WoW! THREE weeks?!? That's a long time to wait! I talked to my pain specialist about eing in pain when the freezing wore off and she told me to call any time I was in pain and tell the recptionist to just fit me in no matter what. She was as good as her word and I was able to do that more than once. She also gave me hydromorphone to take in between times if I needed it. It's helping to take the edge off. I see her weekly for freezing.

TOmorrow I am having a rhyzotomy and maybe that will help some. Have you had that at all? I am not looking forward to it (it's gonna hurt!) but maybe it will help.

I do hope you can get in sooner. Maybe ask about the cancellation list?
Sending sympathy!

I've had both, facet injections and direct blocks, and now the direct occipital block is a necessity when I get the facet blocks. The repeated steroid injections have helped to calm the ON down, but it's returning and they can only do three with steroids, so the last one will get done when the doctor does the rhizotomy. He is hoping that it will free up the muscles which are aggravating the occipital nerve as both the greater and lesser occipital nerves pass through the muscles of the neck and the vertebra. And if it doesn't, he's willing to burn the occipital nerve, but I haven't made my mind up about that one yet.

Hope the nerve block went well for you Jaime.

Thinking of you.

Had my nerve block yesterday. It was nice not to feel any head pain for a few hours, but after he pressed on my neck in different places and my shoulders, and did these tests on my left arm, to test sensitivity and if I have any weakness in the arm and not just the nerve pain...it has mostly come good, thankfully. Today it all aches! lol
I've had 5 blocks now, and I've been lucky that they haven't cost me anything, but from now on I have to pay...I'm just glad I don't need them so often! lol

~Jaime~

glad the blocks are helping you jaime, do you have facial pain?
i`m having my 15th nerve block in the morning, they certainly help the back of my head. but i have this awful trigeminiel pain in my face the nerve blocks don`t touch this. I am on so many drugs don`t think they can give me any more. how do you feel after for 24 hrs after your block & how long does your head remain numb[ excuse the pun]
love sophia

So far, the block is helping. I don't have facial pain as in TN, but I do have some jaw pain. But I did have some dental work done last week, that took a while, and my jaw is still hurting from that.
With the nerve block, I feel numbness for 2-3 hours, then pain for the next 2 nights, when the numbness wears off, but the steroids usually kick in by the 3rd-4th day, after the 5th day, I usually feel good, with very little pain. My Neurologist believes my neuralgia may eventually go away, as it has lessened a bit over the last 2 years. But, it has always done that...it comes, then goes, then comes again! I'd like to believe him, but I don't think so! lol

~Jaime~

SO glad you are feeling better. THose nerve blocks certainly help, don't they? I had surgery 2 weeks ago now and it looks like it didn't work at all. I ended up having to see my GP on Friday last week because I was in so much pain I was crying and feeling really queasy. I could not get in to see my pain specialist-she was way over booked, so I was screwed.

My GP is great and while she didn't quite know what to do for me, she decided the best she could come up with was to put me on a high dose of oral steroids (prednisone) for 5 days and see if that made some of the swelling around the nerves go down and help the pain some. It seems to have, though I still have the ON headache going on. I am still taking hydromorphone and then sleeping pills because the steroids make me wired.

Supposed to see the pain specialist on Thursday and I imagine get another nerve block. I will probably be back to once a week injections again. Whoopie!

Where's our magic wands when we need them eh?

Anyway, sending you lots of understanding about how cruddy this is to deal with and again, so glad youw ere able to get your shot again.

hi glad your`r back jaime
i`v been away sometime too
glad the nerve blocks are still working for you
i have my 15th the end of may, glad i don`t have to pay for these.
sorry abought the arm & hope it`s improving.
jane sophia