Tag Archives: Neuralgia

Revisiting Your Meds – Life With Burning Mouth Syndrome

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Medical FilesMany of us go through what I think of as the “thrashing stage” when we first start experiencing the pain of Burning Mouth Syndrome (BMS). It is a time of anger, sorrow, guilt, and confusion as we try to determine what is going on, why it happened, and what we can do about it. You may have thought, “If only I hadn’t done this, or if only that hadn’t happened…I would not be in pain.” It isn’t logical, but often, neither are we at this stage of our journey. Continue reading →

Burning Mouth & Neurologists

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Doctor Appointment for Burning Mouth SyndromeIt’s just about time for my yearly check-up with my Neurologist. I refer to him as #3, since that is how many I have gone through in over 8 years of dealing with Burning Mouth Syndrome (BMS).

Yes, you read me correctly…I am now at yearly check-ups. Continue reading →

Coping With Stress and BMS

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09a9aa5c07898aca806cc27863f79d20As you know, I have been dealing with Burning Mouth Syndrome for far longer than I ever thought possible.

I know there are those of you who are entering or have passed your second decade with this chronic pain and my heart goes out to you.

All of us who have dealt with BMS know that stress just makes it worse. We have seen the pattern again and again, and yet, life goes on.

I am considering a run for a local, elected office.

No stress there, right?

The urge to make a difference and be of value has trumped my hesitation to put myself out there and add stress to my life…so how will I handle it? Continue reading →

Something New – Burning Mouth Syndrome Support

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Burning Mouth Syndrome Support Icon8 years of chronic burning pain. The anniversary has passed, and so we start on the 9th year. 

I have always had this feeling that something good just might come out of all of this mess, and with the help of my friend Dennis from the Facebook Support Group for BMS, I think that “something good” may have made its appearance. Continue reading →

Gaming the Pain-Burning Mouth Syndrome

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Pensive Woman

If you are here for information about Burning Mouth Syndrome (BMS) and my journey with it, you are in the right place.

I am continuing the information I shared in “A Pattern of Pain – Burning Mouth Syndrome, so feel free to read that post first if you haven’t already.

I outlined my experience with Klonopin/Clonazepam ODT Dissolving wafers and how much better they seemed to manage my pain. This is still the case, but I wish I could tell you that I was completely out of pain, or better yet, in remission. Neither is true, unfortunately. I have good days and bad days, but fewer bad days than I used to.

A couple of months ago, I became curious about these bad days. They had become more sporadic, but why? What was different on those days that made my usual therapy nearly ineffective?

Continue reading →

Pain Puzzles – How Long to Solve Them?

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Anniversary Cake

As many of you know, I am very close to the 8th anniversary of my second bout with Burning Mouth Syndrome.

A friend I made on the Burning Mouth Syndrome (BMS) Facebook group page is named Dennis, and I have stayed in contact even after I left the group.

(Trolling is bad, boys and girls; don’t do it because people like me will not hang around for it!)

He became interested in the syndrome after his lovely wife was afflicted, and has been keeping up with research, traveling to multiple specialists, and keeping others informed about any progress toward finding a cause or a cure, no matter how tangential it might be.

He shared a recent article with me about endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER stress) and the possible linkage to neuropathic pain.

“Scientists at the University of California, Davis, have identified a key mechanism in neuropathic pain. The discovery could eventually benefit millions of patients with chronic pain from trauma, diabetes, shingles, multiple sclerosis, or other conditions that cause nerve damage.

Continue reading →

Burning Mouth…Impossible Choices

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May 2016 will officially be 8 years of burning. – No celebrations are planned.

If you have checked into this blog from time to time, you have seen me try all of the medicines and supplements and coping techniques that have come my way or been recommended by any of my Neurologists (three, so far).

Back in August 2015, I reported to you that the orally dissolving tablet form of Klonopin/Clonazepam seemed to really be making a difference for me. And it did…until it didn’t quite so much. To be fair, I recently started using a seasonal allergy spray called Dymista, and it tastes horrible. The bitter taste seemed to worsen my BMS symptoms immediately, and I didn’t think I could tolerate it. I learned how to apply it correctly, and that made it better, but since I have been using it, overall my burn has been much worse. Dymista works very well for my allergies by combining cortisone with a topical antihistamine, and I am breathing easily and clearly through the worst of a very heavy juniper/cedar pollination season in Central Texas, but increased burning seems to be the price I must pay for that.

What a decision – to burn or not to be able to breathe?

Continue reading →

Mother’s Day with Burning Mouth Syndrome

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Kali & GirlsToday is Mother’s Day. 

I have received cards and flowers and even a surprise Starbucks coffee from our daughter who lives near us. It is a good day, filled with memories of the two beautiful, bright babies who grew into incredibly cute and inquisitive toddlers, went through their individual awkward teen years, and came out the other side as stunning and brilliant young women. Continue reading →