Mouth pain and clenching jaw

skittledoo

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#21
I had a dentist appointment and surgery consultation today. It went well actually.

They scheduled the surgery for Monday the 27th. I would do it sooner, but can't because of my work schedule conflicting with when they can do it. I'm mostly on liquid food right now because it hurts to chew. They are going to take out both of my wisdom teeth on the right side.

As for my jaw clenching. The dentist said I could be clenching really bad as my mouth's way of responding to the pain in my wisdom tooth area. He said there's a good chance the clenching will ease up after we get the offending teeth out. If not then I'm going to look into getting checked out for TMJ.
 

CharlieDog

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#22
Just to let you know, it could have become part of your muscle memory and something you're going to have to consciously work to stop doing.

That is what happened to me, I don't have TMJ, but I did ignore my wisdom teeth for a long time. I wasn't in a whole lot of pain, just the occasional ear issue. Had all four of them out and I still unconsciously clench my jaw, usually at night, and I grind the hell out of my teeth some nights.
 

skittledoo

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#23
Just to let you know, it could have become part of your muscle memory and something you're going to have to consciously work to stop doing.

That is what happened to me, I don't have TMJ, but I did ignore my wisdom teeth for a long time. I wasn't in a whole lot of pain, just the occasional ear issue. Had all four of them out and I still unconsciously clench my jaw, usually at night, and I grind the hell out of my teeth some nights.
Thanks. That's a good thing to keep in mind. If I have to I will probably look into PT to help retrain myself to not clench. In the meantime I think I'm going to get a mouthguard so I at least don't mess up my other teeth more when I clench.
 

Romy

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#24
One thing the doctor taught me to do when not wearing a mouthguard is to try keeping the tip of your tongue between your front teeth, so there's a little space between your upper and lower teeth. That's a really relaxed position for your jaw muscles and that little cartilage thingy in the jaw joint, and it helps you to consciously retrain yourself not to grind while you're awake and be aware of what you're doing. Mouthguards are still needed at night though.
 

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