Artsy
08-25-2006, 04:57 PM
First off; Hello, I'm obviously new here, but I found this forum through a 'net search and thought I might be able to get some answers.
I'm a twenty-three year old female, I was going through a lengthy diagnosis for what numerous specialists believed was fibromyalgia. I have since had my health benefits cut at work and could no longer go through the testing process or receive treatment. However, in the course of speaking to numerous doctors it was found that I do at least have temporal mendibular joint disorder.
The worste of my problems with my TMJ is the fact that I clench grind my teeth relentlessly in my sleep. So much so that I have terrible dreams of not being able to open my jaw and bleeding profusely/losing teeth. The primary issue is that I grind/clench hard enough to crack my teeth. The situation is compounded by the fact that I smoke and drink alot of soda. I brush my teeth after every meal, floss, and rinse my mouth every time I have a cigarette. Unfortunately, this does not save me from developing cavaties in the now cracked and damaged teeth. Without health insurance I have not been able to see a dentist and my TMJ has gotten progressively worse. At this point four of my back-most teeth are either gone or damaged beyond repair. I now find it difficult to eat properly and now my clenching/grinding is putting pressure on my inscisors since they are pretty much the next in line.
I've done research into mouthguards and other preventitives for TMJ, but I could never sleep with something in my mouth, nor will it do me much help now. From what I understand the only option I have at this point is to completely replace all of my back teeth, which I of course, cannot afford.
If this continues I'm afraid it will start to severely affect my ability to live my life normaly. I'm trying to find out if there is anyway I can A. get dental work done even without the funds or inssurance B. prevent any further damage.
I'm a twenty-three year old female, I was going through a lengthy diagnosis for what numerous specialists believed was fibromyalgia. I have since had my health benefits cut at work and could no longer go through the testing process or receive treatment. However, in the course of speaking to numerous doctors it was found that I do at least have temporal mendibular joint disorder.
The worste of my problems with my TMJ is the fact that I clench grind my teeth relentlessly in my sleep. So much so that I have terrible dreams of not being able to open my jaw and bleeding profusely/losing teeth. The primary issue is that I grind/clench hard enough to crack my teeth. The situation is compounded by the fact that I smoke and drink alot of soda. I brush my teeth after every meal, floss, and rinse my mouth every time I have a cigarette. Unfortunately, this does not save me from developing cavaties in the now cracked and damaged teeth. Without health insurance I have not been able to see a dentist and my TMJ has gotten progressively worse. At this point four of my back-most teeth are either gone or damaged beyond repair. I now find it difficult to eat properly and now my clenching/grinding is putting pressure on my inscisors since they are pretty much the next in line.
I've done research into mouthguards and other preventitives for TMJ, but I could never sleep with something in my mouth, nor will it do me much help now. From what I understand the only option I have at this point is to completely replace all of my back teeth, which I of course, cannot afford.
If this continues I'm afraid it will start to severely affect my ability to live my life normaly. I'm trying to find out if there is anyway I can A. get dental work done even without the funds or inssurance B. prevent any further damage.
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luvtocamp
08-25-2006, 05:02 PM
I'm so sorry to hear that. Maybe you can find a dentist that can make you a partial on a payment plan. If you have an affordable denture place in your area they are reasonable. Its really important to get your back teeth because the longer you go without the more damage that can be done to your tmj's. Some people are lucky enough to have a dental school in their area. But I would really try to find a dentist that will take payments.
GoodThings
08-26-2006, 12:20 AM
Hello,
A dental school is your best option. Even there you have to pay but not as much.
To answer your second question, my advise is that you get a mouth guard for now to protect your remaining teeth. It's not a permanent solution but it will help with the grinding.
GT
A dental school is your best option. Even there you have to pay but not as much.
To answer your second question, my advise is that you get a mouth guard for now to protect your remaining teeth. It's not a permanent solution but it will help with the grinding.
GT