Does your face hurt? Cause it's KILLING ME!

My jaw's been pretty bad this week, folks. For those of you who don't know, I have TMJ- it was diagnosed in university, when I went to the doctor for piercing painful ear infections, but I didn't have an ear infection! They couldn't diagnose what was wrong with me, but I was crying in severe pain for a week before they referred me to an ear nose and throat specialist, who took a pressure test inside my ears. They found out that I grind my teeth in my sleep, and because of it, I had worn away the cartiledge between my mandibular joint and my skull and that's what was causing the pain. I had MRI's, I had a splint built for my mouth that I used to wear 24/7 and now I just wear at night. Anyway, my jaw would lock open or it would lock closed and I had to drink shakes through a straw for 3 months. I had a surgery where they used a laser to build scar tissue to replace the missing cartiledge, and after lots of prayer and healing, I finally recovered. BUT, I still have to be careful- I cut up all my food (especially apples and crunchy stuff) into small pieces, and I am careful working out not to clench my jaw when lifting, or impact it when running or jumping rope. It's one of those things that will never go away, I just have to take care of it, and be aware of what triggers the pain.

You know what triggers it the most? STRESS. Yup, and Monday and Tuesday were extremely stressful days at work, where I was working under an extremely close deadline to get stuff done. As a result, I got the searing, sharp pains in my eardrums again, and I knew it was time to slow down and relax before my TMJ got outta control. As a result, I skipped the gym entirely this week, and just walked the 50 blocks home from work everyday instead. I got home Monday, walked the dogs, put on my jaw splint, and took a muscle relaxer. Next thing I know, I woke up at 3am on the sofa- I'd fallen asleep at 7pm! I went to bed and feel asleep again until my alarm went off at 7am. Yay- 12 hours of sleep! My jaw feels much better- just a little sore, as if you chewed a whole bunch of that hard bazooka joe bubble gum for like 3 hours. Know what I mean?