Jaw appointment

[LouLamb]

So went to an appointment for my jaw this morning. It was a waste of time .

They basically just said that I have a tighter left side jaw than my right side. More tension on the left. Well duh that’s the side that hurts 😑

She basically said it will be fine . Just stop biting nails , stick to soft diet and use hot compress don’t yawn so wide !

She said I grind my teeth she can tell. So she said I could get a gum shield from the dentist but frankly I can’t afford that !

So I will carry on with my TMJ flare ups 🙄

[SjogiBear]

I can totally sympathise as I am having awful problems with my jaw at the moment. Mine is now very misaligned and locks up all the time. I'm not sure there is a huge amount that can be done to effectively treat these problems but I would suggest that you ask your dentist to refer you to the dental hospital or to the maxfax department at your hospital. That way they can check everything out - I had some kind of special jaw/teeth x-ray done plus an MRI scan - and they will also be able to make up the bite guard for you at no cost. My TMJ problems seem to be progressing although I've now been discharged from maxfax at my hospital - I am assuming it's something to do with having connective tissue problems possibly as it seems to be the tendons/ligaments around the jaw causing trouble rather than the joint itself.

[LouLamb in reply to SjogiBear]

I went to max fax today and had a X-ray . I might make an appointment with dentist to ask about a bite guard x

[jayfer]

Hi, I recently changed dentists. I told him how my former dentist said a guard was too expensive, to which he replied nonsense and did a mould there and then ! It was ready a week later. It has stayed on my bedside table ever since as haven't been grinding teeth in my sleep ! I have also been treated for dry mouth so maybe that's why I have stopped grinding 😊 hope you get sorted quickly

[LouLamb in reply to jayfer]

Oh ok , I’m going to get my mum to ring up just to inquire 🙂

[Sk1s]

Hi LouLamb.

Hopefully this is helpful, if your with an NHS dentist the gumshield is free if you get benifits of any kind.

[LouLamb in reply to Sk1s]

I don’t get any benefits . My mum rang up the dentist and the receptionist said I’d be looking at £80-£90 !

[Sk1s in reply to LouLamb]

So sorry to hear that. That is expensive. Hope you get some good results soon.

[LouLamb in reply to Sk1s]

Thanks , I don’t know if I could get it discounted any further or not. I have a letter that’s states I only pay so much for treatment . I’m not sure if this would count under it because I’m choosing to get it done

[Sk1s in reply to LouLamb]

Hope you get some good results. Keep enquiring doors may open.

[LLH76]

Hey, I suffered terrible TMJ in my teens, at worst I had lock jaw for hours and had to push food through the tiny gap that was left, was offered an op but refused it due to risk to nerves and hearing.

I’ve got permanent damage to both sides but mainly right, can hear and feel it dislocate when I open wide.

I tried the splint supplied by nhs back then but it didn’t really help.

I’ve also tried the ones you can get on amazon and mould yourself, they were ok, but I’d say it was definitely stress related and teeth grinding because of it..

That being said, I did find a medical paper reporting the link between TMJ and Lupus, so it’s a chicken and egg scenario yet again!

[Roanna]

Hey LouLamb,

I hope your still managing as well as can be. I feel for you because I use to work as a dental assistant and we would get a lot of people with similar issues. A night guard sometimes helped or (Gum Guard) as you mentioned. I worked once for this dentist who would send the patients to a certain massage therapist who would massage inside and out of the mouth. You can do this yourself. I do both sides at one time and place my fingers on both sides of the tmj Jaw point where you open and close at the hinge. With your fingers apply a gentle pressure while you open and close and roll your fingers over the muscle a bit while you do this to massage them in small circles. You may need more pressure but you should feel the muscles slightly relax as it would with a regular massage. Put a compress on after to help with inflammation. One dentist I worked with used a tense machine on a few patients for a few appointments and it did make a difference. I find also for myself when my jaw gets tight, my spine (C1-C2 area is usually out of balance and my Chiropractor adjusted it and within a few hours I feel back to normal. Sometimes with a little extra inflammation from the lupus reaction to change. Good luck to you.