It’s driving me crazy; I watched this video the other night of a beautiful woman slamming some guy, and at the end she “cricks” her head from side to side, making some pretty loud cracking sounds, all while smiling at the camera. I can’t remember what it was.
(Darn it, I even saw it twice—was it a commercial? I watch too much Youtube!)
I was reminded of it this morning when I awoke and sat up in bed, and heard the same “craaaaack” in the side of my face while stifling a yawn. Good morning, TMD— could you let me know how long you plan on staying?
It’s an annoying, scary sound—I’m not even sure what it is. The oral surgeon I saw recently told me it could be broken cartilage in my jaw’s joints or the breakdown of calcified muscle fibers (from the muscles surrounding my joints being in spasm for the last year).
A couple weeks ago (against the advice of several other TMJ sufferers) I made an appointment with an oral surgeon in my neighborhood who shares a practice with his mother, a dentist. I wanted to see about getting an arthrocentesis done on my TMJ. They inject 2 long needles into your jaw’s joint, the first needle fills the joint with saline (and possibly an anti-inflammatory solution), while the other simulatenously rinses out tiny, broken pieces of cartilage and trapped fluid causing the inflammation.
Repeat on the other side.
It’s considered the least-invasive surgical procedure on your jaw, but doesn’t exactly come with a guarantee. It’s estimated that it reduces pain in roughly 25% of people who have it done. (For 50% it does nothing, and for the remaining 25% it can make things worse.) Not exactly great odds—and I’ve read accounts from others who had it done, some good, most indifferent, some bad.
The surgeon listened to my joints as I opened & closed my mouth, and pulled my head to the left & right. He did hear some crunching sounds, but said they weren’t consistent and didn’t think the procedure would help my own disorder. From what he could tell, my TMJ issues are largely muscular, with a pulled ligament on the right side.
The muscles on the left try to overcompensate, and it LITERALLY becomes a tug-of-war in your face on a daily basis, as both sides try to level the playing field.
He was willing to do the procedure if I insisted on it, for $750.00 (per joint). He also said it would probably put me out of commission for a month. Doc… I’ve been out of commission since last December! Still, I thanked & paid him for the examination and left.
When I got home, several TMJ members were quick to ask how the consult went, and one medical professional onsite reminded me that “even the least invasive procedure is STILL invasive and should be avoided if at all possible.” I think I need to keep telling myself that.
The very next day, someone sent me a link to an article posted by the AMA (American Medical Association) in conjunction with the ADA (Dental) that was just published this summer, that said 2 out of 3 people who develop a TMJ disorder will suffer with the condition for 6 months or more. This is finally being known now?
Another person sent me a link to “My 5 year battle with TMD”, a woman’s personal account of what she went through and the $15,000 she wasted on ineffective treatments. Her first sentence hit too close to home. “This began in 2010 with a trip to the dentist to repair a single cracked filling…” Mine began in 2016, much the same way.
This is from the TMJ website: my 7 month bout in 2016 (and my current one) HAVE to be because of the reasons I highlighted in red below:
What Causes TMD?
Some known causes are the following:
- autoimmune diseases (in which the body's immune cells attack healthy tissue)
- infections
- injuries to the jaw area
- dental procedures (even prolonged mouth opening)
- insertion of a breathing tube before surgery
- various forms of arthritis
I’m just surprised how different mine is from the first time I had it. Still the same dull, steady burning sensation in my face, but I wake up some mornings feeling like my head is in a vise (both temples feel pushed in) or my neck feels like it’s a rope being pulled at from two opposite directions.
I recently got this “moist heat” heating pad from Thermophore, cost $40.00. It does provide some relief, sometimes— but you have to hold the button down while you use it (so it doesn’t burn your face off if you fall asleep with it on!)
I’m sorry for sharing all this, I just need to vent. But I HAVE been getting some glimmers of hope—an hour or two every several days where things calm down for awhile. Every time—EVERYTIME—I tell myself “Oh it’s getting better now! Well, it’s about time as it’s been a crazy 10 months” and then it starts back up again… it’s a very defeating feeling.
One woman (Marion) wrote “Those good moments can be fleeting, but you gotta believe they’ll come more frequently as time goes on, and gradually become your norm.”
Gotta keep on believing.
Ouch, ouch and ouch! I've never had this even after 40+ years of many dental treatments (I inherited my mother's bad teeth), but I do have similar "tugs-of-war" in my lower back after a bad back sprain in 1986. Most of the time it's okay, but every now and then I'll get a muscle spasm and have to spend several hours with a hot water bottle on it to ease the pain. Is there any way you can wrap that button so it doesn't burn your face if you fall asleep with it?
ReplyDeleteRiver, very sorry about your back--my gosh, I'm reading all your other commments now.. wow, thanks so much for reading so many of my posts! And yes, I actually DO wrap that button (around with an old sock to keep it on). It never gets too hot... in fact I wish it got hotter :) Thank you again for the kind words. :)
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