it. 

Here is the link to Migraine ireland's Website

Migraine Ireland