How Dave Cured His TMJ and Jaw Pain
"I have my first disc displacement happen when I was a child over 10 years ago. I unfortunately lived with it for 10 years, spent the first handful trying to get it fixed with my dentists, they suggested all the usual stuff, oh you grind, you need a night guard, you’re too stressed.
Nothing they suggested worked.
In high school they finally suggested I try an ortho, so I got braces. I met with an ortho that said they were family with TMD (temporomandibular disorder) and have had great success with patients. After 3 years my teeth were straight (had fairly straight teeth before anyways) but while I initially had some relief when they first applied them it did not last. And by the end I was still clicked.
Then I allowed college to go by, life got busy, I got stressed and as a result I allowed my TMD to get worse and worse.
Finally at the start of this year I said enough is enough. I need to get this fixed before I find myself middle aged with a jaw that clicks.
So I began my research. I started looking into maxillofacial surgeons with a specialty in TMD’s that’s when I found Dr. Joseph McCain formally of Baptist Health Hospital in Miami and now practicing out of Massachusetts General Hospital.
He has been one of the leading experts and academic researchers of TMD’s for over 40 years. He works with Harvard medical and even helped develop and design arthroscopic tools used by doctors around the world.
I had my dentist refer me to him, and after a set of CT scans and MRIs he sat me down explained everything he saw, presented me with options, and we worked out a plan all within 2 months. I had a surgery scheduled for November that due to a cancelation I was able to have moved to last week.
In total I waited 3 months from initial contact to surgery. My left side has disc displacement without reduction for 10 years, I was grinding bone on bone, I never knew, it didn’t hurt but as it would turn out I was very quickly/slowly developing arthritis in that side. In my right side for 10 years I had disc displacement with reduction until about a month and a half before surgery when the clicking stopped (clicking is referred to as reduction).
The surgery took about 3 years total and now that the swelling and pain have started to subside I can confidently say he has saved my life. I didn’t know I could ever smoothly open and close my mouth again in my life.
So, people, please, do yourself the favor, if you click, if your jaw locks, if you have anything that isn’t normal, do not do what I did and wait 10 years and do permanent damage. Do the search on maxillofacial doctors in your area and tell, don’t ask, your doctor/dentist/ortho for a referral and make it happen. This was easily, hands down, one of the best decisions of my life."
- https://www.reddit.com/r/TMJ/comments/1cck230/after_10_years_i_am_free/
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