News-ish
My birthday was a bit of a flop - I went to a funeral first thing in the morning. A relative that I've never met (the son and daughter-in-law of a man I've met two or three times) had a premature twin a bit back, and the little girl caught a staph infection. Really awkward going to a funeral where you have to listen to the eulogy real close to catch the name of the deceased. I went anyway, in part because my sister was going and I knew she is kinda... fragile when it comes to kids, sometimes. That and the part of the family we know who were going aren't the greatest at getting along with my sister anyway, so I helped make sure she had a graceful exit excuse.
My jaw got better once the crown was adjusted a bit - but still hurts every day. I'm taking to keeping a piece of paper in my pocket at work to remember that I took ex strength Tylenol @ such and such time, and Aleve @ such time... And still find myself wondering if I've ate enough to add ibuprofen to it. The student I'm assigned to has mentioned possibly getting me an appointment with a professor that specializes in TMJ a few times, but the way I understood it, that was held off since there is no point in a bite guard when you're about to do something as major as a crown which will likely change the shape of the needed guard. So I should be able to get that appointment as soon as the student is back from some out-of-city course requirements he's doing over the summer. I'll probably be high on his call list for appointments come the new semester, as he's already pegged me as his boards patient. I even have a prescription to prove it! The two defects he was eyeballing for the boards progressed far enough over the course of the year, he was worried they would be more difficult than necessary next spring, so he explained that to an instructor and got me prescription strength fluoride toothpaste.
Still, I'm not sure a bite guard is best - they prevent damage to the teeth, not the joint or the muscles. They can even make it easier to use full force, if I understand correctly. My teeth have no grinding -related problems, at least not yet - all the pain I'm in is muscle. First from the clench muscles being too strong and too used to clenching that relaxing can make them spasm, then they knot up and pull/push my joint out of socket and then everything hurts... I'll see about something one of the instructors mentioned, that I could maybe get that specialist to give me a prescription for a muscle relaxant - that sounds like it would actually address the current issue.
I know stress makes TMJ worse, and fast food isn't relaxing, but when I have trouble eating, I make a bad impression on my boss, who (since I'm part time) then decides to not schedule me as many hours the next week. My boss is a good guy, but not eating enough because of pain causes everything to go wrong! I really think that even one day a week of not having to go through that vicious cycle would improve things tremendously.
He told me when he is coming back in town, and I really do think this time, as opposed to the beginning of spring semester, he'll call me instead of forget - after all, I'm his boards patient.
My jaw got better once the crown was adjusted a bit - but still hurts every day. I'm taking to keeping a piece of paper in my pocket at work to remember that I took ex strength Tylenol @ such and such time, and Aleve @ such time... And still find myself wondering if I've ate enough to add ibuprofen to it. The student I'm assigned to has mentioned possibly getting me an appointment with a professor that specializes in TMJ a few times, but the way I understood it, that was held off since there is no point in a bite guard when you're about to do something as major as a crown which will likely change the shape of the needed guard. So I should be able to get that appointment as soon as the student is back from some out-of-city course requirements he's doing over the summer. I'll probably be high on his call list for appointments come the new semester, as he's already pegged me as his boards patient. I even have a prescription to prove it! The two defects he was eyeballing for the boards progressed far enough over the course of the year, he was worried they would be more difficult than necessary next spring, so he explained that to an instructor and got me prescription strength fluoride toothpaste.
Still, I'm not sure a bite guard is best - they prevent damage to the teeth, not the joint or the muscles. They can even make it easier to use full force, if I understand correctly. My teeth have no grinding -related problems, at least not yet - all the pain I'm in is muscle. First from the clench muscles being too strong and too used to clenching that relaxing can make them spasm, then they knot up and pull/push my joint out of socket and then everything hurts... I'll see about something one of the instructors mentioned, that I could maybe get that specialist to give me a prescription for a muscle relaxant - that sounds like it would actually address the current issue.
I know stress makes TMJ worse, and fast food isn't relaxing, but when I have trouble eating, I make a bad impression on my boss, who (since I'm part time) then decides to not schedule me as many hours the next week. My boss is a good guy, but not eating enough because of pain causes everything to go wrong! I really think that even one day a week of not having to go through that vicious cycle would improve things tremendously.
He told me when he is coming back in town, and I really do think this time, as opposed to the beginning of spring semester, he'll call me instead of forget - after all, I'm his boards patient.