TMJ Help Program

Although TMJ condition may be affecting thousands of people, only about a hundred of these people are aware that they are suffering from the serious condition. Sometimes, the condition may be so mild that it escapes notice. At other times, a person may already have a severe TMJ symptom but may not know it because of misdiagnosis. What can be considered a severe TMJ symptom?

The Symptoms

There are a great many TMJ symptoms and different individuals may experience some in varying degrees. A severe TMJ symptom however may not only cause considerable pain but may also result in other physical conditions. Here are some symptoms:

- A severe headache is one TMJ symptom. It is possible that this particular symptom is a referred type of pain that is the result of the pressure on the jaw joints. Some people may experience tremendous headaches but are unfortunately unable to get proper treatment. This is because a TMJ headache can sometimes be misdiagnosed as migraine or some other type of head pain.

- Another severe TMJ condition would also include facial pains, and aches near the areas of the ears, back, neck and shoulders. Sometimes, part of the face may begin to swell.

- The referred pain in the ears may later be accompanied by a ringing sound which is another severe TMJ symptom. In some cases, the ear can be so affected that a person suffers from dizziness.

- TMJ patients also suffer from worn, damaged or deformed teeth. This happens when a person instinctively tries to correct an uncomfortable bite by grinding the teeth. Frequent grinding itself can worsen a TMJ condition.

- A severe TMJ symptom to dread is the possible change in jaw direction and the shape of the face. Depending on your TMJ condition, you could suffer from jaw deviations whenever you open your mouth. You could also end up with a face that looks like it has a receding chin and a forward moving forehead.

- Another common severe TMJ symptom is jaw clicking or popping. This happens when the joints misalign due to cartilage deficiencies and then realign. In the most severe cases, it can progress to lock jaw in which one would be unable to make any kind of jaw movement.

- Some also say that it is possible to have speech defects because of TMJ conditions. This severe TMJ symptom is obviously due to the misalignment of the jaws and teeth.

The Symptom Triggers

Severe TMJ symptoms can be triggered by various factors. It is quite obvious that one could suffer from a TMJ symptom due to physical accidents or shock. A car accident for example or a sports injury could lead to a TMJ condition. There are times though when a condition can be caused by common habits made worse by stress. There are times for example when we tend to clench our jaws and grind our teeth when we are in tense situations. Repeated clenching and grinding could then lead to a severe TMJ condition. It is also quite possible that a TMJ condition could be precipitated by frequent biting on hard candy, large chunks of meat and hard pastries.