Could My Teeth Grinding and Bad Mouth Posture Have Caused My Tinnitus? Do I Have TMJ?

Hi I am 22 and (what do you know) I have tinnitus. I needed somewhere to vent and ask for some possible advice so here I go.

I started having tinnitus in the beginning of may this year. In the beginning, it was relatively mild. It was like a buzzing sound and could easily be masked by people talking. I was pretty scared but didn't make much of it. Went to an ENT and couldn't find anything wrong with my hearing and that was that.

About 3 weeks ago, I started hearing a new sound. This one is more like a ringing, is pretty consistent and very loud. I currently hear about 3 different sounds (although some come and go).

Then, not long ago, someone asked me if I grind my teeth. I sat there and tought "Yeah I actually do it all the time". I have been grinding my teeth for as long as I can remember (and during the day mind you). I have done some research on teeth grinding and TMJ, and I have also had a few other symptoms that could be related to TMJ, such as: headache (behind the eye), vertigo, ear fluttering, (mild) ear pain and occasional clicking sound in the ear when opening my mouth. Furthermore, today when I went jogging, I could constantly hear a clicking sound in my head.

For the past few days, I have been trying not to grind my teeth, nor let my upper and lower teeth touch. I have become so accustomed to grinding my teeth, that by not doing it, my jaw feels kind of stressed in a way.

Because of all this, I have been wondering if my tinnitus could be caused by my teeth grinding and bad mouth posture. However, because I have yet to experience pain in the jaw, I am somewhat reluctant to think that way. As such, I have decided to ask for others opinion on the matter.

Any kind of help would be greatly appreciated.

 

I got a night guard and it did improve the volume and intensity of my symptoms in my case (unilateral) by over 50%. It went from being very loud, heard even over the TV to much more tolerable, especially in every day environments. It's very faint overall compared to what people here describe and what I had when it first happened and blared obnoxiously at all hours. However, I do not think my problems were ever properly resolved. I feel like my night guard, at over 1 years old has begun to lose it efficacy. Now my right ear has even started to ring and the tone is changing, going in and out, along with classic symptoms of TMJ-fullness, ETD (I had some drainage and relief of the fullness with facial massage today), pain in the tragus and behind my ear and deep inside my ear canal. At first I thought maybe it was because someone screamed loudly for a few seconds near me, but now I'm not so sure because I didn't get any of the classic immediate whining and pressure one gets with acoustic trauma. I'm starting to wonder if it's just the TMJ progressing. I'm very upset about it. I knew that at some point, this might happen and it looks like it finally happened.

Truthfully, the doctor I saw for the TMJ was a huge jerk. She was rude to me for being anxious and scared during my appt. I need to see someone else and explain all of this to them...

I also have terrible postural issues that nothing seems to help. Pain all along my cervical spine, and the base of it looks noticeably 'puffy' and inflamed according to a few people in my life. I don't have any signs or symptoms of Cushing's, either. (I have had issues with my stress hormones but not in Cushing's ranges.) Also, in the 2 weeks leading up to the new ringing sound I was obsessively hitting 10 lb. weights. I'm so mad, I could kick myself. I literally felt clicking sensations in my cervical spine, but because it didn't hurt me, I was like, I guess this is normal? (Well, now I don't think it was...I also hurt my bad side and my right side after one of these lifting sessions.) If my case is truly somatic, maybe that even triggered the new ringing. All I know is that my neck hurts at all times in the areas related to T.

It's so frustrating and depressing, so I'm right there with you. Not even 30 years old and this has taken over my life. I'm at the end of my rope! After hearing a few success stories here about Botox for tinnitius-TMJ, both on this site and elsewhere, I'm going to pony up the cash and do it. Even if the T doesn't dramatically improve right away I'm so tired of barely being able ton eat in the morning without pain, the headaches, etc. that it is worth it.

I'm also going to get an MRI and an X-ray, if not just an MRI by October. Because I'm sure the severe neck pain and posture issues are also involved. These issues ALL go together. Jaw, neck, and upper cervical spine.

I'm here if you'd like to keep in touch as we figure out what's going on.I'm here if you'd like to keep in touch.

 

@Setin A mouth guard made by a dentist is needed.

@Lyris A new mouth guard make by a dentist. With the improvement that you had experienced - past problem seems mostly jaw. Would need to see notes from a cone beam or MRI to discuss injections without a locking jaw.

Newer problem - your sternocleidomastoids and other neck muscles may be swollen. X Rays will tell if C spine has straighten a bit. Try a cool compress on neck. Just a rinsed wash cloth. How many years have you been lifting?

 

I'm just super upset in general because now my R ear/jaw is becoming more affected and I feel helpless due to the pandemic. I'm angry that I never got full improvement and that I'm honestly going to just have to get the Botox shots by this point but I truly hope it'll be worth my while. The ETD is also becoming severe on both sides once again, but was especially bad on the R side today.

I think I'll try for the MRI before the injections, if possible.

 

@Greg Sacramento, after spending $1700 on my current guard, and being quoted $5000 locally for a replacement, I became aware of places that are making these using new, much cheaper 3d printing tech, and they do it with no office visit, they send you a kit, you send them a mold, they make you a guard, and you may be able to send it back for adjustment etc if needed.

I'm curious if you have any opinion on this.

Here is a company that sells the newer fabricators to dentists: https://dental.formlabs.com/indications/splints-and-occlusal-guards/

Here is a company that sells the end product to consumers: https://jsdentallab.com/products/custom-0-06-day-night-guard-for-light-teeth-grinding

I believe this should be combined with stretching and other TMJ self care, but I'm definitely going to try one of these when I need a replacement guard because I always thought $1k and up was an insane ripoff for these things.

Yep, ditto. Mine is still bad enough that I take meds for it, but if I start slacking on using my guard it starts to really creep up again within a few days.

 

@linearb 3D fabrication - Often good results if a dentist has the right equipment, materials and has experience. Finding such a dentist is not easy.
Discussion by one dentist:
https://learndentistry.com/3d-printed-occlusal-guards/

Self molding or lab molding has many drawbacks. A dentist may need to adjust pressure and space to guard if there's an under or over bite or if one has front teeth gum disease. Pressure of guard may need to be taken off back molars.

Very important: A guard edges need to be smooth and rounded and not to touch gums (soft palate). Otherwise the edges of the guard will weaken gums by cutting into soft palate and bacteria will then set in causing all sorts of problems.

 

this is interesting; my guard was adjusted professionally 3 times but I never got the final one because I had to move away.

I am fanatical about keeping it clean, because I've noticed that if I go to sleep with it in, without having perfectly cleaned my teeth and guard first, I often wake up with a slight sore sensation on my back left wisdom tooth... a place the guard makes contact with my teeth. Maybe I'll just file that down a little more myself!

Thanks for the feedback. I may take a crack at one of these $150-200 guards; I understand the limitations of self-molding, but even if I had to do this three times it would be 10% the cost of getting a new one locally.

 

@Lyris how long did it take for you wearing your guard to see a improvement in your tinnitus loudness? I am 9 weeks into wearing my splints and some pain is reduced but no tinnitus benefits yet. My tinnitus is unilateral on the same side as my TMJ issues.

Thanks,
Ken.

 

Also - sorry, I forgot to re: to this last half. It's been a really upsetting and draining day for me.

I moved my jaw side to side and compulsively listened to my T sounds by holding my ears closed and seemed to set off something worse in the bad/L ear. A weird new muffled sort of sound, not a classic ringing. It was really bad at first, now it's going in and out. Hopeful it will leave by tomorrow.

The new T in the right ear also got extremely loud during these manipulations. I woke up today and felt like someone kicked me in the face in my sleep. My ear hurts everywhere--that little thing that sticks out on the side, behind it, when I tug my lobe. My cheek muscles and jaw muscles are hurting terribly, especially at the 'hinge' point near where I guess your wisdom tooth would be. (All 4 of mine are impacted but apparently that can't cause T, from what I read.) It's the worst it's ever been on this side, almost like flashing back to spring 2019 when it began on my L side/ear.

I've only been lifting the eight pound weights for about 1.5-2 weeks and the new T sounds started around this time. I have been very fit and active in the 4.5 months prior to this and lifting lighter weights, usually 3, but every now and then 5 lb. for periods of time, not every day of the week or every week. I tend to clench my jaw and grind when I work out and had a bad habit of forgoing my guard sometimes.

Now, I also have had severe pains and stiffness in my entire spine but especially my cervical spine since the T sounds began recently. Looking up at the ceiling is hard. I pushed through the discomfort during lifting, including those clicking sounds and now I'm really upset with myself...I just hate this so much.

I ordered a neck brace from Amazon, and I made an appt. with another audiologist for tomorrow to get prednisone and an MRI for my cervical spine and head areas. I will mention the lifting and how I'm having problems with mobility and T sounds changing with jaw movement.

Thanks if you have any other insights. You seem really knowledgeable.