Hi, I’m Elle, I’m 28 years old, and I’m in pain 24/7.
I had a consultation with an orthodontist to see what can be done about my TMJ which causes me to clench my jaw, grind my teeth, and even affects my shoulder muscles and gives me headaches. I also have a tongue thrust which pushes my teeth forward, and the way they are aligned now along with the TMJ is causing damage to my teeth.
The treatment plan to correct my TMJ and tongue thrust is myofunctional therapy and braces. I don’t have insurance which covers either treatment and I won’t be able to afford this on my own.
More about my teeth:
When I was a kid, my tongue thrust caused my bite to overjet so much, my teeth stuck straight forward out of my mouth, and it made eating a challenge.
There was no effort to have my tongue posture corrected as a child, however I had braces through middle school which corrected my overjet.
My retainer, which I had been consistently wearing after I had my braces off, was lost when I was sent to a troubled teen facility in high school. This caused my teeth to shift so much to the point of being unable to put my retainer back on when I eventually found it.
I had a new retainer made at that point and that’s what I’ve been wearing for the last ten years to keep my now misaligned teeth from moving much further.
At my age with my tongue thrust, I must undergo myofunctional therapy. Tongue thrust causes more problems than just pushing my teeth forward: it affects my sinuses and speech as well. I’ve had around 7 sinus related infections over the last couple years and pronoucing certain sounds, like G’s and Th’s is a challenge for me. I wasn’t aware it was due to improper tongue positioning until recently. The body is so weird and cool, and does annoying stupid things sometimes.
I’m glad I finally found out what can help me with my chronic jaw pain, headaches, sinus problems and shoulder tension. I just need some help to be able to get the treatment I need.
Thank you for your generosity! I appreciate any support ❤️
