My case of T and my ability to have it virtually eliminated is directly due to three people who truly took the time to listen, investigate, experiment and provide encouragement. I apologize for my long absence, but I needed to stay away from talking about T as I went through this.
My ENT Specialst: When my T first hit and wouldn't let up, I finally went to an ENT specialist. I was convinced it was due to loud music, considering I am a working musician, it only seemed logical. After a thorough hearing test and ear examination, I was told my hearing is "actually quite good, if not better than the average 47 year old." She didn't rule out loud music and inner ear damage, but she immediately began exploring other causes. Never once did she diminish my condition or treat it as something insignificant or unimportant. We went through a long question and answer period where she asked me question that I thought had no relevance to anything. For example, "what did you eat today?" "How do you sleep?". Anyway, after this series of questions, she said flat out, "I bet your tinnitus is due to TMJ." I was skeptical. My jaw felt fine, nothing was sore, etc. But then she asked some more specific questions about my jaw locking up, clicking, etc. I told her this happens on occasion. She started feeling the right side of my face and YOW! That hurt. She told me the whole side of my face and the muscles within were completely in spasm and most probably this is the cause of my T. She referred me to a TMJ specialist.
My TMJ Specialist: Spent a lot of time and appointments with him and he was very thorough and encouraging. He taught me a lot of jaw therapy and relaxation techniques, as well as provided me with a bite plate. He also put me on a small dose of Klonopin to help me "get over the hump", so to speak. After about a few months with him, I noticed my T diminished. He didn't credit himself, he credited me for the hard work I did with learning to try and give my facial and cranial muscles a break. He then said that I should explore acupuncture, chiropractic, etc. and see what works best for me. I gave him my chiropractor's name and he called him and had a long discussion with him about how I should be handled. He also told me that this condition may never go away, but it can surely be controlled and the tinnitus could be virtually eliminated. As with my ENT, he was compassionate, had an open ear and was very encouraging. By the time I left him, I was off the Klonopin, and my T went from a 9 to 6 (1-10 scale)
My Chiropractor: This is where my greatest gains were made. After about 2 months of twice-a-week appointments with him, my T literally went from a 6 to a 1 or even less. He was very thorough in taking care of not just my jaw, but my neck and shoulders as well. He also suggested some dietary changes. Again, a compassionate and wonderful guy.
So, to sum up, I never even knew about TMJ and if it wasn't for these three people who truly cared about me I don't think I would have accomplished so much. As of today's writing, I don't think I ever notice my T until bedtime and its very quiet, and when that happens I put on some customized noise mixed in with crickets that I made to help cancel it out.
As a funny aside, my bandmates found my custom sound so pleasing and conducive to sleeping well (especially on the road where it is tough to sleep) that one night I forgot to turn it on and I get yelled at: "Turn on those f@king crickets! I cannot sleep without them!".
I'm lucky. I'm thankful and most of all, I'm appreciative to all those who helped me. I hope the path you travel during your treatment has people this good standing beside you.
My ENT Specialst: When my T first hit and wouldn't let up, I finally went to an ENT specialist. I was convinced it was due to loud music, considering I am a working musician, it only seemed logical. After a thorough hearing test and ear examination, I was told my hearing is "actually quite good, if not better than the average 47 year old." She didn't rule out loud music and inner ear damage, but she immediately began exploring other causes. Never once did she diminish my condition or treat it as something insignificant or unimportant. We went through a long question and answer period where she asked me question that I thought had no relevance to anything. For example, "what did you eat today?" "How do you sleep?". Anyway, after this series of questions, she said flat out, "I bet your tinnitus is due to TMJ." I was skeptical. My jaw felt fine, nothing was sore, etc. But then she asked some more specific questions about my jaw locking up, clicking, etc. I told her this happens on occasion. She started feeling the right side of my face and YOW! That hurt. She told me the whole side of my face and the muscles within were completely in spasm and most probably this is the cause of my T. She referred me to a TMJ specialist.
My TMJ Specialist: Spent a lot of time and appointments with him and he was very thorough and encouraging. He taught me a lot of jaw therapy and relaxation techniques, as well as provided me with a bite plate. He also put me on a small dose of Klonopin to help me "get over the hump", so to speak. After about a few months with him, I noticed my T diminished. He didn't credit himself, he credited me for the hard work I did with learning to try and give my facial and cranial muscles a break. He then said that I should explore acupuncture, chiropractic, etc. and see what works best for me. I gave him my chiropractor's name and he called him and had a long discussion with him about how I should be handled. He also told me that this condition may never go away, but it can surely be controlled and the tinnitus could be virtually eliminated. As with my ENT, he was compassionate, had an open ear and was very encouraging. By the time I left him, I was off the Klonopin, and my T went from a 9 to 6 (1-10 scale)
My Chiropractor: This is where my greatest gains were made. After about 2 months of twice-a-week appointments with him, my T literally went from a 6 to a 1 or even less. He was very thorough in taking care of not just my jaw, but my neck and shoulders as well. He also suggested some dietary changes. Again, a compassionate and wonderful guy.
So, to sum up, I never even knew about TMJ and if it wasn't for these three people who truly cared about me I don't think I would have accomplished so much. As of today's writing, I don't think I ever notice my T until bedtime and its very quiet, and when that happens I put on some customized noise mixed in with crickets that I made to help cancel it out.
As a funny aside, my bandmates found my custom sound so pleasing and conducive to sleeping well (especially on the road where it is tough to sleep) that one night I forgot to turn it on and I get yelled at: "Turn on those f@king crickets! I cannot sleep without them!".
I'm lucky. I'm thankful and most of all, I'm appreciative to all those who helped me. I hope the path you travel during your treatment has people this good standing beside you.
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