Of course you can't kill yourself. Yes, I had that thought too many times the first 3 years of having this nightmare called tmj. The pain is unbelievable and few people understand or even care that the pain is so bad. 25 years ago when I woke up one morning with excruciating pain, tmj was considered a "new" and highly misunderstood dysfunction.
Sadly that even though tmj is not new anymore, too many doctors and dentists have no idea what to do. You go to a doctor with earaches or sore throats or headaches and not one doctor will even think you might have tmj, but yet they'll say nothing is wrong with you and even tell you that it's all in your head (no pun intended) if you complain too much about different pains in the head and to see therapy.

Don't let tmj defeat you. There is a lot that can be done and the fact that there is the internet with good information and a few very good support groups is wonderful. If you have just been diagnosed with tmj there is a good possibility that you will be "cured" or at least manageable.

Do you know what caused or started your tmj? Was it the braces? Do you still have the braces on? If the answer is yes to these questions, be patient. Your jaw is going through changes and trying to find its correct balanced bite. Do not remove the braces until your bite is balanced and pain-free. This might sound overly critical, but if your current orthodontist doesn't seem to know how to balance your bite adjusting the braces, etc., go to a different one.

A bite splint can possibly be a big help for you now whether you have braces on or not. All your other questions and points are also tmj symptoms - earaches or fullness; pain anywhere possible in the head, neck and shoulders (and even back); swollen sinuses can aggravate tmj and vice versus. I used to frequently take sudafed or actifed to help my tmj.

And as for your last paragraph, tmj zaps me of energy which has made me feel that my health has never been "good" my whole life. It can be very depressing and when I finally started taking anti-depressants, it helped my tmj pain and general health at least for a few years. Now, i'm just getting older and my body isn't liking it.

There are things you can do now to help yourself - use lots of moist heat, and even ice helps. I use both frequently. Go on a soft food diet for the next several weeks or months, do not chew gum or ice, don't open your mouth too wide, be gentle to the jaws, and sleep on a good cervical pillow. Ask your ortho, dentist or doctor for a script of valium for a few weeks to relax your jaw while sleeping. Ibuprofen seems to be the better pain reliever if you can take it (take with food though), go to a massage therapist regularly who is trained in tmj or ask your doctor for a referral to a physical therapist (again, make sure they are trained in tmj). Watch your posture especially in front of the computer, do lots of research on the internet and there are a few excellent books on tmj with good information, and check out the website nismat.Org/ptcor/tmj/ for just some good general information.

That's a lot of information to give you for not being sure what your circumstances are. I hope you can filter out what you can use to help you, but one thing again - I personally do recommend bite splints for sleeping.

Take care of yourself and remember, suicide is not even an option. Life has so much going on and there's so much we can do if we want that you don't want to miss anything. And aren't you curious what might happen tomorrow or next year? You just want the pain to go away. So do it. But be pro-active to help yourself control that pain. Do anything and everything that you can possibly do to help yourself. One thing I didn't mention before is to check out a pain doctor or clini or even neurologist if your ortho, dentist or family doctor can't help you control the pain. Don't give up!!!! Fight!

God bless...
Carol

Thanks very much.

No, I never had braces. The ortho said my bite actually wasnt that bad.

I have gone on a new diet of softer stuff. Thats for sure. My mom seems to think it'd be useless to get a splint. She said it owuldnt do anything because I control what I do with teeth or whatever.

Grrr. I duno if I can defeat this. Sometimes its so bad I wanna give up. Feels like im walking on air and im lightheaded. Ugh. The fact that I have daily allergies and sinuses makes my whole head a living hell. I work at walmart and my sinuses always go to hell in there. Work there 39 hours a week.

Well time to go to sleep I guess and wake up to another miserable day...

Kevin,
what made you go to an orthodontist instead of a doctor or dentist? Is the orthodonist highly trained in tmj? You need to get the right treatment now before any damage may occur. The bite splint really is the next step. If your mother won't listen to you, have your orthodonist speak with her. We cannot control what our mouth and teeth do when we sleep. It is impossible. One recommendation though, if you are popping your jaw, stop. If you are doing so, it may feel like you have to, but somehow, don't. It will damage your joint. Work at relaxing your jaw, neck and shoulder muscles. Use moist heat to help relax.

Grinding and clenching is the biggest reason for your pain. The bite splint is to help stop that problem by balancing your bite and taking pressure off your jaw joints. If anyone needs proof, ask to have an mri taken of your tmjs. Whereas these images might show your discs are where they belong (you can still have tmj though), they are the only reliable "x-rays" that show what is going on with your jaws.

I will tell you that stress is the worst thing there is for tmj. If you are feeling stress, your body gets uptight even without you knowing it and stress really takes it out on your body at night while sleeping. That's why I mentioned valium, but also an anti-depressant might help or a muscle relaxant. Also, the moist heat or ice that I mentioned just before bed will be a great help for you.

I pray that you will get the help you need. Again, I stress researching and finding out everything and anything you can about tmj. There is a lot of bad information and bad doctors, but there is also lots of good stuff and you will need to know what will help you. Tmj friends and tmj talk are two great support groups. Questions are important, so don't hesitate to ask them.

Take care and god bless...
Carol

My family doctor said to go to an orthodontist. My dentist isnt very trained in that area. My aunt whos a dentist assistant said I should get a splint. Ortho said I probly dont grind because I told him its worse as the day goes on. Today it sucked. Numb pain in face again and pain in back of head and neck. I hear like a sand paper sound when I turn my neck. It doesnt sound like that much but I was so grouchy at work because of it. Add sinus pressure and allergies and I mgood to go. Im on so many herbs its not funny...

Take me god....

Let me tell you. I had braces once, then again. I actually had cartliage cut out and my teeth banded shut for healing for tmj. Also, I know that advil dosn't help any!!!! I may need a surgery on my other jaw, but rightr now my dentist gives me fiornal---(miracle___caffine and codine) it kicks the discomfort (not the popping and grinding) and I wear invisalines, that keeps my teeth and my bite where it needs to be. I had my braces removed last july. Azfter about 4 months, I ws suffering again. Try for the perscription meds for the days the pain is very intense and maybe start of wirh a mouth guard you can wear in your sleep. Unconsioncly. We tend to grind or put pressure on our teeth. My oral surgeon says we do it without even knowing, but in reality, out teeth (tops and bottoms) should never touch!!!!

Kevin - find a tmj specialist and a massage therapist now. My life was hell the first few years I developed tmj and I came very close to ending it. I wish someone had told me to go to the two types of people I just mentioned - tmj specialist and massage therapist.

A tmj specialist who spends a lot of time treating tmj patients, not just a few patients and not only make bite splints or insist on braces or surgery.

A massage therapist who will dig for those pressure points and even work inside your mouth and then relax you before you leave. Be picky who you go to. Remember tmj trained or craniosacral work but no therapist who is fluffy-fluff as I call them. Physical therapists can help also but again, you have to make sure they know tmj.

Do it now kevin for your sanity. Take control of your life and health. No one knows what tmj is like unless they have had it. Work and learn how to relax even amongst the stress and pain. Go to a doctor and get an anti-depressant (not just for depression, help pain also), muscle relaxant, or pain medications, or anything that will help you. Fight this.

Carol

(yes, tmj pain can and does get worse during the day even when we grind or clench at night. It means the stressors of the day are catching up to the body and the two together will cause pain.)

Um,

whats wrong with going to ortho? He has treated tmj. He said his idea of the 7 days thing has worked for people and they never come back,of course if they do he can do splint.

What would I say if I made appoinment with doc? That I just need a pain reliever for tmj?

I currently have no insurance but might be gettin some soon..

Hi kevin, I sent you a long posting 2 days ago answering your questions and it just disappeared into computer lala land. I don't think I can remember all I said. The gist was - nothing wrong with going to an orthodontist for tmj. I've had orthodontists make bite splints for me in the past. They are limited, though, in the treatments they can offer to tmj patients.

Ask him what he is going to do about helping you manage the pain now (pain medications, ultrasound, tens, accupuncture, etc.)? Does he refer patients to pain clinics or pain doctors? Is he going to refer you to a physical therapist? Are bite splints and braces the only thing he does to help tmj patients. Does he adjust the bite splint? What will he recommend if the bite splint doesn't help?

I just think it would be a good idea for you to get a 2nd and even 3rd opinions from a tmj specialist, someone who treats a lot of tmj patients in his practice. It seems like any dental person is now making bite splints, but there are several different kinds for different purposes. And bite splints are only as good as the maker and if you have the right type.

Getting pain medication from doctors can be very difficult. It is much easier if your tmj doctor either writes the prescriptions or refers you to a pain doctor or even works with your family doctor. If you have a family doctor, you could try and tell him how you are suffering and why and see what he might prescribe. But a tmj doctor would actually be able to say you need valium or a muscle relaxer or an anti-depressant/anxiety for possible grinding at night. I did not start to use pain medication until several years after I suffered in hell. I had done a lot of research and it still took basically begging and breaking down crying before my family doctor started to help. I don't have good tmj specialists in my area so I have to basically make the decisions for treatment. My dentist is pretty cooperative there (he doesn't know what else to do). It took my family doctor and me 2 years to find a neurologist in my area who finally agreed to be my pain doctor even though he doesn't know much about tmj. All other pain doctors would not touch me because I had tmj (not a bad back, etc.) tmj is that unusual of a dysfunction that even the "experts" and specialists really don't have the answer and many times won't even try to help. We are like guinea pigs or mice in a lab cage. One thing might help me and hurt you. You have to research and know everything you can find out about tmj because most of even the "specialists" won't know everything.

You have not told me how you got tmj or what happened when you first started having pain. That can make a big difference in how to treat tmj. And how long you have had tmj? If you are a "newbie," there is such a good chance of being "cured" if the right treatment is found if there is no damage done yet to the disc or bone, etc.

And then there is money. It can be a big issue for tmj patients. You have to find a good reputable doctor but there will be costs. That's one reason it would be nice to try and catch this before damage occurs. But you have to do it if you want to live a decent quality of life. Borrow, ask to pay monthly payments, pray that your insurance will pay for some of the costs when you get it (many won't). You can't let money (or lack of money) stop you from getting the help you need.

Kevin, sadly it just keeps going and going. I'm really trying to help you not go through the 25 years of hell that I have been living. Yes, I have had thankfully lots of pain-free times which allowed me to have a life, but I could have had and still have a much better quality of life in my eyes had I been treated correctly at the beginning. I'd also have a lot more money. Long term tmj almost totally controls your life and you don't want that.

Sheesh, I know this posting is different than my original lost in space posting, but I hope I have answered your questions. And please, I would really like to know the how, what and how long that I asked 3 paragraphs above about the beginning of all this. It might help me suggest different things. You just never know with tmj.

Now, hang in there and fight for your health. It's your body. No one cares for your health as much as you do and that's why you have to be knowledgeable and in charge.

Carol

Tmj is only one of my probs..If you see this thread ull see I got some disease or disorder...


Http://ehealthforum.Com/health/topic55578. Html

Hiya,

for me a splint was a miracle having suffered migraines for years which suddenly increased in frequency as did ear infections a facial surgeon diagnosed tmj and ordered a splint, that was bout 5 years ago , I have had 1 or 2 severe migraines since wearing the splint. ( but be careful wen getting the splint that it fits properly) duh me didnt notice a problem with this new one I got till id worn it for a week then discovered why I was getting neck n shoulder pain ( id never had before with tmj) the splint wasnt right.
Its fixed but I think damage is done.