Ouch! Swollen Jaw...Can't open my mouth!

[msiddiqi]

The night before the left side of my jaw was hurting. It went away by the morning. Then in the middle of the night my jaw started to hut really bad if I moved it and when I woke up this morning it was so swollen I can't open my mouth or close it all the way. I can't even eat Anyone have a clue what this is? Am I supposed to go to the dentist?

[Losgann]

Ouch! Could you have dislocated your jaw while you slept? I know when I dislocated my knee it did the same thing, swelled up and locked at a weird angle for a few days and was really really sore.

I'm not sure who you would see, perhaps an ER visit is in order?

How are you feeling now?

[beanma]

well, i'd certainly call your dentist's office and describe the problem and see what they recommend. dentists do some jaw stuff. could be an abcess or something?

[msiddiqi]

I talked to my friend who's in med school and she thinks it's a salivary gland infection, b/c the swelling is kind of in the inside of my cheek. She said that a dr is probably ok to go to ( I don't have dental insurance ) and that they would probably give me antibiotics .. yech. I really don't want to take antibiotics while I'm nursing, I already had to do it once for mastitis.
I have an appointment for this afternoon so let's see what happens. I'm so hungry!!! But I can't close or open my mouth enough to chew or even get the food in my mouth!

[stillnominivan]

do you still have your wisdom teeth?

this happened to me in my mid-twenties. My wisdom tooth came in sideways, never even broke the skin and caused the same reaction that you are describing. I woke up one day and couldn't open my mouth!
X-rays at the dentist is how they figured it out.
good luck!

[msiddiqi]

No, all my wisdom teeth had to be taken out years ago. I went to the DR and she thinks I have TMJ. But she said the only thing she could give me is not safe for breastfed babies, so I'd have to feed him formula . I said I couldn't do that so she said the only thing I could do then is hot compresses. I'm not even really sure what TMJ is, she wasn't very explain-y no matter how many questions I asked.

[CookieMonsterMommy]

Originally Posted by msiddiqi

No, all my wisdom teeth had to be taken out years ago. I went to the DR and she thinks I have TMJ. But she said the only thing she could give me is not safe for breastfed babies, so I'd have to feed him formula .
.

What kind of medicine was she going to give you? Could you pump out a few days worth of milk and store it, then go on the meds, say Friday, and that way you won't need formula?

TMJ is temporal-mandibular joint.....a condition usually caused by grinding your teeth. it's usually something that builds up over years--do you have any history of it?

I've had parotitis (swollen parotid gland) and that HURTS and gets swollen...starts off gradual. Maybe doc was wrong?

Kelly

[mamakay]

TMJ is when your bones in your jaw joint don't glide properly, basically. It somehw involves cartiledge in your jaw, and bones rubbing together. TMJ was my first thought after reading your OP, but I think you should seek a second opinion.
Neproxin (Aleve) works wonderfully helping intense TMJ flare ups (assuming that's what's wrong with you).
Most of the time those awful episodes like you're describing will eventually just go away on their own, but neproxin works really fast...like within 4 or 8 hours.

The most important thing with TMJ is to NOT try and "stretch it out", no matter how tempting it is....just let your jaw rest...if you're opening or closing your mouth and it starts to hurt, then stop. It'll only make it worse.
Drink soup in the mean time. With a straw if you have to. BTDT. It sucks.

As an irritating side note, the first time I went to a doc for this, he winked at me and said "You know, it's usually young, otherwise healthy women who come in with this."
I didn't "get" his insinuation till I was driving home. :

[msiddiqi]

Yay! I feel much better today. I just put a hot compress and it was gone in the morning . Thanks mamas for the help. I think she might be right about the TMJ because my jaw used to lock up a lot in college. The only difference is, that I could kinda crack it back in place then...this time it was actually swollen. And my jaw is ALWAYS making cracking sounds when I open it. Also I found out, my mom has it too (dunno if it's genetic at all). Anyways, for now I'm fine, at least I know what to try next time.

[CookieMonsterMommy]

msi--Glad to hear it!

Think about getting a bite gaurd if you don't have one. it's a small mold of your teeth (either upper or lower) that you put in place when you sleep. It's helped me a lot.



Kelly

[msiddiqi]

Originally Posted by mamakay

As an irritating side note, the first time I went to a doc for this, he winked at me and said "You know, it's usually young, otherwise healthy women who come in with this."
I didn't "get" his insinuation till I was driving home. :

I just got this.....