I know you are not a doctor or a dentist, and that I should see a medical professional, which I will. I am in the process of making an appointment with my dentist to ask him myself, but everybody’s closed for the holiday so I thought I’d poll the masses. I’m sure somebody here has been diagnosed with TMJ disorder, so any guidance as far as “yes these were my symptoms when I was diagnosed” or “no, I had these symptoms and it turned out to be X instead” would be very helpful.
Here are my symptoms:
Moderate to severe pain on the left side of my jaw
Difficulty biting down on food
Difficulty opening my mouth without pain
Dull aching pain most of the time even if I am not eating
Sharp piercing pain when I have to bite down
Painful popping in the jaw when I chew
Headaches only on the left side of my head
I have had a slight pain in my jaw for several years, but it seemed to go away periodically or at least not bother me very much. Lately it has been constant and very excruciating. I have not had any acute trauma to the area, and I do not regularly chew gum. If you have had TMJ, what were your treatment options and experiences with treatment?
I have it, and that sounds similar to my symptoms, except it sounds like your pain is more from biting down instead of opening your mouth like it is for me. When I open my mouth past a certain point I feel a very definite “click” (and if you had your hand on my cheek you’d feel it too) which I guess might be the same as you’re calling a “pop”. If I keep my mouth open like that for too long, it gets stuck.
I don’t really have any treatment options The doctors don’t care.
Look online for dentists that specialize in TMJD treatment in your area. Don’t just rely on your doctor or dentist. If you can get some referrals for a specific doctor, even better.
Treatment will probably not be covered on your insurance. It might be, but probably not. Be ready to pay for it.
I don’t have problems with my jaw locking up, at least not yet. And yes, most of my pain is from biting down rather than opening, but when I open my mouth there is a substantial amount of pain. Just not as much popping.
Probably because, generally speaking, insurance companies are bastards. Dental insurance is particularly crappy and if it falls under dental instead of medical, I can see how you would likely get screwed on it.
I have it - left side too. It used to get really bad in the winter for some reason*.
Few years ago, I went to see a myofascial/crainiofascial pain specialist who set me up with a custom splint (mouthguard) to wear at night. It is hard plastic, not soft rubber. He said that with rubber splint/mouthguards, people like me who clench their jaw at night, tend to chew on the rubber guard, making things worse.
*It was then that we figured out collectively that, during the winter I play broomball and wear a rubber mouth guard. I was constantly clenching/chewing on the guard during all my games. I stopped wearing the mouth guard and have never had a problem since.
I still have the hard plastic mouth guard, but I never wear it. I still experience popping, but I don’t have pain at all.
If you have a health plan, call them up to inquire about coverage for TMJ. Luckily, my plan covered it the same as any other health problem. Some plans don’t cover it at all, some have limits, etc. And if yours does cover it, ask about finding an in-network myofascial pain specialist.
Edit to add - TMJ treatment is generally considered medical, not dental - though plans vary. Treatment options can include splints/mouthguards to wear at night, physical therapy, and in some cases surgery.
Maybe! I’ve had similar symptoms from earaches too, though. My inner ear swells really bad and displaces my jaw. I thought it was TMJ for several months with referred pain to my ear, but turns out it was the other way around. I had a recurring ear infection. Took care of it with a course of antibiotics, and now I use topical oil of oregano (diluted with olive oil) pre-emptively when the left side of my jaw/ear region starts aching. Heads them off at the start, and no more jaw pain/clicking/displacement/pain while eating.
This is all good info, thanks. I have heard horror stories from people who had surgery to correct it, and pretty much nobody I know has good things to say about that option. It would be encouraging if some non-invasive option were available, or even if it were not TMJ at all.
Yup, sounds like TMJ to me. I get it on the right side. The popping and clicking is constant, but the pain chewing and the difficulty opening my mouth come only during flares, a couple times a year. In my experience, the flares eventually fade on their own after about a week, but that probably varies by person. The worst it ever felt was after wisdom tooth surgery when it felt like my jaw was actually dislocating. But that went away, too. Bite guards can help. Non-invasive, but not cheap.
I had a real problem with that too. After I had my surgery I was still kind of numb and woozy so I didn’t even realize my jaw was stuck open, but I just knew I felt extremely uncomfortable and in pain. Then once I realized what was happening I panicked. The dentist eventually came back in and manually shifted my jaw in the right way to make it go back in place. It hurt for a long time though.
Another time I got my jaw stuck open (I’ll leave it to the reader to imagine how) and was eventually able to imitate what the dentist did to get it shut. At first I thought I’d have to go to the ER over it and was really, REALLY not looking forward to explaining that one :eek:
Definitely sounds like TMJ (very close to my symptoms). My dentist made me a hard plastic mouth guard and it was like a miracle. I very seldom have discomfort and at each 6-month check up she takes a looks and adjusts it if need be. I would definitely see a dentist who knows about this stuff soon.
The doctors don’t care.