4th nerve block??

[CGrace]

Hi all. I had a series of 3 pudendal nerve blocks. They all numbed my vulvar pain for about 24 hours. Then, the first one flared my pain. After that, I couldn't tell much with the other two blocks. However, about a month after the 3rd block I had a little bit of positive change in my vulvar pain. It's not quite as constant. So, I told my doctor and asked him if a 4th block might be worth trying and he said yes. Has anyone ever had a similar experience? Has anyone heard of having more than 3 blocks? Is it weird that I would experience some change 1 month after my last block? This is so confusing. I'm still having daily burning pain, and it still gets worse with activity and sitting. I just don't know . . . Thanks for any input. Also, I had my blocks about 4 and 5 weeks apart. I've read about having them 4-6 weeks apart. Is this how others are doing them? This fourth block will be longer than that because I have to travel out of state to my doctor. Thanks again for any input.

[Kara29]

I had 8 nerve blocks. Some of them were 2 weeks apart. The best one was done to the upper portion on my Pudendal Nerve. This shows my PNE Doc where I a pressed. I am going in May for Decompression Surgery in NH.

I hope the nerve blocks are successful for you..........

Kara

[CGrace]

Hi Kara,
Thank you for your reply. I figure it won't hurt to try it again since I had a slight result. However, by the time I can drive up to where they do them it will have been about 8 weeks since my 3rd block. Oh well. It's very hard to schedule. How did you respond to your blocks-how long did it stay numb? Did it have any lasting results for the pain after the numbing went away? I hope your decompression surgery goes well. What else did you doctor do to determine if you had PN? Just because the block numbs the right area-does that mean you might have it? Thanks! :)

[Kara29]

Great Questions!

How did you respond to your blocks-how long did it stay numb?

I responded only when the lidocane or whatever they were using was in my system I would say anywhere between 4-12 hours. Usually I got around 8 Hours with all of mine. See they were testing me. They'd do the block and they I would call the Doc the very next day and I would tell him exactly what went on with the block and he'd say YUP, that was the 8-12 hour block or YUP, that was the 4 hour block......but they would not tell me anything about it so that I would not have any preconcieved ideas about how long I was expecting it to work. It was kind of like a placebo study but not entirely.
I always got mine right on the head! My favorite one was the uppper portion of the Pudendal Nerve that they gave me a 12 hour long block. I would go home and read and relax with my family......I was SO HAPPY!!!! I wish it could feel like that all the time but there is no gurantee with anything because my case is so complicated.

Did it have any lasting results for the pain after the numbing went away?

No, I absolutely had NO lasting results that were good from those blocks. However I did have some trouble with my tailbone while we were experimenting with the blocks.........it took a year to go away. I was a mess, but they say it had nothing to do with the blocks and must have been due to the fact that I was watching American Idol on my grandparents floor and I was sitting on my tailbone for 2 hours, so I may have injured it on my own. That was the WORST PAIN and it took a year or so to go away. I still can't sit for long or I get the urge to pee so badly I want to scream so LOUD! I have pudendal nerve cushions all over the place but I try to limit my sitting to less than 30 minutes without the cushions, with the cushions, I can go a little longer.

What else did you doctor do to determine if you had PN? Just because the block numbs the right area-does that mean you might have it? I had to have the blocks, pelvic floor therapy, and a full physiological evaluation by Dr. Conway. I also had to have an EMG where they test to see if you have PN/PNE. My results came back inconclusive but nonetheless it was all information to gather. My symptoms when talking with Dr. C were all classic signs of PN/PNE and there is no gurantee that this surgery will do anything. I just hope it doesn't make me feel worse.....................

I'm kind of nervous about this but the good thing is that when I first met Dr. C, I would have been his 3rd patient and now that I've waitied, He's done over 150 Pudendal Nerve Decompressions, so he has way more experience behind him now! :smile tee

I know some people think I am nuts but I will and have tried it all for just a little bit of pain relief.

Just because the block numbs the right area-does that mean you might have it? This is true, the blocks are blocking a whole area in there that may overlap with other nerves and things down there so the block doesn't mean that its the be all to end all of diagnosing PNE.

:hi:Kara:hi:

[CGrace]

Thank you Kara for taking the time to share your story and answer my questions. It really helps to have someone to "compare notes with" on the nerve blocks. I just got back from having my 4th one done. He really hit on something when he did my right side because it was like a fireball going through all the vulva-more-so than with the past injections. Anyways, only time will tell. It has kind of stirred it up right now and it feels worse (the numbing is already gone). However, the same thing happened with my 1st block-my vulvar burning got even worse for a little while. Oh well, I'll have to wait and see.

I just wanted to say that you are amazing and have been through so much. I'll say a prayer that your surgery goes well. You just don't know if it will work until you try-but I really hope it provides you some relief.

Take care, and let us know how your surgery goes if you feel up to it.

Thanks again for taking the time to reply! ~CGrace :)