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  1. #11
    elbenn is offline Diamond level (5000+ posts)
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    I just talked to DD to get a bit more specific information. She said she had it once in a while before she got braces and it always went away within a few hours. She now has had it constantly for awhile now but it isn't really painful unless she chews gum or something similar that exacerbates it. But she can't open her mouth really wide when she has it.

  2. #12
    Liziz is offline Emerald level (3000+ posts)
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    I have lived with jaw locking issues since I was a middle schooler. There's a disc in our jaws - That disc can become displaced, and the displacement can cause the jaw to not open fully (or not shut fully, though thankfully I've never had that issue). In my case, the discs in my jaw are at this point permanently displaced, though thankfully usually in such a way that my jaw isn't locked. My issues started around the time that I was going through orthodontic treatment. It's unclear whether the ortho treatment was a cause or just was happening around the same time. I recently talked about it with an OMFS who specializes in TMJ, and he said that because ortho treatment changes your bite, it's absolutely possible that the ortho treatment caused, or created a favorable situation, for the issue to develop. He also said it could be totally unrelated and just the fact that kids are likely to get orthodontia around the time that they're also going through puberty, growing, changing, having increased stress and other triggers that may affect it. I was also told that plenty of people have issues like mine, that affect them for a while but then go away, so I don't want to scare you into thinking that your DD will be dealing with this forever (I hope she won't!). But given that I've lived with this for more than half my life at this point, here's the things I've learned:
    *There isn't a ton of actual data about what works, what doesn't, what's good for fixing the condition, what will make it worse, etc. I've talked to every dentist I've ever seen about it (and we were military, so we moved a lot and I've had lots of dentists...) and every single one has their own opinions on what I should do and how to deal with it. I've seen a few jaw specialists as well, and there isn't consistency in advice from them, either. Ultimately the one thing I'm sure of is that I absolutely will avoid any sort of surgery or invasive procedure at all costs. There are some insane and radical treatments out there and there are zero surgical interventions that have great consistent positive results....and tons of stories of situations that were made worse.
    *Nighttime teeth grinding hugely exacerbates my jaw issues. If there's any chance your DD is grinding or clenching her teeth at night, she may benefit from a nightguard. If I forget mine when we travel or something, the chances my jaw will lock go up a ton. Nightguards should be made of a hard material -- not squishy like sports mouthguards. (Although I'm not recommending this for your DD, I also can't talk about nighttime teeth grinding without also giving a shout out to amitriptyline - my nighttime grinding was just getting worse as I was getting older (stress?) and my jaw was in bad shape because of it, with lots of locking. The last jaw specialist I saw recommended a super low dose of amitriptyline (which is technically an antidepressant but used for other things) and it's been AMAZINGLY helpful at reducing the nighttime grinding, which in turn means I have a lot less jaw issues. Your DDs situation doesn't sound like it's there at all, but it's been so positive for me I just can't talk about jaw issues without mentioning it).
    *Chewing gum or any tough prolonged chewing is terrible for my jaw. Normal food consumption is fine but I completely avoid gum, even when my jaw isn't locked. My jaw is definitely more prone to locking after I chew gum.
    *When my jaw locks, I can often tilt my head to the side that's locked and shift my jaw back and forth (side to side) in such a way that the disc shifts enough to allow me to open my jaw fully again. It's taken years of trial and error to figure out what works, but if it's bothering your DD, it may be something to try.
    Lizi

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