HWN Suggests

What It's Like to Live with One of the World's Most Painful Disorders

There's a good chance Miranda Kirsch has one of the most painful dating stories. When she was 18, she and her new beau Steven went to the movies to see Interstellar. Steven loved it, turning to Kirsch to get her every reaction.

"He's like, 'Aha, that's so great!' And I just kind of smiled," Kirsch told me. What she didn't tell him was that her face was burning with excruciating pain—"like a hot rod being stabbed in your eye while your face is being burned off with chemicals"—triggered by the movie's flickering lights and explosions.

This wasn't a random occurrence. It was a feeling Kirsch had felt off and on since she was three years old—a symptom of trigeminal neuralgia,…

read full article

Featured

 For My Twin Sister Who Fights Daily Battles With Trigeminal Neuralgia

As twins, we may be identical in nearly everything, but I will never be able to fully identify with my twin’s trigeminal neuralgia (TN) that she lives with.

Articles of Interest

The Science Behind Slurpees And 'Brain Freeze'

So what causes brain freeze, otherwise known simply as sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia? (Try saying that next time you are drinking a Slurpee.) No, the Slurpee does not actually travel up to your brain, unless you are drinking Slurpees the wrong way.

Dr. Peter J. Jannetta, Pioneering Neurosurgeon on Facial Pain, Dies at 84

A specialist in cranial nerve disorders, he was renowned in particular for having identified the minute culprit responsible for trigeminal neuralgia — a condition causing agonizing facial pain — and for developing a way to vanquish that culprit through microsurgery on the brain.

Facing Pain

The worst part of the disease, besides the pain itself, is the fear of the attacks, according to Dr. Argoff. "They come out of nowhere, and a person can have multiple attacks within the same day. It makes people grimace and jerk their head," he says.

Tic-douloureux

A French physician by the name of Nicolaus Andre in 1756 provided the term “tic douloureux”. Tic-douloureux, a chronic pain condition, also known as trigeminal neuralgia or simply referred to as a “tic” is a “severe, stabbing pain to one side of the face.

Trigeminal Neuralgia Surgery | Michelle's Story

Michelle's debilitating facial pain from trigeminal neuralgia prevented her from working, speaking with friends and family, and simple pleasures like cooking and cycling with her husband. Watch as her life has turned around following microvascular decompression surgery by Dr. Michael Lim.

Resources

25 Things People Living With Trigeminal Neuralgia Wish Others Understood

There are few rare diseases known that are as painful as trigeminal neuralgia (TN), a disorder of the fifth cranial trigeminal nerve. In fact, TN is often referred to as the most painful disease known to humankind. Many who live with it experience stabbing and throbbing pain throughout their face, which can be unpredictable and easily triggered. Because TN is so debilitating...

End Trigeminal Neuralgia

Trigeminal Neuralgia is such a cruel condition. It needs more awareness and we believe that together, with your help, we can achieve that. Please help by sharing our blog, and following and sharing posts from our Facebook page. Every little helps. If one more person understands about TN, then you have made a difference.

Facial Pain Association

Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is considered to be one of the most painful afflictions known to medical practice. The pain episodes last from a few seconds to as long as two minutes. These attacks can occur in quick succession or in volleys lasting as long as two hours. The “atypical” form of the disorder (called TN2), is characterized by constant aching, burning, stabbing pain of somewhat lower intensity than TN1. Both forms of pain may occur in the same person, sometimes at the same time.

The Facial Pain Research Foundation

The Facial Pain Research Foundation is funding the most innovative research projects to find a cure to end the pain. It now has an online program where you can support research by purchasing hours or minutes of research time in the laboratories.

Trigeminal Neuralgia Association Australia

Support and encouragement for sufferers of Trigeminal Neuralgia and related facial pain. Support for their families, friends and carers.

Trigeminal Neuralgia Association UK

WE ARE the Trigeminal Neuralgia Association UK (TNA UK). We provide information, support and encouragement to those who suffer this excruciatingly painful condition. Our aim is to raise awareness of TN within the medical community and the general public at large.

NHS

Trigeminal neuralgia is sudden, severe facial pain. It's often described as a sharp shooting pain or like having an electric shock in the jaw, teeth or gums. It usually happens in short, unpredictable attacks that can last from a few seconds to about 2 minutes. The attacks stop as suddenly as they start.

NINDS

Because there are a large number of conditions that can cause facial pain, TN can be difficult to diagnose. But finding the cause of the pain is important as the treatments for different types of pain may differ.

NORD

The most significant symptom of trigeminal neuralgia is recurring episodes of intense, short-lived spasms of pain of the lower portion of the face and the jaw. The nose is not infrequently affected.