Have you been to a dentist yet and gotten diagnosed with TMJ? Being diagnosed should be your first step. There's always a possibility that it could be something else. Usually medications are further down the treatment list for TMJ.
Usually before I recommend that you go to a dentist, though, I highly urge you to educate yourself as much as possible by going to support groups, message boards and general internet surfing. There is a lot of information on the internet (i wish it had existed when I really needed it), but be careful to not compare your situation to someone else's. Sad to say, tmj is so very different for each of us (but sometimes so alike). What may work for me, might not work for you.
I can tell you here and now the basic treatments that can help -
1. Use lots of moist heat and/or ice
2. Eat only soft or liquid foods for some weeks. No gum chewing, nuts, steak, anything hard or chewy.
3. Be gentle with your mouth when opening it. Try not to open too far for too long (this includes dentists). After resting your jaw muscles for a few weeks, gentle exercises can be useful.
4. Take lots of Vitamin B Super Complex, up to 1200 mg of Magnesium, and even Glucosamin.
5. See if the dentist or your doctor will prescribe either valium or xanax to take at night for a few weeks. Good sleep is essential. You might want to be checked out for sleep apnea. These particular medications should not be used longer than a few weeks, though.
6. Ibuprofen tends to be the most effective pain killer (600 to 800 mg). Stronger narcotics tend not to help. Muscle relaxants, like Zanaflex can be useful.
7. Evaluate your posture. How you are sitting at a computer or a desk can play a very large role on the stress put on the tmjoint. Go to nismat.Org (physical therapy, tmj) for some pictures of posture problems and some good exercises to do, etc.
8. Reduce your stress anyway possible (yoga, exercise, hot tub, massage).
9. If above doesn't work - ask your doctor to refer you to physical therapy with a tmj-trained therapist. Physical and massage therapy can be very beneficial, but it is important to find a good therapist. You might have to try several before finding that perfect one.
10. Bite splints (but I must make this comment that bite splints are only as good as the bite splint maker. A good bite splint maker is worth his/her weight in gold). There are different types of bite splints. I have been very happy with my latest lower, modified flat-planed, thinner splint.
11. Certain anti-depressants (SSRI's for one type) are very helpful in reducing TMJ pain. Much more so than actual pain killers. I personally have only used Prozac (with a very small dose of Buspar to counteract any grinding issues that SSRI's can cause). I have been very pleased with how it works.
12. Pain management is sometimes necessary but everything listed above should be tried first.
I hope these suggestions can help. Educate yourself as much as possible and see a dentist who preferably is very familiar with treating TMJ. Not all dentists are.
I hope and pray that your pain lessens and even goes away. Remember that stress is TMJ's number one enemy. Work at relaxation. If you have any questions, please post them and we will try and help you as much as possible. Take care and...
God bless...
Carol
