Re: [TMIC] pain

[luthyen]

Could your neuro be meaning that the pain is ongoing from damage to the spinal cord, and not continuing TM?  Certainly TM does cause Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) which causes the sort of nerve pain that you describe. Refer your neuro to http://www.myelitis.org/abouttm.htm This is the location of  Dr. Kerr's chapter on TM. In it, he states that pain is an ongoing feature in up to 40% of those with TM, and describes methods of treatment. Personally, I think that the 40% figure might be a little low..but our sample may be skewed by the fact that those without pain may not need to find their way to this group.  TM causes spinal cord injury, and spinal cord injury can result in pain. Also from the website, in discussing the rehab of patients with TM, Dr. Charles Levy says, "Nerve pain from the spinal cord is sometimes called "dysasthetic pain". Because of the SCI due to TM, nerve messages traveling through the spinal cord may become scrambled and misinterpreted by the brain as pain. Besides the treatments listed above, certain antidepressants such as amitriptyline (Elavil), or anticonvulsants, such as carbamazepine, phenytoin, or gabapentin (Tegretol, Dilantin, Neurontin) may be helpful. Stress and depression should also be addressed since these conditions make pain harder to tolerate. Have you had any of these medications tried? Currently I'm being treated with trileptal instead of carbamazepine. Trileptal is related to tegretol, but is much kinder to the liver. Trileptal relieves that itching on the inside, deep sunburn-ey ache of nerve pain. The pain caused by the fan-dysasthetic pain-is that caused by the scrambled signals. I experience it in my arms and hands, and the trileptal helps significantly for me. I've also found that wearing a light, gauzy shirt will block the breeze and keep me comfortable. Personally, I'd recommend something less invasive than spinal nerve block to start, particularly if you have had no treatment of the pain. There are lots of other options, discussed on the TM web site. Good luck! Please let us know how you do! Sam [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: My new neuro in the pain clinic is telling me that PAIN does not continue following the first episode of TM.  I was diagnosed over a year ago and I have had pain from my waist down ever since.  I have burning, aching, itching, and my skin hurts so bad that the breeze from the ceiling fan even hurts.  She is trying to tell me that my pain is not TM.  She wants to do a nerve block in my spine, I demyelinated at T9-T10.  Please help me.  Do any of you still have pain for this long, or maybe longer? Teresa Bain Ferrell