Saturday, December 5, 2009

I have TMJ. Is there anything I can do to alleviate the pain?

I use a mouthguard at night, sleep on my back, avoid chewy foods, and go to a chiropractor, but nothing seems to be helping. I do play the violin and know that it is irritating my jaw. I can live with the pain if the only way to correct it is to stop playing violin. My symptoms are grinding in my jaw, headaches, earaches, and jaw pain. I have already been to my doctor and dentist. Is there a medication that is recommended I take? Any advice is appreciated.



I have TMJ. Is there anything I can do to alleviate the pain?mr messed up



Everything sounds right but TMJ is a complex problem. Also, how long have you been going to see the chiropractor? With TMJ he may soon have you hooked into going for life.



If you want to know the truth behind chiropractic care and chiropractors, then check out the following links.



http://www.quackwatch.org/01quackeryrela...



http://www.chirobase.org/01general/chiro...



http://www.acsh.org/healthissues/newsid....



http://www.chirobase.org/01general/skept...



http://www.quackwatch.org/01quackeryrela...



http://www.chirobase.org/06dd/chirovet.h...



Also, chiropractors state that research has justified their techniques, check out the following;



During the past few years, two reports about the treatment of low-back pain have placed chiropractic in a favorable light. One, issued by the RAND Corporation, concluded that spinal manipulation was appropriate for some cases of low-back pain. The other, produced by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR), judged manipulation useful for controlling symptoms while awaiting the spontaneous recovery that occurs within a month in most patients with low-back problems.



Although chiropractors have promoted these reports as endorsements of chiropractic, they are not. They merely support the use of manipulation in carefully selected patients. Only a few of the research studies on which their conclusions were based involved manipulation by chiropractors; most were done by medical doctors and physical therapists whose practices are not identical to those of chiropractors. Most chiropractors manipulate the vast majority of patients who walk through their door, some use techniques that have not been studied scientifically, and many urge all of their patients to undergo monthly or even weekly "preventive maintenance" visits throughout their life. In addition, many chiropractors emphasize a technique that is more vigorous (and therefore less safe) than the controlled manipulation used by other practitioners. The only places where "chiropractic" and "chiropractors" are mentioned in the body of the AHCPR report



I have TMJ. Is there anything I can do to alleviate the pain?getting late opera theater



Massage therapy may help or you could also try physiotherapy.
I also have TMJ and have lots of pain. I was told by my dentist that my jaw is not lined up right and the only possibility of being pain free is if I let them break my jaw, reset it and wire me shut for 6-8 weeks, and at that its not guaranteed. Though my husband thinks me wired shut for 6-8 weeks sounds nice, I do not, esp without a guarantee.



A mouth guard as you have said can help. Pain killers are to addictive and would be needed all the time. My worst season for this is here because I bite down when I am cold, with winter on the rise I am in deep trouble.



My only way of really not hurting alot is actually being conscious of my jaw tightening. You can try exercising your jaw by closing your mouth and opening your teeth and move your jaw left to right a few times, this can loosen the muscles in some areas.



I also use moist heat pads on the sides of my face (jaw to ear) when I am feeling really sore.... (if you have a heating pad, use a damp face cloth against your face with the heating pad on top to create moist heat.)



Sorry I cannot offer more advice, but atleast you know you're not the only one.
Something with an antiinflammatory action is called for. Things like aspirin and ibuprofin are best. Part of the pain is the swelling caused by the movement in the joints. Make sure you have a doctor and dentist that knows about TMJ, they are not all experts on it. Keep in mind that any medication you take has side effects. Gentle exercise to keep the joints flexible, antiinflamatories to help with the pain and joint care with some glucosamine, massage is really nice too, feels great and loosens up the tight muscles from clenching your jaws!! Meditation helps too relaxation is a great way to improve pain.

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