TMJ Forum - My Jaw Is Acting Up

Hi elennar,
it sounds like you have started grinding or clenching your teeth at night when sleeping. Stress, hormones, bite being off a bit can all cause you to do so. Tell your parents and then visit your dentist and/or doctor. There are a few things you can try to do right now to get this under control before it becomes a big painful issue -

first, have your dentist check your teeth to make sure your bite is balanced and to check for any grinding on certain teeth. Sometimes just filing down one little spot can make a huge difference but don't allow the dentist or anyone to do very much filing or that can make the bite worse.

Your dentist might feel you need to wear a bite splint at night. If he is qualified to make a bite splint, that would be okay to try. Just try and make sure that he makes the splint specifically for your bite and not a one-size-fits-all type. If he is not comfortable making a splint, ask for a referral to a tmj specialist. Once you have a splint, make sure that it is adjusted by the maker. It should need to be adjusted frequently at first and then occasionally after that.

Next, your doctor may want to check your hormones. It seems that high levels of estrogen affect the jaw. Since you are a woman, it is normal to have these hormones but sometimes they can get a little wacky. Your doctor also might prescribe a very small dose of valium or zanax to try at night-time for a couple of weeks to see if that breaks up the bruxism.

Finally, on your own - do not open your mouth wide. This can move the disc out of its position and get caught in a bad place. Do not pop your jaw as much as possible. I know that it feels like you have to when its "off," but it actually can cause damage over the years. The best way to get the "off" jaw settled down is to completely relax the body in the proper posture position.

Posture - this is a much bigger deal than you would think, more than I thought all these years. Because of the computer age, we sit more at a desk and computer monitor thrusting our heads towards the computer monitor. We now think its normal, but its not. By holding the head chin forward and up, we are putting extra strain on the muscles that control our jaw. Since I know you don't want to read a book here, check out the following website for basic information on tmj and posture (and solutions): http://www.Nismat.Org/ptcor/tmj< /a>

i can't stress how important posture is to tmj. I have had tmj for 26 years and finally worked on correcting my posture and my tmj has calmed down dramatically. I have to think about how I am sitting at the computer and work at keeping my body where its suppose to be. If you start now, it might just become a normal habit for you.

I do have more I could write about, but I have given you a lot of information to decipher. I pray that you will catch this problem now and correct it now before it becomes a chronic painful disorder and nightmare for the next 26 years of your life. It is "fixable," but you have to do some work at it. Research all the information you can. Be smart. And don't let anyone talk about surgery. It's not necessary at this stage of your life. I hope and pray for all the best for you.

God bless...
Carol