Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

I do, I grind my teeth so hard that I made holes in my nightguard...thus I dont wear one anymore.

ETA: By the way, I have no headaches or anything...its just that my teeth are short in the back which makes it difficult to get crowns and other prosthetics...

Message edited 1/5/2007 11:18:12 AM.

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

DH does but it's not too bad--every now and then it acts up and he has problems chewing tough things...sorry to hear that.

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

I have it. I use a mouthpiece most nights of the week. I have found that by using the mouthpiece and not watching the evening news before going to bed and prevented the pain in the morning. Also it has diminished my migraine occurences.

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

My jaw cracks so loud that DH has to have the TV on when we eat dinner so he can't hear it. I constantly clench my teeth (it is like a comfort thing for me) and my jaw locks sometimes at night. I will wake up with it locked - it is scary. However, I told my dentist all this and he said that if I am not in pain then they won't do much. I never realized that the constant headaches I get are probably from that. WOW - now I will DEFINITELY go further with this!

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

I have it TMJ and I grind and clench. It all got better when my stress levels got better. I still should wear a mouth guard but I hate it. I dreamed that I had an orange peel stuck in my mouth, and had trouble getting it out.

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

I have it too...so annoying! It was really bad in college and high school....I sleep with a night guard that I got from the dentist, which prevents me from clenching my teeth at night it has been 1000 times better

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

I used to have it really bad.

I wore that mouth peice for 3 years. I never got a new one, but it really helped.

You just need to avoid eating hard to chew foods a lot...like steak, bagels, hard to chew candy and gum.

I stopped eating bagels every morning and that helped. But it used to get really sore. Now it's not so bad.

Aleve helps alot.

Oh, and the mouth piece is really hot. When I first started dating DH I would hide it from him, and only put in in my mouth when we were in the dark.

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

I recommend getting the mouth guard from your dentist or even oral surgeon. They mold it to your mouth exactly and it is soooooo much more comfortable that the store ones.

I think it's worth the money.

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

I have it- it is awful. I had to get a mouthpiece too.

I had to wear it steady for about 4 months, now I just wear it when it acts up.

ETA> I got the guard from my dentist- he molded it to my teeth and it only covers my top 2 front teeth so it is not as uncomfortable as the whole mouth guard.

Message edited 1/5/2007 8:50:21 PM.

Re: Does anyone have TMJ?

i used to have it pretty bad. i would wake up every morning with a horrible headache. then i went to the dentist and my doctor said that he thinks i am grinding my teeth because my teeth were worn down. i had to wear a night guard.