Hello, I have had Trigemial Neuralgia for 7 years however have had 3 years between the first few episodes i.e two months of TN then three years clear, back for three months, three years clear etc. However the it has only been eight months since the last episode and it has now reared its ugly head again. My neurologist has advised surgery for the past 5 years however as it subsides and I have had the three years free of pain I have been reluctant. I am currently having the aching and other symptoms though only one severe attack in the last few months. I am currently trying acupuncture so will see how we go. After my first treatment I had four days with no symptoms however the symptoms are back but manageable at the moment. I am worried that I will have a attack at work and I have changed jobs recently and now train 3-5 days per week instead of occasionally (restructure). What do I do if I have an attack when I am training a room full of people??? Someone on this site mentioned a card so I may put one together that I can give someone so if I have an attack while teaching I can give it to one of the student to call a break for ten minutes.
I know most of the literature states the pain is for a few seconds to a few minutes however I find when it is bad the first few minutes is excruciating then the next 30 minutes or so is just painful until the pain eventually subsides. This could be 15 mins to an hour. Thank you to everyone for all your comments on the site. I am still reading.