I don’t think my pain is ever going to end

[klol]

I don’t know what to do anymore. For three months, there’s been either a minor toothache, major/minor jaw pain from the muscles (which also makes my neck/shoulders/ears so painful), or now apparently a pretty bad tooth pain in a recently root canal treated tooth that came out of nowhere. My dentist keeps assuring me that I’m taking good care of my teeth and that I’ll be out of the woods- I was supposed to be after this root canal, but I’m not. He tells me things look good after a few recent fillings and the RCT, but I still feel pain in my jaw. On top of that, I’ve recently had terrible tonsillitis and have to have my tonsils out very shortly. It’s always some sort of pain since the end of May. I’ve started thinking that if this is how my life is going to be, I don’t want to be here for it, and that just terrifies me. I’m not thinking of taking myself out seriously, but the contemplation of it creeps into my mind when it’s late at night and I can’t distract myself or when the pain is acting up (like now with my previously RCT tooth). I’ve dropped from 130lbs to 115 since May. I have to force food down and worry the entire time I’m chewing that I’m going to mess something up, and right now my one tooth is achy to bite onto or when anything touches it. I’m too exhausted to do the things I love, and I feel like I’m becoming depressed (and can’t currently afford to get in with my therapist because of all my med bills for the tonsil stuff and dental bills for the RCT and fillings). I feel so defeated and alone, I’m just turning 27 and I feel like my life is ruined because of my teeth. My dentist continues to assure me that my teeth really are good despite many fillings and some crowns, but if they’re so good why am I having this new pain, even with excellent oral hygiene? I just don’t know what to do and can’t talk about it with friends and family because I’m too embarrassed of myself. I just can’t see the light at the end of the pain tunnel. Does it ever end?

 

[Enarete]

Dear klol,

I am terribly sorry to read what you are going through, particularly that you are becoming depressed and feel like it won‘t stop.
Reading about your neck/shoulders/ear pain I can‘t help myself but thinking of tmj issues. I have seen people who have been in constant pain and hardly able to move, all coming from tmj. Of course I am not a dentist, but was wondering whether your dentist looked in this direction? From what you wrote it sounds like the RCT tooth is the main issue you are taking care of currently.

It sounds very frustrating and I appreciate how hard things are for you now and your anxiety about this never to stop, however I can only encourage you not to give up and to keep on looking for solutions. If you feel your current dentist is not much of a help, then seeking a second / third opinion might be a good idea. I know this is tiring and you sound very hopeless now, but there must be a remedy for your issues.

Talking about what bothers you is often helpful, so feel free to vent here as much as you like. I also would like to recommend you getting in touch with the Samaritans. They are available 24/7 and happy to talk to you about whatever bothers you. It is good to have a non-judgmental kind listener when things get too much. You can find some contacts at the end of this article.

Sending you hugs and well wishes, hang in there and do keep us posted

 

[klol]

My dentist is actually really great, he’s well known and people actually travel from states away to see him. I trust him a lot. He’s talked to me about my teeth and has been very honest (I believe, as he is very straight forward and takes the time to address all of my questions). He just doesn’t seem to understand how much anxiety I have behind my teeth and the tooth pains. He has told me I’m likely dealing with TMJ and has told me about looking into exercises, utilizing hot/cold therapy, he’s checked my bite to make sure a poor bite isn’t causing the TMJ. He just doesn’t seem to have a “fix it” answer, but at this rate I don’t know if anybody could have a “fix it” answer for me.

 

[Enarete]

TMJ is an incredibly complex thing as far as I can tell from my layperson perspective. From what I have experienced at the practice I used to work at, there was a physiotherapist involved and often a special splint that got gradually adjusted after every physiotherapy to slowly reach the point of all the parts of the system being in the right place. Just the exam to describe the affected parts of the muscle / skeletal system took about 45 minutes. The way of finding an expert that can help might be different in every country, but again, please don't stop searching, there must be someone being able to help. Glad you like your dentist and again keeping my fingers crossed for you to find relief from the pain soon.