Tmj causing tinnitus?

[Healthymetoday]

Has anyone been told that chronic neck and tmj issues are the cause of their tinnitus? And then been advised to use a night guard to help alleviate jaw issues and tinnitus?

[Happyrosie]

it can well be a cause of tinnitus and you’ll find an article about this on the website of Tinnitus UK. From what I’ve read in this forum, people start with their dentist and move on from there, but I don’t know about night guard myself.

[Jimbob7 in reply to Happyrosie]

Hi, yes. My T was caused by a cervical injury I sustained when I slipped down an embankment and wrenched my head back violently. The T started the morning after that fall. I have somatic T which I can "play" by clenching my jaw, moving head and holding my jaw, etc.

I ordered a mouth guard a few days ago and have been using it at night. No clear results yet in so much as the T hasn't shut up at all. One thing that is happening is the T is becoming higher pitched than it has been. Which is okay - it's going from a low hiss to a high hiss - if that makes sense. A little easier to tolerate.

[Happyrosie]

oh and I should have said - read the next post, which mentions a night guard

[Healthymetoday in reply to Happyrosie]

Where can I find the post on tmj and night guards?

[Happyrosie]

the post immediately below yours fromdrumer. In the replies. You could send the poster who mentioned it a private message to ensure he or she gets it??

[Graham1108]

Hi, I too have jaw and neck issues which was diagnosed as TMJ. When I went to see the ENT specialist at my local hospital he informed me that it was nothing to do with my T and I just had to accept it! My dentist said I indeed needed a mouth guard which was very expensive. I purchased this and wore this for four months and it made no difference whatsoever to my T. I have since had a crown fitted and now my guard doesn’t fit - I have decided to not purchase another mouth guard. My jaw and neck issues continue despite spend thousands of pounds on Chiropractors and Osteopaths - good luck with your efforts to reach a resolution.

[jelly1234]

My T in my right ear is caused by clenching/grinding at night. (see my reply to drummer45). I was advised to use a mouthguard many years ago to protect my teeth but it doesn’t stop the clenching and it didn’t stop the T, I’ve had lots of treatments which I do believe has helped reduce my T over the past year which has gone from an intense 10/10 to 1/10 to almost barely noticeable. There are places to get cheaper mouth guards online and my dentist recommended a hard one as opposed to a soft one as this could still encourage grinding/chewing when asleep. The best ones are the ones that send you a kit that moulds the guard to your teeth, then you send it off and they make the guard for you.

it might be worth exploring treatments such as physio and a chiropractor to help your neck issues.

[Healthymetoday in reply to jelly1234]

Which treatments have you had that you feel has reduced the tinnitus? And do you still wear guard at night?

[jelly1234 in reply to Healthymetoday]

Hi, Because the improvement has taken so long and I’ve had so many ups and downs it is difficult to say which treatment helped the most. I forgot to mention I also take between 10 and 30mg amitriptyline a night - generally 20mg - and this has definitely helped me sleep better and relax my muscles a bit. I also sleep with a headband with speakers with rain noises although I have now been able to sleep occasionally without it when my T has been particularly low. The headband was a lifesaver for me when the T was bad. I still wear a night guard - in fact feel weird without it and will always sleep with one now.

I had physio, which included dry needling and shockwave treatment which I feel probably helped the most although didn’t get rid of it. Every day I massage my masseter and temporalis muscle and I’ve just bought a tens machine! Tried hypnotherapy - although very relaxing I’m not sure it made any difference. I’ve read the Julian Cowan Hill book which was excellent and I could relate to a lot of it - would recommend.

[Doxiemom1]

yep. I go to a Tmj dentist for mine

[OceanSun]

Hi Healthymetoday,

I've had tinnitus for 5 years now and it started at the same time as chronic headaches/photophobia/hyperacusis. I don't know the root cause for certain but suspect it's related to (or at least exacerbated by) TMJ issues and sleep bruxism. I wear a night guard, which stops me from causing damage to my teeth but I still wake up every morning with jaw ache from the clenching. I get a lot of tightness in my neck too.