| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| winnieboo |
Posted - 09/16/2009 : 14:15:25
Hi all,
Haven't posted for awhile, but life has taken some turns! I previously posted with neck pain and a pinched nerve (that caused constant elbow tingling) from two bulging discs. I started with a Sarno-ish shrink in Jan 08 and the elbow pain vanished in July 08, which was about a year after the pain started. Still had the neck and shoulder pain (which I've learned is definitely tension for me), plus migraines and sinus infections to distract myself. FINALLY, this March, my neck pain pretty much vanished and I was feeling pretty excellent!
About that time, I told my psychiatrist that I wanted to segue out of regular appointments by the summer and she argued with me, giving me lots of "let's keep working on things, let's see how you do, etc." and I got ANGRY, but of course, my style is not to get angry publically, I just stuff it into my body apparently and it crops up as a new pain. Does it help that I know this about myself??
In any case, by June, I was still arguing with her. Why I didn't just pick up the phone in my office one day and say, "Thanks so much for everything, but I'm not coming back," I don't know. I'm almost ashamed of myself that I STILL CAN'T DO IT!
And the truth is, I really can't afford her. She is VERY expensive and I have to go out of pocket, then bill insurance, and going to someone in my insurance network is really the only option financially right now. YES I'VE TOLD HER THAT! (She says, let's just go like this for awhile, you can pay me after you're reimbursed)...
And I see that I am not getting to my point, which is: All summer I have had MOUTH symptoms. First a legit fungal infection from too many rounds of sinus infection antibiotics. This caused me to examine my mouth and then to focus my OCD on my mouth. I found several strange looking things, most of which were salivary glands, normal blood vessels, etc. and my doctors reassured me, but one small floating bump in my cheek was something that no doctor was 100% sure of, so a very respected and highly recommended oral surgeon performed a biopsy which he told me would be "no big deal." (It was pretty painful and I still don't feel normal two months later). It was benign, an "irritational fibroma." I also had my dentist replace three metal fillings (two on one side and one on the other), as my dentist was retiring and he's the only dentist I've ever trusted!
About a month after all the dental work and biopsy, I noticed that the left side of my tongue, adjacent to where I had the biopsy, was numbish. Not dead, just feels weird and sometimes it's burning and it often feels like it's too big for its space and I sometimes I bite it. The teeth on that side are sometimes sensitive and the left gums and cheek where the bump was removed also feel numbish. However, if I tap on the areas with a toothpick or q-tip, there's definitely feeling there. Very confusing!
When the sensation flares, it will last a couple of days and then settle down to where I won't notice it. It flares when I talk a lot and...I'm a singer! I was off from choir all summer, but last night I went back to my schedule and while singing, it was super uncomfortable. I was pissed! Angry that I, or the doctors, can't make sense of the symptoms, and at the same time, I feel like, "here I go again!"
I have checked this out with an ENT, the oral surgeon and the dentist. The surgeon says there's no way any nerve was severed and that I would have felt something IMMEDIATELY after the surgery, which I didn't (hmmmmmm....tms, right?). And then he added that it could be the trigeminal nerve acting up (since I have migraines he said) or a mini-stroke (thanks a lot, that's reassuring!) The dentist(the one who did the worked retired, so I can't talk to him)said there is no infection, everything looks healthy, but that the novacaine shots could possibly have done it; that it's possible for a bit of numbness to "wink" in and out for awhile but that it should resolve, especially since it's not severe and it has this "off and on" quality. The ENT thinks I could have sinus involvement and wants me to do a CAT scan. My GP wanted me to get an MRI back in June for my headaches but I didn't do it because the Sarno shrink who needs to be fired INSISTED that I not go through with it. I had an MRI two years ago and she thinks--I don't know what she thinks! That I will get too upset and OCD the situation if anything comes up, that's what she has implied. She also thinks my migraines are TMS-induced and that ordering an expensive test and exposing myself to more radiation (I thought MRI's did not involve radiation) is not the answer.
Sooooooooooo, here I am again, with a really annoying symptom in my mouth that I can't figure out, that the doctors can't figure out and honestly, I'm just almost ashamed that I'm going through something like this again. It's probably TMS!!!! But I have such a hard time reaching that conclusion, you know, because what if I miss something or the doctors miss something and I die, or worse yet, and this is really the fear, that I won't die but will just have to live with this annoying pain for the rest of my life. What if it's permanent is the thing...which is really ridiculous because when I shake myself and think about it, those chances are slim.
Anyway, if anyone else had had this, help would be appreciated. And thanks for listening. I cannot seem to tell a short story!
My take is that I'm having a panic attack about leaving therapy with this lady that I've never really connected to so well, and the panic is expressing itself as a pain in my mouth. I don't want to talk to her anymore!! I think that's why I'm back at the Forum!
|
| 4 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| RageSootheRatio |
Posted - 09/18/2009 : 14:18:30
winnieboo, the situation you have described with your psychiatrist is really not easy. If you are able to make a break for it, then congrats!! If, on the other hand, it is too difficult to "make a break for it" next time, even if it IS enraging, then that is also understandable and I empathize. I found an interesting book, "Resolving impasses in therapeutic relationships" by Sue Nathanson Elkind. There is an excerpt on google books.
I think it is wise to rule out other possible medical issues as you are doing!
|
| winnieboo |
Posted - 09/18/2009 : 10:17:11
Thank you Rage, Soothe...Yes, the therapist situation is enraging! I'm making a break for it at my next appointment. As for the symptoms, they're complicated and I hope they are TMS, but for now, my GP, who is well aware of my OCD, anxiety, and somatizing style, is urging me to see a neurologist regardless and rule out any medical issues. While my symptoms are new and she thinks related to oral surgery (and are hopefully temporary), I also have other neurological symptoms that she wants to make sure aren't connected. Sounds fair. In the meantime, I'm trying to stay calm, which on some days is easier than others.
|
| scd1833 |
Posted - 09/17/2009 : 19:15:11
I had the same kind of symptoms, tongue burning, and sensitivity for quite some time,(years) saw lots of MD's with no conclusive results.
it seems to have gone away for the most part. I suspect TMS, but can't really say for sure, but I AM a typical TMS personality |
| RageSootheRatio |
Posted - 09/16/2009 : 17:07:23
Not sure I can be very helpful, but I was dx'd with "Burning Tongue Syndrome" by a specialist. It is one of *those* types of dx (no known cause or cure). My primary care doctor thinks it is an allergy, and definitely oils and toast seem to aggravate/trigger symptoms. Gum helps. I really think "burning tongue syndrome" is just another way of saying TMS, actually! However, I've not been successful at "curing" this with the Sarno approach that was so helpful with my chronic sinus headaches. To be fair, I haven't given it the same amount of attention either, as it doesn't bother me THAT much nor does it get in the way of my life.
You seem to have come to some conclusions about your own tongue symptoms though:
>My take is that I'm having a panic attack about leaving therapy with this lady that I've never really connected to so well, and the panic is expressing itself as a pain in my mouth. I don't want to talk to her anymore!!
If you really don't want to talk to her anymore, but you still ARE talking to her, then that might be enraging. ;o)
|
|
|
