Hello,
I'm 15, female, and I can always remember being able to "click" and "crack" my joints (arms, legs, toes, fingers, knuckles, wrists, back etc), but recently my jaw clicking has become worse. It's really loud, so loud that you can hear it from the other end of a room clearly, and I've been told it sounds like my bone is breaking/dislocating. It also sometimes hurts, and I have this dull (though sometimes sharp) pain in the left side of my jaw (that's where it clicks) that goes up to my eye. Everyday I have sharp headaches, especially in my temple, that last for long periods of time. I also get back aches very often (everyday) and my back clicks constantly. I can only open my jaw about 3cm wide before it clicks and hurts, like it pops out of place, then when I'm closing my mouth again it "pops" back again (I can feel and hear this happening). I also have ringing in my ears and the left ear feels "buzzy" and achy. When it cracks I can also sometimes taste blood.
When I was about 9 I fell of my bike head-first over the handlebars onto the concrete outside my house and hit my chin really hard. I'm not sure if this could be a cause of the clicking and jaw pain. Also, my teeth don't really "sit" right, like my mouth is sort of lopsided and I grind them together subconsciously. I also grit my teeth a lot and move my jaw about without thinking. My cheeks and jaw hurt a lot, as well as my back and my head (on my back it's mostly in between the shoulder blades). I'm worried it will start locking or something.
Do you think this could be TMJ? Thank you.
~WelcomeToTheJungle