Andy, I wondered if we'd ever hear from you again. Not that we wanted to hear because you were feeling rotten, it's just that once a pal always a pal and I often was curious about where PapaDrew had gotten to. Tough to have it all land on you again like a ton of bricks - it might be a little easier to take if you just eased your way into it. As for the meds, I think I'd opt for keeping the pain at bay. I find that I can operate quite well on the Trileptal and am not eager to have pain become the guiding feature of my life. The more I read about the workings of the brain and nervous system the less I want to get those little pain grooves in the brain dug any deeper. (I'm such an old lady - you kids all probably had plastic desks or something, but I still remember trying to work on my penmanship on a desk that had names and dates and doodles from a zillion years past engraved in the surface. That's how I think of my brain now.)

Get some relief and let yourself have time to consider what your next step is. We have a lot of people here now with experiences to share on the different treatments and outcomes. Meanwhile, hugs and kind thoughts, Nancy