I have suffered with post herpetic neuralgia since Febru...

I have suffered with post herpetic neuralgia since February 2001 when I contracted a bad case of shingles. The shingles affected my left hand side; I had a rash from groin to hip which also became infected.

The pain at the beginning was so severe that I could not function beyond it. It took up all my resources just to get through the day. One week after I contracted the initial shingles disease my mother had a stroke. She died within three weeks. I do not know if my emotional pain had anything to do with my subsequent long term neuralgia. My doctor did eventually prescribe famciclovir, but I think it was too late to prevent the phn. It was not until three months had passed without any great lessening of my pain that my doctor referred me to a specialist.

This doctor prescribed amytriptyline and gabapentin which I then continued to take for the next few years, along with 7.5mg dose zopiclone pills (later reduced to 3.75mg)when I really could not get to sleep. I developed an intolerance to the gabapentin eventually. Itchy skin rashes which burned, expecially when I went out in the sun.

A further specialist at the pain clinic I was referred to tried a couple of different drugs and I eventually found that clonazepam provided the same relief as the gabapentin but without the rashes. I am now developing an intolerance to this as well though.

I continue to take amytriptyline and have started cutting my clonazepam pills in half to try and cut down. Although the skin rashes have reduced the pain relief is also lessened and, whereas the evening and nightime (I suppose when my mind was less absorbed with work, etc) used to be my worst times, I am now finding myself increasingly distracted by the pain during the daytime.

I have a TENS machine which I often hook up to in the evenings but all I am really doing is swopping one sort of pain for another. I have to turn up the dial quite high for it to give me any sort of relief.

I don't know what my prognosis is. I sometimes think that the pills I take must be shortening my life but that I wouldn't really have a life without them.

I have been taking this cocktail of medication for five years now. I try different combinations and strengths. I try to get to a balance of maximum pain relief for minimum pill taking.

I have not been back to the pain relief clinic for over a year and my pills are on repeat prescription so I haven't seen my doctor either. Mentally I cope, just. I don't think that my pain has lessened that much since the first year, I have just got used to it - what else can I do.

If there are ever any new drugs or treatments which anyone wants to trial then I am more than willing to be a guinea pig. I've got nothing to lose.

[i:9522b81558]This message was automatically imported from the original Patient Experience[/i:9522b81558]

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