TMJ - A Eureka moment!

[ErinKC]

I thought I'd share my story in hopes it may help some others. For 3 years I've been dealing with intermittent fullness and pain in my left ear that will last for weeks sometimes. I also started getting migraines on the left side of my head at the same time. I was 32 at the time and had never had either problem before. In the last few months it's been getting worse and more frequent, and I have been waking up with pain running down my neck/upper back, getting increasing twitching and tingling in my face, and pain and tingling in my teeth. Obviously all of this had me fairly worried.

I was put on antibiotics for a sinus infection 2 weeks ago, but after the meds the symptoms were still not totally gone. I'd gone to the dentist and endodontist thinking I needed a root canal. So, when the symptoms weren't completely gone after the antibiotics I went back to my dentist and doctor and FINALLY both of them independently said it was TMJ. I was both so happy and also so frustrated to hear this because I'd been bringing these issues up for years and no one had put it together. They both think all I need to get rid of these symptoms is a freaking night guard.

Also, both said stress an anxiety would be making it worse since it makes you clench your jaw and grind your teeth more.

So, I just thought for anyone with symptoms like this, TMJ is a really good thing to bring up to your doctor or dentist!

[MyNameIsTerry]

Glad to hear you have found a reason and can work on any HA doubting with this.

When I started a med, which greatly ramped up my anxiety for ages, I had about 6 months of Bruxism. My dentist worked it out from the symptoms and noticing signs of grinding on my back teeth. He worked out I was doing it in my sleep.

This is another symptom I have found decreases as your overall levels of anxiety decrease therefore there are some ways to tackle that indirectly that benefit you in all sorts of ways.

Also, there are exercises you can do which help with clenching/grinding. Has your dentist give you anything?

Mine said to try soft foods for a while and to do this exercise before bed:

1. With closed mouth, touch tongue to room of mouth.
2. Now open mouth wide.
3. Close and repeat.

It did help. He said it works on the muscles in the jaw.

I know what you mean about the headaches, I had them all the time. One sided jaw pain, couldn't fully open or close my teeth together/mouth open, sometimes neck pain, gum ache, tooth ache, etc.

Mine has been gone for a long time now. I avoided things like nightguards. I've had it come back for a few days once or twice and it has always been when my anxiety levels shot up over something.

The coordinator at the mental health group I used to attend went through the same. He said what worked for him was sleeping with his little finger in the corner of his mouth. Whether he now has a compulsive babies dummy habit now or thumb sucking problem, I couldn't say :biggrin:

My therapist said her boss went through it with his anxiety to the point his jaw muscles were looking a bit Arnold Schwarzenegger. :biggrin:

[ErinKC]

Thanks so much for all of that! Yes, my dentist said there are sure signs I'm grinding at night, and since I usually wake up with migraines rather than get them midday, this makes sense. I've been tracking my migraines with an app for a year and have never found a pattern or common trigger, which also makes sense now. My dentist only recommended the night guard for now, but I'm going to call the specialist my doctor recommended. I've been dealing with these issues so long I want a definitive diagnosis and treatment plan.

Funny enough, these are the only symptoms that didn't get my anxiety going - probably because that were/are all real. But, I'm so glad to have an answer. I've read that anxiety treatment is often one facet of TMJ treatment since it plays such a big role in jaw problems. My anxiety has been really high lately, which I'm sure is what made this act up so much. I just started seeing a new therapist so I look forward to discussing with her and coming up with some good relaxation plans to help.