Replied by Mama To Many (Tennessee, Usa) on 01/03/2014
Dear Ari-ann, I am so sorry about the TMJ trouble. (It does sound like that is what it is.) I dealt with this for many years and it was very painful, affecting my whole life. (Hard to eat - hard to work--I taught first grade and I needed to talk a lot, which hurt my jaw! ) There are many things I wished that I had tried. At the time, I did only conventional medical procedures, which included surgeries, lots of doctor's visits, MRIs, x-rays, physical therapy, and lots of drugs.
My jaw clicking and pain (jaw pain, headaches, facial pain) started when I was maybe 18 years old. My wisdom teeth were in (very straight) yet they decided that was the cause and removed them. That didn't help. So for years I saw different doctors and did lots of things and it just got worse. I finally had surgery when I was 26. I did have a hole in the tissue between the jaw bones and the bones were rough. Perhaps all that could have been avoided if I had tried other things first instead of letting it go on for many years. The good news is that the other side of my jaw also was not great but didn't progress and even now, 20 plus years later rarely bothers me. In hindsight, I wonder also if the hole in the tissue could have been repaired naturally with something like comfrey. But I had no idea of anything like that then.
I know mine was aggravated by teeth clenching when I was sleeping. You may not even know you do this. (My husband couldn't tell that I was.) I did learn an exercise that was helpful. During the day, I would have my jaw lax and touch my tongue lightly to the roof of my mouth right behind my two top front teeth. Getting into this habit helped a lot. (You can't clench and do this at the same time, at least, not easily.) Another thing to try would be Sleepytime tea at bedtime. A magnesium supplement at bedtime may also help you to have relaxing sleep. No caffeine later in the day is important, too.
Castor Oil, applied to the jaw area would be inexpensive and may be helpful to the inflammation. Peppermint Essential Oil also. Maybe try the peppermint in the mornings (as it is stimulating) and the castor oil in the evenings. (Be careful not to touch your eyes with peppermint oil on your hands. No long term harm, but irritating.)
Raw Unpasteurized Apple Cider Vinegar tonic, internally, would be good for your joints. 1 teaspoon to 1 Tablespoon in a tall glass of water once or twice a day.
Turmeric is an inexpensive and effective anti-inflammatory. Try 1 teaspoon in some water or milk once or twice a day. (Or 4 capsules twice a day.)
I have also found it important to sleep in a position that supports my jaw. I do this even now or my jaw will feel out of whack when I wake up. I have a feather pillow that I mold around my head while I lay on my side so that my jaw does not hang open with no support. The pillow supports my lower jaw some.
Oh, I am careful even now not to eat foods that aggravate the jaw. Hard pretzels, bagels, and chewing gum are No No's for me. If you chew ice or anything like that, you should avoid it. It is way too stressful, even for a healthy jaw,
Well, I hope that one or more of these suggestions will be helpful! I noticed that Om suggested a chiropractor and accupressure, which both sound like a couple of other good ideas to me.
Let us know how it goes!
~Mama to Many~
