My Symptoms written 2012 by Toni Saunders...aka...tnnme

You really need to have imagination to following me on this trip.
Before you read below I do have to mention that I also been diagnosis with Vertigo, Bell Palsy and Tinnitus since 1996.
First let me say that my face and/or head (brain) has not been “normal” since my episode in July 2010.

Great days are when I feel the numbness on the right side of my face along with the muscle spams that goes back and forth on both sides of my head, but no pain.  Along with the numbness, it’s like someone hand is on my face and just pulling downwards and got stuck on my bottom lip!  Way too funny.
Good days are the symptoms above but the feeling on my forehead is like I just had Botox.
Also, my right eye, cheek and around the corner of my mouth has the sensation of Novocain! 
Every now and then a little zap just to make you say “ouch” under your breath.
Now that can be a little uncomfortable.

Not so good days, all of the above but with the muscle spasm feeling tighter, let’s loose and tighter, let’s loose with the squeezing of the face.Now I am not a happy person in those moments.  But it will pass.
Bad days are all the symptoms above but to the extreme. 
Time to pace, time to sing, time to pray, this too will pass.

In between bad days and very bad days sometime you can’t sleep.  I was bewildered on why it wakes me up in the middle of the night.  It’s like something say, wait till she goes to sleep, then ZAP!

Very bad days are the most excruciating  facial chronic pain.  It’s the feeling like being stab in the ear with an ice pick.
In the case of trigeminal neuralgia the affected nerves are responsible for sensing touch, temperature sensation and pressure sensationin the facial area from the jaw to the forehead. The disorder generally causes short episodes of excruciating chronic pain, usually for less than two minutes and usually only one side of the face. The chronic pain can be described in a variety of ways such as "stabbing," "sharp," "like lightning," "burning," and even "itchy". 
Along with electrical shocks to the brain, you don’t notice if the above symptoms are there or not because every fiber of your being is “begging” this pain to stop.  I will admit there were times I wish I could rip my face off or bang my head against a wall.  But I remind myself that those are negative thoughts. To get through the tough days I've learn to control my thoughts through meditation.  There is absolutely nothing you can do but go through it.  Sometimes it will stops as fast as it happens. It has passed too, for now….