Hi Mando,

Welcome to NT but so sorry to hear MP brought you to us.

You are NOT alone but you may find this forum a bit inactive because many MP sufferers have it on a temporary basis. But then, there are a few of us that suffer with it for a lifetime.

If you ever want to chat about it, feel free to contact me.

Most of the people have come and gone but there are a few of us that remain.

One of the posters that left due to recovery, kept in touch with me after they had their LFCN removed. It took at least 6 months before ALL symptoms were gone. I guess it is like when one has an amputation and phantom limb pain of the missing limb.

The GOOD news, this person, has now totally recovered, is back to living a VERY full life and has resumed all the activities that MP had taken away.

Since your decompression was recent, I would not give up hope just yet. What does your doc say?

I know I would feel like the surgery was a failure if I still had pain after going through a decompression procedure, but based upon what I was told by others, and my own personal experiences (not with decompression or removal), some treatments do take time to produce the desired effects.

We are here if you wish to keep in touch. Welcome aboard but again sorry to hear of your suffering. You are NOT alone.

I also had my LFCN cut. after 20 years of dealing with MP. You need to use lidoderm patches. after shaving your leg.. it is what works. If you do not shave where that patch is, it is torture, the LFCN is the hair and the surface skin only, no matter how deep it feels in your leg. You need to deal with the agoraphobia now, the panic disorders from being isolated is making the pain worse, you need a good CBT at this point. Learn Biofeedback, and get in the pool and do Deep water Aerobics to get the weight off your hip so you can build up strength in your core! IT is the only thing that is going to make you feel better, even if they cut the nerve you will not feel better until you strengthen the core. and get the Hip Flexor out of atrophy and you can do it without putting pressure on the LFCN. You have to DO SOMETHING! Sitting there taking medicine can not fix this condition, surgery will not fix it either. I highly suggest contacting the Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program at the Cleveland Clinic. They treat people with MP from around the world with a 3 week program to give you back control of your life.

I'd like to just add that Aspercreme is now making an OTC lidocaine patch. It is 4% however, whereas the RX Lidoderms are 5%.

But the Aspercreme ones are affordable.

example:
Aspercreme with Lidocaine Patch, 5CT - CVS.com

I found with my years long severe MP, and daily use for 2 weeks put me into a remission. As long as I don't use heat on that leg/hip area, I stay in remission. Heat however triggers the nerve to fire again. So I rarely use my Lidoderms anymore. I never expected a remission of pain, but I guess it is possible for some people.