How Can Stretching the Jaw Make Tinnitus Worse?

[Fishbox]

Hi all,

I'm new to the forum, joined last week and thought it time to introduce myself, as I've had a really bad week of it.

I've had tinnitus for about 8 years, though it has always been mild, so mild in fact I could ignore it completely and only ever notice it when I listened for it. Recently however I went to see a doctor about my back, as I had pain after a large yawn. I asked him if my tinnitus may be due to a clicky jaw I've had for years, and without warning he proceeded to manipulate my jaw quite roughly, which I didn't know he was doing until he had done it. That was almost 2 weeks ago, and since then my jaw feels off and I've had pain when eating and sleeping along with a cramping feeling.

Well, one night the stiffness was bothering me so I stretched my jaw to relieve the tension, and got a sudden loud ringing in my left ear (my mild tinnitus was always in my right ear) and the right ear seemed to increase in volume too. I knew I'd make a huge mistake, but hoped it would fade like previous spikes had.

However, one week on and the tinnitus is still here, loud enough to hear over the TV and most things. Only a running tap or shower seem to really mask it. Being outdoors and busy helps too.

I'm just worried I've done some serious internal damage, and how stretching a jaw could do this? I've since become depressed and see no future like this. What can I do?

 

[Nicjane]

Hi @Fishbox, I hope you're doing okay!

Did your spike ever subside?

 

[Leila]

My new physiotherapist also manipulated the area between yaw bone and ear as well as the yaw itself. She explained that if there is a lot of tension it may have a negative impact on a person's tinnitus. Her treatment, however, has always been very careful and never without letting me know in advance what she was planning to do. Which is something that is really important to me because I owe my first tinnitus noise to a treatment similar to the one you're describing.

If I were in your shoes, I would let the doctor know that their treatment has worsened your original condition. If you still trust this doctor and if they are actually trained in the manipulation of the yaw, you may want to let them try rightening what they've messed up.

If this doctor no longer is an option, your dentist might a good place to start. They can do X-rays as well as full-arch impressions and, if you're really lucky, may have done so before and can check for visible differences. And if there are and you have / know of a really, really good and trustworthy chiropractor, they would be my next point of call.

And last but not least, if something doesn't feel quiet right, don't let anybody tell you you're wrong. You're the who knows your body best and if things were fine / okay to live with before and aren't now, then it's because somebody messed up and not because you have a sudden craving for attention or an overactive imagination.

All the best,
Leila