Living with trigeminal neuralgia means managing a face that triggers attacks on light contact. Eating, dental care, shaving, cold air and even talking become planning problems, and medication needs taking consistently rather than as needed. Weight loss from avoiding eating is a real complication rather than a minor inconvenience, and worth reporting.
Living with trigeminal neuralgia means managing a face that triggers attacks on light contact. Eating, dental care, shaving, cold air and even talking become planning problems, and medication needs taking consistently rather than as needed. Weight loss from avoiding eating is a real complication rather than a minor inconvenience, and worth reporting.
Chewing frequently triggers attacks, and the result is genuine difficulty eating enough. Softer foods, smaller pieces, room temperature rather than hot or cold, chewing on the unaffected side, and using a straw all help. Weight loss from avoiding eating is a real complication worth mentioning to your clinician. Dental care is similarly difficult but cannot be abandoned: a soft or child-sized brush, lukewarm water, and telling the dentist about the diagnosis so appointments can be adapted.
Cold air and wind on the face are common triggers, which makes a scarf, high collar or face covering genuinely useful rather than cosmetic, and air conditioning worth redirecting away from the face. Shaving triggers attacks for many, and an electric razor or growing a beard are reasonable adaptations. Washing the face with lukewarm water and patting rather than rubbing helps. These are not trivial adjustments; they meaningfully reduce attack frequency.
Anti-seizure medications are the mainstay and work as regular preventives rather than as needed, so taking them consistently matters. Doses are increased gradually and side effects including drowsiness and unsteadiness often settle. Never stop abruptly. This is a condition with pain severe enough to affect mood substantially, and that deserves raising directly. If medication stops working or side effects become intolerable, procedural and surgical options exist and are evaluated at specialised centres; this practice performs no surgery.
Clinical Neurology Specialists has been physician-owned since 1998, when Leo Germin, M.D., FAANEM founded it. Five board-certified neurologists and four advanced practice providers see patients at the Las Vegas and Henderson offices, each with its own AANEM-accredited electrodiagnostic laboratory.
Clinical Neurology Specialists is an adult outpatient neurology practice for patients 18 and older. The practice performs no surgery and operates no imaging suite, infusion suite or interventional pain programme, and provides no emergency or inpatient care.
Physician-reviewed. Reviewed by the physicians of Clinical Neurology Specialists — board-certified neurologists, AANEM-accredited electrodiagnostic laboratories, physician-owned since 1998. Reviewed 1 August 2026. This article is general education for adults 18 and older and is not a substitute for a consultation.
Sources and further reading: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; MedlinePlus: headache; American Academy of Neurology.
Adults 18 and older, at the Las Vegas and Henderson offices. Call 702-804-1212 or request an appointment online.