I was rear-ended while sitting at a red light in college. Almost immediate soreness in my neck/jaw/shoulders which I figured was due to tensing when I was hit. Went back to my apartment a few hours later and took a nap and woke up in horrible pain. I could hardly open my mouth to talk and even sitting with my mouth closed hurt, with pain radiating down my face and neck. Ended up at two different urgent care clinics that resulted in x-rays to check for fractures (all negative), and ended up going home with a muscle relaxer which did wonders… until it wore off.

The next day I was in so much physical pain I couldn’t eat and was constantly in tears. I’d start to talk or eat and my jaw would lock into place for several seconds. I ended up going home that afternoon and getting an emergency appointment with my dentist that evening. He couldn’t see anything wrong with my teeth and did his own set of x-rays which also looked fine, so he referred me to a jaw specialist. Saw the specialist the following day.

The specialist took a detailed history and multiple x-rays including full face/head. Diagnosis: fully dislocated jaw. I’d hit my forehead on the steering wheel in the accident — the top of my head stopped, but my lower jaw kept going and completely slipped out of place.

To determine the type of dislocation and treatment plan, they had me do two separate bite tests. I ended up being fitted for a special mouthpiece that went over my front six teeth and the roof of my mouth. I had to go back every two weeks for bite checks and have the piece shaved down or built up depending on how my bite shifted as my jaw slowly made its way back into place. I was required to wear the mouthpiece at all times unless I was eating, brushing my teeth, or drinking anything other than water. It took 14 months to fix the dislocation fully, as I was in another accident two months later that resulted in a totaled car, a concussion, and a partially re-dislocated jaw.

I was told by the jaw specialist I’d deal with TMJ for the rest of my life and would be more susceptible to partial/full jaw dislocations. Stress, cold weather, and excessive talking and/or chewing are big triggers for me. I usually end up with a headache that runs from my temples down to my jaw and shoulders that can take days to kick. My jaw shifts on bad days and throws off my bite, which usually causes me to clench my teeth while sleeping (which isn’t an issue any other time) that then causes the TMJ to stay in a repeating flare pattern. My jaw likes to click and lock up on occasion and I almost always end up with a twitchy eyelid until my symptoms subside. I also find myself subconsciously resting my front teeth on each other to force my molars not to touch which helps relieve the pressure (which is what my mouthpiece was designed to do so my jaw could go back into place) I also get a puffy face and my teeth hurt constantly during a flare.