Hi Rani,

Welcome and sorry you're here.

My first experiences were constant pain. These were not the lightening bolts, which sadly did come later, but the lesser pre-TN pains. They went on constantly and were unrelenting until they just decided to stop. I tried every pain med and nothing made it stop. I also tried numerous antibiotics, decongestants, and steroids as most of my early episodes presented as sinus problems and eye problems. Of course CT scans and exams were negative for any indication of eye or sinus problems. So, it wasn't until the second visit to my ENT that he suggested TN and it turned out that he was right. Its a difficult condition to diagnose and to treat and many docs don't really want to treat it. This is something I seem to be learning about currently.

Take care and follow up with as many docs as you need to. Also, MRI's are usually used to rule out other causes such as tumors or MS. They don't show the vessels or arteries which wrap around the nerve and cause the damage which leads to the nerves misfiring and causing pain.

EE