My Tinnitus Has Got Much Worse • TMJ/Bruxism for 3 Years • Now Insomnia, Cervical Pain, Headaches

Hello all. I've had bilateral tinnitus for 7 years and a diagnosis of TMJ/Bruxism for 3 years.

I was used to my tinnitus but recently it has gotten much worse. It went from a 3 to a 8 almost overnight. I now have trouble falling and staying asleep, have constant cervical pain and daily headaches. I wear a custom bite splint made by an occlusion specialist at night and take a muscle relaxant (Flexeril). It helps somewhat.

Please let me know if your experience has been similar.

 

I'm sorry you're going through this.

I have just been diagnosed with TMJ, which came on after the tinnitus - as I guess many of us start clenching and grinding with this condition.

Do you feel it was the tinnitus that led to the TMJ - and does the muscle relaxants do anything for the tinnitus?

I'm curious as to whether most of have baselines that are amplified by other unrelated conditions.

 

I'm not sure if my tinnitus led to TMJ or if undiagnosed Bruxism/TMJ was the source of my tinnitus this whole time. Sometimes I catch myself overthinking about it and have to remind myself that even if I knew the root cause, I would still have all these issues.

The muscle relaxant seems to work, I have less jaw pain and headaches throughout the day.

Please let me know what has helped you so far.

 

I was only diagnosed a week ago and have to wait until April to see a TMJ specialist and a fitting for a mouth guard.

Out of curiosity, if you poke your jaw out far, does it increase your tinnitus, just add a temporary high pitch 'whine' for a bit, or nothing at all?

 

When I move my jaw forward and when I open my wide, my tinnitus increases. I have noticed that my tinnitus is also worse after eating solid food.

I got a custom-fitted mouthguard made by my dentist and modified by an occlusion specialist. I recommend seeing the latter to make sure your mouthguard is properly fitted.