I’ve had TMJ all my life, although it’s usually limited itself to cracking and popping on the left side with little or no pain. A few years ago, I did go through a spell of 5-9 months where my jaw was getting harder to open (and opening wide was totally out of the question), but it’s seemed to stop in the last few years. Still hadn’t experienced any huge pains from it.
Until about a month ago. Now whenever I chew, I get pains, sometimes, on the right side of my jaw, right in front of the ear (where the joint is). I already knew it was TMJ and when I went to the doctors, he just confirmed it.
Of course, there’s so many suggestions and possible solutions to try. Hard to know what one is the best, exactly.
What did you do for your TMJ?*
*I’m not asking for medical advice, I’ve already seen the doctor. Just asking for opinions on how certain dopers found relief.
I’ve been to both, actually. But there seems to be so many different ways of dealing with it that I was curious what paths others have chosen to deal with it.
I had trouble with my TMJ from the time I was 14 until I was 16 or so. I had pretty much constant trouble opening my mouth and it would hurt like hell when I tried to. For me it went away after I got braces (for my teeth, but the orthodontist did say it would help the TMJ). It hasnt come back since I got my them on, but I have just had them taken off (I’m 18 now). Fingers crossed it doesn’t come back.
I don’t know if something like that is an option for you, but it did the trick for me.
I’ve dealt with TMJ-like symptoms (including bite/jaw displacement) during really bad ear infections using ibuprofen, moist heat, and a hitachi massager (drape a hot wet washcloth over the massager head and rub the painful area). From some of the amateur research I did, I think a muscle relaxant would be a good way to treat the symptoms of a flare-up, if you can get a prescription to take it “as needed.”
But really it depends why yours is occurring. If you have a crooked bite then to permanently fix it, I think you need braces or dentures. If you have bruxism (involuntary teeth clenching) then the splint is a good idea.
I asked about the dentist because TMJ could be treated or corrected with a couple of visits.
I always get a ‘TMJ flare’ after a visit to the dentist from having my mouth open so long. (And if you have a dirty mind, yes, that too.) Extending your lower jaw out to pop it and applying ice/heat works for me. It’s about the best I can offer - unless you have a steady supply of muscle relaxants.
don’t chew gum, or eat chewy candy like caramels, taffy, Starburst fruit chews
don’t eat corn on the cob.
cut apples in pieces
don’t eat foods that require a lot of biting force (tough cuts of meat)
don’t play oboe.
I’ve got a mouth splint, like the one rachelellogram linked to. My dentist also advised me not to do “big” yawns, since that’s when problems usually occur.
I use a bite guard at night when I sleep. It prevents me from grinding, which is a cause of TMJ. The guard looks like a clear retainer. I understand you can get a more discreet one, but I have veneers on my front teeth and you’re not supposed to use certain types of bite guards with them.
Anyway, I used to wake up every morning to an awful headache on the sides of my neck, base of my skull and around my jaws. I haven’t had a grinding-related headache since I started using it.
The sucky thing is that my insurance doesn’t cover it, so I had to pay $600 out of pocket for it. But my dentist’s office was great about letting me pay half when they fitted me for it and half when I picked it up. I’m guessing some offices will let you have a payment plan.
I too have a bite guard. I wore it for a little while when I had my first really bad flare. It took care of the pain and it hasn’t returned. I still have the cracking and popping but it doesn’t hurt so I forget to wear it.
The last flare was when I had my wisdom teeth out, but I was too nervous to wear the thing for fear of causing dry socket. I think the popping and clicking has gotten worse since then: it still doesn’t hurt, but my jaw visibly pops and deviates when I open my mouth now, to the point that I was eating dinner with someone last week and they saw it happen and were aghast. I should probably start wearing the splint again, but I had this post-op infection that has taken two rounds of antibiotics to clear up, so I’ve been more preoccupied with my gum than my jaw.
Things I have tried:
[ul]
[li]Hard splint for my top teeth (worn at night)[/li][li]weird little “caps” (hard plastic) for my bottom teeth[/li][li]Flexible splint for my top teeth (worn at night)[/li][li]hard splint for my bottom teeth, to be worn all the time[/li][li]muscle relaxant (Flexeril)[/li][li]injections in the inside of my mouth at the joint[/li][li]injection into my jaw* through my frigging face*[/ul][/li]
Right now, I am doing more to deal with Atypical Trigeminal Neuraligia than the TMJD, so I’m wearing the bottom splint overnight, taking Flexeril a couple of times per week when things are really bad, and taking so much Advil and Aleve that I ended up in the ER, having eaten a hole through the lining of my stomach. I don’t recommend that last bit.
