Brian Kwon Acupuncture Trigeminal Neuralgia usually happens for women who are in their 40s and 50s. The symptoms usually show up around the mouth or all over the face with constant irregular nerve pain. It could happen with just a touch of wind or an object, or it could happen without any specific reason.
The severity of pain and the characteristic of pain vary as some individuals feel more achiness, whereas someone else might experience a stabbing or electric-shock-like pain
The western medicine approach for trigeminal neuralgia consists of surgery and medication. One of the most immediate/primary medications used is carbamazepine, which helps reduce nerve pain early on. However, with long-term intake that lasts more than 5 years, its effectiveness goes down. Carbamazepine also has some side-effects that include sleepiness, dizziness, and feeling or being sick. Other secondary medications include phenytoin, gabapentin, etc. If the medication doesn’t stop the pain caused by trigeminal neuralgia, surgery can also be performed.
In East Asian Medicine, we use a different approach by making one’s body to have improved blood and energy circulation. Acupuncture and herbs are used to regulate the autonomous nervous system so that your body can be stabilized and loosen up the muscles around the area where the nerve pain is so that you can alleviate the pressure.
I hope you take some time to consider all the options if you happen to have trigeminal neuralgia.
