Ginger Vee My Chronic Life

I have Trigeminal Neuralgia, a chronic pain disorder affecting the Trigeminal nerve, due to head & face injuries I experienced when I was a kid. The nerve damage is all on my right side, and affects me daily.

TN is often referred to the “suicide disease” because it’s one of the most painful conditions known to man and there is no cure. It causes pain, numbness and swelling in my jaw, temple, forehead, cheek, eye, ear, inside my mouth, and down into my neck & collarbone; it ranges from stabbing/sharp lightning strike type pain to a blinding, throbbing pain.

Sometimes it gets so bad I can’t talk or close my mouth all the way, or chew/eat because my jaw hurts so intensely. There are many triggers, but I can’t avoid everything all the time, so I must do what I can to mitigate them and manage the inevitable pain.

I have ‘pain episodes’ that can last anywhere from 10 hours to 3 weeks, and they happen numerous times a month causing extreme nausea, hours upon hours of vomiting, the inability to open my eyes all the way, or even lift my head up off my pillow/heating pad or ice. I spent many years trying to hone in on a diagnosis that wasn’t “A-Typical Severe Chronic Migraine” and find a treatment plan that would give me some semblance of life, and once I knew what was wrong with me, it all made sense. I was able to do research and try new treatments, and I felt more understood because I was able to communicate my issues & symptoms better.

This nerve damage in my face is permanent and non-reversible and has a high likelihood that it’ll just continue to get worse as I grow older, but I don’t dwell on that. I just try to live my best life, be as active as I can be, take care of my body as best as I can, and manage my pain as naturally as possible. It might be a Chronic Life, but it’s a happy life. Everyday I’m grateful for what I am capable of and I don’t fret over what I can’t do.