I am not sure my pain is like others have posted. Maybe I just didn't read all of them. I am now 73 years of age. When I was in my early twenties when I would brush my teeth the left side of my throat would hurt, no bad but ache when he shouldn't be. Later my right side did the same. I could feel the bones poking me in my throat but didn't have a clue what it meant. I went to an EMT doctor and told him my symptoms a few years later. He looked at my throat and said it was my tonsils and they needed to come out. I was thirty when I had them out. It didn't help, just like I felt it wouldn't, but I'm not a doctor. Once I healed from having them out I knew it was not any better and that wasn't the problem. A few years later, I was feeling bad and running a low grade fever, let work and went to see a MD and told him my symptoms and he sent me to an oral surgeon. He ex-rayed my mouth and called his assistant in and really excited. He told me I had ES, which I had never heard of. He said I needed surgery and I said no. I could stand the discomfort and pain it wasn't so bad that I felt like I wanted surgery. He said that one day I would be begging for surgery. Fast forward December 29,2018. Approximately 40 years later. I have a high pain tolerance due to my different health problems but this is nerve pain and it is really bad. From the end of Dec. until sometime in June, I would hurt really bad everyday. I thought I was having cluster headaches because I have twice before, once in 2000 and once in 2006. Both of those episodes lasted about 6 weeks and I would have them at the same time everyday. It is horrible pain, they are called the suicide headaches. When this started I though it was another episodes of those headaches because they can come in cycles every six years. To get to the point they were not. The pain is the same kind but not as severe but they last longer. I went to a neurologist and he did an MRI just to check if it was being caused by something other than cluster headaches. They weren't. They finally stopped but now they have started back each day for the last three days. I couldn't figure it out and I didn't even mention ES to my neurologist because I wasn't associating it with this nerve pain. I knew the pain was some different because it is face, behind my ear and my neck. It is bad as well. It dawned on me to look ES up again because when I read about it there wasn't that much information on it. That is what it is but I don't want to have it done at my age. A person can't live like this because your quality of life is horrible and you never know when it will start. You fear going anywhere because you can't function while it is hurting. I just pray that they will stop. My heart goes out to anyone who is having this type of nerve pain. I am going to trust in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to give me the strength I need and to heal this pain.