Hi all, I'm new here to this board, I'm
Dee. Here's my little story.
I've always had tightness in my jaw for
years, not pain, but a limitation in
movement sometimes. last year while at the
dentist, my jaw came unhinged during a
visit. he reset it and since it was never
right. I can only open it barely 2 inches
now. I'm not in severe pain, actually the
pain has subsided a lot, probably due to
my instinctually changing a lot of habits.
Ive had 2 splints so far which did
nothing. Accupuncture, massage,
biofeedback...I've tried it all. Still the
same.
Anyway, I had an MRI, and got the results
last week. The results read "The articular
disc is completely degenerated adn as a
result is not well seen. There is
degenerative change of the left
temporomandibular joint and there is midly
reduced anteriour translation of the
mandibular condyle on the open mouth
views" The results also saw some
degeneration on the right side as well.
SO here's my question. I've researched
surgury and it just isn't an option (I
sing...just cant take the chance of
winding up worse). All the treatments I
read about seem to apply to the jaw going
back to original place or loosening the
muscles. Nothing about trying to
strengthen the disc (can that be done?).
Can you exist (as in being able to talk,
eat, etc.) with a disc that is barely
there for long? Has anyone on here found
suppliments and treatments to stabilize a
situation like this so it doesn't get
worse? I also have arthritus so I'm
feeling like I'm on a downward spiral and
need to figure a way to halt or slow this
down. I'm not in serious pain, I just
can't do a lot of what I used to (I have
to sing different, eat different, be
conscious of mouth movement or I get a
sharp pain to my eardrum). Other than
that, I can 'function' OK. I'd appreciate
any input and thanks in advance for
reading and replying to this.
Dee
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catswold
Supporter
Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 404 Location: Flint, Michigan
Posted: 06-04-07 09:15am
Hi Dee,
Welcome to the forum and sorry too. I do
not have a disc on my left side and my
right side is almost shot. I also have
arthritis very severely. I agree with you
about no surgery. You are in a really
precarious position singing. Eating and
talking are just about the hardest things
on our joints. Unlike you, I've had a lot
of pain throughout the years and just
recently felt that my TMJ has come to some
manageable degree with symptoms similar to
your except I can't open my mouth even 2
inches (I'm about 1 inch or less).
Since we have such damaged TMJoints the
things that I have discovered that help
the most is - reducing stress as much as
possible, keeping body relaxed and
maintaining good posture particularly in
the head, neck and shoulders. There are
certain exercises that can be done to keep
the muscles working a little better.
Check out nismat.org, their physical
therapy TMJ page. This has good info on
posture and simple exercises. You don't
want to overdo it tho.
Super Vitamin B12 Complex is a great
vitamin to be taking daily. Also chelated
magnesium and fish oil. I also just read
something about another mineral that I'll
have to look up and get to you. Some
people do well with Glucosamine (not me).
You really are going to have to watch what
you eat forever sadly and be careful about
keeping the mouth open too far for too
long. I really do highly suggest having
regular massage therapy. Have you ever
had intra-oral massage? I find this
helpful if done just a little bit.
You don't need a disc to function.
Somehow the body compensates, but your
singing will probably always keep you
"tight." I know this isn't much help, but
I really can't stress how important it is
to keep stress out of your life. Right.
That's easy to do. Not. But we have to
try.
I will look up that other supplement and
get back with you. Take care and sing
joyously and pain-free.
God bless...
Carol
|
Tmddyan
Moderator
Joined: 13 Jun 2006 Posts: 4124 Location: post falls, id usa
Thanks: 66
Thanked:51
Hey Posted: 06-04-07 12:02pm
remember that a mri is only about 20%
accurate. get a second opinion.
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DeeNYC
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 03 Jun 2007 Posts: 2
My Mri Posted: 06-04-07 13:01pm
Wow Carol, it sounds like you have
identical symptoms to me and I'm glad
you've found a way to keep it stabilized.
I do take glucosomane on a regular basis
now, but I actually started it for my
knees some years back (although I'm bad
with vitamins and minerals and tend to go
on and off cause they make my stomach
queezy often). I'm planning on seeing if
I can get hold of this doctor who is a
friend of a friend that is doing TMJ pain
research here in NY. I'll see if he has
any insights. I know the MRI is just a
picture, but I would assume everyday
people discover things be it a doctor or
people like us that stumble on things by
accident that work. I do have massage on a
regular basis and learned some
triggerpoint therapy that I've used on
myself in the mouth to calm the tightness
when I'm stressed. WHen singing, it's kind
of creepy cause it feels like the lower
part of my jaw is just floating so I've
been training myself to sing with limited
facial movements....this one is a tall
order.
I will keep you posted on my doc visits. I
plan on seeing a few people to get
opinions and will be researching any
hospitals that have an ongoing research on
the disc degeneration situation. I would
think getting into a study would be an
ideal way to be monitored since I've been
paying for all this out of pocket
(dentistry is not covered by my medical),
and it's emptying out my pocket, lol. but
I guess ya gotta do what ya gotta do
right? I'm just thankful I've got the pain
managable now and I pray it stays like
this. Thanks for the replies
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