Coping skills I've learned

I guess being an Engineer, I always favor thoroughly examining a problem and running a root cause analysis to pin point the core issue.   In the past few months, I've been dealing with a TMJ problem and apparently this a more drastic case of it as far as I hear from others previously dealing with it yet there have been worse cases than mine that make me somewhat hopeful in this matter.  After all, we went through a cross examination and collaborative effort with ear doctors, dentists and regular family doctor and I did some research and tests and came up with somee interesting results.  Here are a few tips that you might also find useful:

•  I had noticed that the pain is exasperated after using my automatic tooth brush, like Oral-B sonicare.  I noticed this as I remembered during the 1 month that I was in Europe and Middle east, ( they don't use American voltage and wave frequency and my brush was practically useless) when I was using a regular toothbrush, my pain was virtually gone!  I ran a test and stopped using the sonicare for 2 days and it did in fact subside the pain to some significant extend!  I'm now completely off of the automatic tooth brush and experiencing much fewer episodes.  My self drawn theory was if you're prone to jaw pain and could have jaw dislocation or bone friction or minor fractures ever so slightly the vibrating effect of the automatic brush can work against you, stimulating those tender joints, and pain nerves and contributing to dislocation of the injured jaw. 
• I also noticed that when I was in hot areas( Southern Europe, and middle east in June!) the pain and pressure in the ear was a lot less significant and almost unnoticeable!  I tested this by staying in my colder office in Golden area ( a mountain city in the Rockies) slightly longer than usual for a few nights during the 'winter' and the pain would start its signs very profoundly only a few minutes after staying still in the office.  Once I would return to the next building which is famous for the hottest building on campus or the steam house!  to pick up my mail, etc... the pain was virtually diminished.  Fortunately for me, I am now moved to a new office in that second building and the pain has been significantly reduced!
• Stress can always play a major role in triggering any physical pain, including jaw pain.  Typically having a two year old with temper tantrums for wanting to wear a special dress that she's not supposed to when going to school, or not wanting to be in either diapers or undies when leaving the house, or not be willing to wash hands after bathroom use or demanding to drive the care when we're running late when she's actually supposed to be  back in the car-seat doesn't help the situation either! However, on the days when I'm lucky enough to not be affected by stress, the pain is much less noticeable.  This is however, not an easy one to manage as stress is not completely inevitable for most people, but( a note to self:), we 're not all perfect, but we can try to stay pragmatic about our problems and try to minimize them and find a solution as much as it is in our hands.  Other wise, the rest, which are perhaps not in our control, are therefore not our fault and not worth the sweat!
• exercising has proven very therapeutic.  Personally, I've hardly had time to fulfill this goal myself with such a super busy life, but on the days that I am 'blessed' enough to literally have to run around a lot, I have had much easier days.  Taking hot steamy showers also helps both heat up the painful area as well as calm the body and bring the stress down.  I now take a daily shower most days!
• I have found out from researching the web and hearing several people's stories that jaw replacement surgery doesn't really improve the condition and on most people who did has even had reverse effect in dealing with the pain part which is the most critical part.  My doctor discouraged that option for me at once! visit http://www.tmj.org/site/ to hear more stories about this. 
• I no longer talk on cellphones/smart phones for more than 4-5 minutes or anything but emergency.  The not so  thorough research that has been done about the impact of Electro-magnetic waves on the brain doesn't yet fully guarantee the safety of  wireless devices on our bodies and personally it has had its effect on me.  If I stay on the smart phone for more than 15 minutes, my ear gets really hot and I most definitely will have a full swing migrain/ear ache episode after wards.  Hello unlimited text messages, email and personal encounter! 
•  Sometimes, I've noticed that if the pain is somewhat under control, just getting your mind off of the pain (aka. tricking the brain)  and focusing on other totally irrelevant issues ('not-stressful'of course)  for several minutes helps 'deviate' the mind from its normal pain signal processing activities.
  Think of a "Few of Your Favorite Things" or just actually do them! (smile)

Of course, being seen by a medical professional  is always the most critical step in any recovery process but I hope these tips help offer some comfort to you or someone you know that could use them .  As for me, there are still some tests to be done to rule out other concerning possiibilities but in the mean time I wish you all health and happiness during these special holiday season and I covet all your prayers  as always as well!