I've gone to 2 dentists and when I talk to them about my TMJ, they say there's nothing really I can do about it and that I shouldn't worry since I don't have any pain and I have full function of my jaw/mouth.
History: This happened when I was yawning 2 years ago and I just felt like something popped out of place. It was hurting for about 2 weeks but not enough to take Advil. I thought if I try to stretch out my mouth or yawn, it would pop back into place. It didn't. The pain went away but I still have a click on my jaw to this day. My jaw will move slightly to the left when I open my mouth. And when I close my mouth, it's delayed because it feels like my jaws are stuck in that position for a fraction of a second. Then it'll move to the right and I get back to it's resting position.
From the outside, when I place my hands on my condyle area, nothing's protruding. But when I open my mouth, my left side is raised more than the right.
I feel like the dentists aren't concern about this as much as I am. My bite is off, I grind my teeth (when I was younger too). And my jaws lock when I fall asleep. No one's tried to take x-ray or MRI. One dentist said surgery's a last resort and I'm not at that point. She said something about my ligament being extended. And if I had gone to a dentist immediately, she said they may help with anti-inflammatory medication and since it has been a long time (2yrs), there's no way it'll pop back into place. And she can help with mouth guard and splint for my bite and grinding. And she said if we relocate my bite, my teeth will all hit at she same time and will prevent me from clenching my jaws (which I do unconsciously when I fall asleep).
If there are any TMJ specialist here, maybe you can tell me what's really going on. Is it really out of place? Ligament? If so, what ligament? or is it the condyle?
What I want to know is are there any options on home remedies or noninvasive treatments that would pop my jaw back into place? My reasoning is, my jaw was in it's natural place a few years ago, it got dislocated slighting, why can't we see if we can put it back in place like we would for a dislocated shoulder? (One dentist's answer to that was, it's because there are lots blood vessels and nerves they don't want to disrupt).
I've spent so much money on root canals and crowns and my mouth in general that I just don't want to worry about my mouth or jaws. I just want my jaw back the way it was: no more pop, jaw locking when I sleep, or delays with I close my mouth, or off-bite.
Anyone experimented with jaw exercise with positive results? Also, where can I find jaw exercise tutorials?