Danielle, I am so sorry to read of the horrible pain and horrible experiences you have had. What a nightmare.

I have ATN that happened after dental work on the right side.

My symptoms are somewhat similar to yours. Much of my pain is in my right earl it feels like a huge hot potato is being shoved into my ear. I also have pain just outside of my ear, a little into the jaw area and behind the ear.

I often hear people with ATN complain of ear pain.

BTW, my ENT originally thought I had a TMJ problem. BUT, I had a TMJ problem on my left side and it was very different. I had a clicking sound and much less pain. To my shock, I called the TMJ assoc. And they said the less you do for TMJ, the better! Perhaps some muscle relaxers and an occasional neck massage...That's it!!!!

Back to ATN....your symptoms might very well be from ATN. Have you had an MRI? You really should see a neurologist. Lyrica, Neurontin and Elavil are all meds known to help with ATN.

I myself, rub a cream on my face. In the cream is Neurontin, lidocaine and capsaicin. I also take a med by mouth very similar to Elavil. This has been helpful, but I do have bad times....but less often.

If you haven't visited a neurologist yet, now is the time to try! And avoid surgery or any other drastic moves.

In the mean time, does a heating pad help a little? I usually got a little help by putting a heating pad on my face.

Please continue posting here, but also visit www.livingwithtn.org. Check out ATN and also Geniculate Neuralgia.

Fingers crossed that you get some pain relief soon!!!!