Help Please I Think Ive Got T M J

Yes it does come and go and can affect both sides, though usually predominantly one side.

Do go to your dentist and discuss, asking for a referral to your local oral surgery department.

Avoid stressful situations as much as you can and don't stretch your mouth wide open.

You will be fine. Good luck.

I do open my mouth wide to see if I can see anything. Plus it hurts like mad when I move my tongue the whole left side inside my mouth absolutley kills I really dont know what to do,

i have the oral surgeon tomorrow and im not really sure how to bring the subject up of t m j as they dont like people with self diagnosis.


Please any advise would be greatly appreciated :(
the pain in the base of my tongue is getting really excruicating the doctor is really confused as ive been seen by so many doctors ive had cameras put down and they see nothing now my glands are even up im so scared that this could be cancer I made the mistake of put ear pain and tongue in the internet and I got tongue cancer. This scares me as I am a smoker.



Please can any one advise :( :(

Hi gemma,
i doesn't sound like you have tmj to me but do bring it up at your doctor's appointment. Do you still have your tonsils? Could you have strep throat? Describe your symptoms as detailed as you can when you see the os and even have them written down so you don't forget any.

Does your jaw pop, click or scrunch when you open your mouth? They would be indicative of tmj as would ear aches and fulness. The chances you have tongue cancer versus a virus is pretty low.

If you've had this problem for awhile and docs can't find anything, go ahead and the doc, "what is tmj?" and see where it goes. There are a couple of other possibilities also, but I can't think of their names and I have to run to work now.

Sorry I can't help more. I'll be praying for you.
God bless...
Carol
(catswold)

Hi there I went to the oral surgeon today and he said that I have been grinding my teeth at night also I have been clenching my muscles and told me I had something caled myofascial tmj whatever that is.

Also I had my tonsils out when I was 5yrs old but I do have apperently a tonsil regrowth on the left ever heard of this I certainly havent


pease any advise on both would both problems would be appreciated :lol:

Hi gemma,
okay, you have been diagnosed with tmj. Clenching and grinding your teeth at night would definitely do it. Some "experts" even say that is what causes tmj. What did the os say he wants to do? I would personally get a bite splint to wear at night, hopefully the kind that will help your muscles relax. If you have a lot of morning headaches, you might want to consider nti at first. It's not really for long-time usage. There are so many different kinds of splints but that's mainly because each maker does it their own way. Are you in a lot of pain or has it been more of a nuisance?

Everyone is different when it comes to "healing" from tmj. First thing you want to do is concentrate on controlling the pain. I would recommend getting some books by uppgaard for helpful self-help information and shanklin for information (spiller and goldman are pretty good also). Also, join internet help groups for tips from others. You are going to need to learn how to relax during the night when sleeping by using yoga and other relaxation methods. You might need to go on a low dosage of an anti-depressant that regulates seratonin. For the most part drugs really don't help. Ibuprofen tends to be the better pain medication but that depends on how your react.

Once the pain is resolved, if you learn how to relax at night, you might not have to do anything else. Do not allow anyone to talk you into surgery and even braces at first. Nothing irreversible until everything has been tried first. No surgery though.

I would work on all that for now. Go slow and make no snap decisions. Is the os you saw a tmj "specialist" or does he recommend that you see one? What about the tongue growth? Did he tell you what needs to be done about that? I personally have never heard of that. The os didn't seem to be too concerned about it so it's probably okay. But ask him. Anything that he recommends that seems a bit involved, get a 2nd and even 3rd opinions.

It sounds like you have probably caught all this when it is just first bothering you. I know that tmj can be manageable and even "cured" for some people. Sometimes just filing one little spot on one tooth or fixing a filling height totally fixes everything.

I've written an awful lot, sorry about that. You take care and i'm sure everything is going to be all right. Remember - control pain, relaxation, research, support and who knows from there. :d
god bless...
Carol

Thank you for repyling, I dont unerstand how this could be tmj as I wake up with a very dry tongue in the morning even my left neck is stiff so how can I be clenching if im mouth breathing. I find it come on more so when I laugh strange. The os just gave me some tongue exercises to do and to see him in 3 mths time.

The docs are useless but keep telling me im fine

i did forget to mention that I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 2003 but my doc says its flannel its not reconized illness.


Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!! :x :x

Hello, I wake up with a very, very dry mouth every morning and i've had this stupid tmj for 25 years. I have also gone through the drooling like a baby stage. The dry mouth has to do with the medication I am taking currently I believe. And stiff neck - ooohh my neck. I have a bad neck now after all these years. When you are hurting your jaw muscles with grinding and/or chenching, you are also putting a lot of pressure on your meck muscles. They are all connected unfortunately. Now you see why research and internet health boards are so helpful. Tmj has so many different kinds of symptoms and most of them you can't figure out how in the world it could just be our teeth or jaw.

Regarding fibromyalgia - I don't know very much about it except a good close friend has it. She has to basically live on pain medication and still has lots of pain, particularly in her legs. She just told me today that exercise (walking) is very good for pain control so maybe that can help you.

If you don't already, find a good doctor and tmj dentist/doctor and get some sort of plan to defeat this tmj.
God bless...
Carol
catswold, not catsworld. It's a take-off from the cotswold in england (a very famous area of beautiful cottages) and cats. It means cats hill. Crazy, isn't it.

Well im new here and I have a few questions if u dont mind anwering them for me.

1> I get the feeling that under my tongue and the floor of the mouth is swelling when it actualy isnt. Is this part of tmj?

2> I think my problem is that when im asleep my jaw deviates to the right its my left side that hurts could this cause tmj?

3> it feels like my throat is swollen on the left and I accasionally get pain on the left side of throat again could this be tmj?

Finally I would like to apologise to catswold for my spelling I am sorry :oops:

thank you

gemma (sharon)

Hi sharon,
i thought I was a genius when I came up with the word, catswold. I visited england a few years ago and fell in love with the countryside, so I named my house like they do over there with the name, catswold. I am also a cat lover, though, not a fanatic and have 2 cats (brothers) named after 2 english towns - piddle and puddle.

The answer to all 3 of your questions is yes, especially #2, and I am the perfect person to ask these questions as I have always had tongue and throat problems (even before tmj).

Under your tongue or the floor of your mouth is where the "drooling" glands are (salivary glands). I don't know why we have the feelings that we do sometimes there unless it has something to do with underactive and overactive action by the salivary glands (dry mouth and drooling - both frequent for tmj users). One day I woke up with the glands so swollen that it freaked me out. Thankfully it only lasted a day or two.

Jaw deviation is one of the major symptoms of tmj. I have it. If you think you only have the deviation at night, are you wearing a night bite splint? I have heard that if this deviation is corrected, tmj will be healed, but I sure would like to know how they do that.

Regarding our sore throats or just funny feeling in the throat sometimes, I have the same problem on the right side and get frequent sore and swollen throats. This again is a common symptom of tmj. I also have a healthy gag reflex. Wait until you wake up with your uvula swollen. That is a scary feeling. Just do lots of drinking and candy sucking. I don't know why the throat is so affected unless it has something to do with our "defective" tongues. I am a tongue thruster. That means I push my tongue forward towards the teeth in resting and when swallowing and that is a no-no. It's suppose to rest against the roof of your mouth (rest - right, not me).

I wonder if that's why I was so good at "tongueing" when in college. :) that sounds funny and gross, doesn't it? But, you see, I was a wind player in college, bassoon, and had planned on playing professionally in a symphony orchestra. We all know what happened to that dream. Tmj.

What are your plans now that you know you have tmj? You really do need a game plan. Keep on asking questions, research all you can (internet great at that), get 2nd, 3rd and even 4th opinions of just about anything to do with your treatment. Start conservative but don't drag it out too far and damage your joints (like me). Be very careful at anyone who suggests braces at this point and especially any type of surgery.

I hope I have helped. You can ask me all the questions you want, but I better warn you about my weird sense of humor that comes out sometimes. I have to keep it light sometimes or i'll either get depressed or go crazy.

Until next time...God bless...
Carol

Hi there thank you for your advise I really appreciate the input on this subject as ive not really recieved any at all from the docs here (nhs).


My daughter has informed me that I relax my jaw to the right during the day as well sooooo!!! Maybe thats why it hurts.


The os only gave me some exercises to do with my tongue (strange) I have to do a horse shoe with my tongue around the front top teeth and behind 20 times reversing each time and then I have to do the same at the bottom 20 times. Thats all the help ive got. I do know I mouth breathe at night with my jaw to the right. I have an appointment next friday to see my regular dentist so I might ask for either a referral to a tmj specialist or ask for a splint but will that work if you mouth breathe?


Ihave been getting upper back pain as well which I some how think is related to t m j.



I do like some one with a sense of humour it helps make these problems seem alot more bearable.


Again thank you for helping me and keeping me sane :lol:

sharon x

Im not sure but im really panicking here but I have a what looks like a taste bud on the side of my tongue right where the tongue joins the side of your mouth thats where I get some of the pain and accasionally the tast bud swells not much but I can feel it.

Do u get taste buds there ? And does anyone else get pain there.


Please please im panicking big time!!!!!!

Good morning sharon,
no panicking allowed!! Unfortunately you have brought up another common problem for tmjers, and I also think for people who have sensitive tongues. Bumps, lumps, sore spots and everything else you can think of. I'm not saying for sure that it's not something, but I do know that my tongue has been a source of great pain for me throughout the years (physically, not because I talk too much).

I think you may have to accept that you have a sensitive tongue. There is a name for that but it's not coming into my brain at the moment. I have in my medicine cabinet 2 tubes of numbz-it (or something like that) for the mouth. And I have gotten so upset sometimes at night when i'm trying to sleep and my tongue burns, etc., that I cry.

Since your mouth deviates, there is a possibility that you are clenching down on your tongue when sleeping. It could just be a little spot. I swore that my teeth were too sharp sometimes (a lot) because of what they did to my tongue and I wanted my dentist to file them down smoothly. There's just so much that the lump could be.

So, i'm trying to tell you that i'm pretty sure that you are all right (as all right as someone with tmj can get). Gargle with warm salt water or cepacol (or something like that that has a numbing agent in it). Make sure to point it out to your dentist when you see him. It could even be a cold sore or cankersore and he could give you a medicine to put on it.

This is going to sound crazy, but I think the exercises that your os gave you is/are a good idea. Retraining the tongue is very difficult. It is something that I haven't been able to do and I do try.

I also meant to tell you that your sore back could be a part of tmj. My left shoulder/neck got bad about 5 years after I had been suffering from tmj and it is still a major pain. There is also one spot next to my left shoulder blade towards the back bone that if someone pushes right on it, it breaks up any pain that I might be having with my tmj. That almost doesn't make sense until you study how the muscles affect each other so very much. I read somewhere on one of these message boards the name of a book that I should get about pressure points throughout the body and how to manipulate them to help your tmj. Interesting.

Now, try and have a nice weekend. Take 3 ibuprofen every four hours if you are allowed to take them and just relax. Drink hot tea all weekend, get your tmj nice and relaxed, and read some trashy romantic books that you've been wanting to.

God bless...
Carol

Hi it`s me again!!!!!

The lump I was talking about is on the left side at the back where the tongue joins the side of the jaw. It always appears there its not sore but the jaw is stiff and the same side of my neck is very painful, just really irritating as I can feel it if I touch the lower jaw into the angle its very painful.


Im still trying to convince my self that this is t m j and not the big "c". I seem to have good days and bad days. I tryed looking up bumps with tmj and got no results.


Thank you

sharon x

Hi sharon,
is today the day you see the doctor? Do you have all your questions written down? Is anyone going with you? Rememer to tell him about the lump. Don't tell him you think it's cancer at first. Wait until he says something. I don't think it's going to be anything especially after all the bumps, lumps, sores, etc., that i've had over the years, but it's best to check it out.

Let me know how the appointment went. I have to go to that lovely place we all want to go to on monday morning - work (not).
Got you in my prayers... God bless...
Carol

Hi there

my appointment is on friday with the regular dentist, should be fun!!!!!

I woke feeling good today until I sat with my baby then my neck went stiff really quick and it felt like the floor of my mouth was swelling (not). Now ive been left with a sore neck and heavy head but my 8mth is keeping me on my toes.

I am going to try and see my doc today as this is really quite painful and yes im going to admit it depressing.

Speak to u soon
sharon
xxx

How can you handle an 8 month old with tmj? This is the only reason I am glad that I am single sometimes - tmj and the pain. I just cannot deal with people when i'm in pain. Talking gets very tiring and will cause my pain to flare up. You have to be strong for your family. I'll definitely pray about that. My 2 kitties (piddle and puddle, named after places in england near dorchester) are enough for me. I don't have to talk to them. :lol:
good night sharon,
carol

Right where to start cause this thing is doing my nut in!!!!!


Silly question but is it always in the jaw or can the pain radiate to yr tongue without any pain or stiffness in yr jaw?


I have days where I get no pain at all is this normal with tmj?


Can it be I just the neck and then creep into the jaw or subside?


Sorry for all the questions but im having hard time accepting that this is all it is and that this is not life threatening.
And a constant sore throat mainly on the left.

Or should I be seriuosly worried


todat the only pain ive got is the left side and under the tongue and throat pain again is this normal with accasional jaw stiffness?

Good morning sharon,
the answer to all your questions is a big, yes!! Sadly. My tongue has been a source of pain without the jaw hurting for a long time. And the radiating/creeping part - that drives me crazy because I can tell that the tmj pain is trying to flare up and it does sometimes and doesn't others.

And thankfully we do have times with no pain. I look forward to those times so much. Sometimes they have lastest months thank god. It usually means your muscles are calm but not necessarily.

No problem with the questions, really. I have to go to work now. Thankfully it should be a quiet day. Give a kiss to the baby.
God bless...
Carol

Hi there I have just noticed today that since all this started when I was 7ks pregnant that I have had sinus problems as in the membrane swells.Ent and the docs say its allergy could this be from tmj. Today I have been quite well apart from a migrane that came on out of nowhere and really stiff neck with a pepper burning feeling on tongue and floor of mouth.
I presume this is ok.


Hope u had a good day at work

sharon x