dakotamomy, I know nurse will have much more info, but as someone who has been suffering from TMJ for a while, I can tell you a couple of things. The thing that helped me was a bite plate to wear at night, stops that awful rock crunching sound of grinding teeth and protects the teeth from wear and tear. For really bad times, my dentist gave me a prescription for a wicked strong muscle relaxant. Relaxation techniques, some massage and stretching helped too. Mine has improved dramatically since I took a lot of stress out of my life (moving to Mexico!). I feel your pain, good luck!
OOPS! CancunNurse, Sorry that I used "Jerry" instead of Andy when referring to your husband. I wrote that while at the office and was on the phone multitasking..........and guess who was on the phone with me? An associate whose first name is "Jerry" .......... major brain fade the result. Chicagotom
I hear ya Tom. So nice to have someone in the same zone as I am. I like to THINK I can still multitask but sometimes it turns into multiconfusion. At least here, there's no rush to straighten things out...things work their way out, today or tomorrow. Stay well...
Yes, that information is correct. The most important thing is that each person is different, therefore, each case is different. Things you can do at home to alleviate a bit of pain are placing warm compresses to the area and soft diet, nothing too chewy, nothing too hard. The cause of TMJ can be for many reasons, not just stress. This is something that needs an individual diagnosis. Strong muscle relaxants are there to treat the symptoms, not the cause. Biteplates can be beneficial. I hope this answers a few more of your questions.
Hygienist Hi CancunNurse, I am a Registered Dental Hygienist. Is it very difficult to get licensed to work in Mexico? Just wondering.
That's a very interesting question. There is no profession here called "Dental Hygienest". Here in Mexico, the Dentist is responsible for all treatment. The Doctor might request his Dental Assistant to do a cleaning, but they are not trained professionally, they are trained by the doctor. Since there is no profession, there is no need for licensing. I hope this answers your question. If I can help you with anything else, just let me know!
Actually, it explains alot! I work in an office where we see a lot of hispanics who have had their teeth cleaned recently (within the last 6 to 12 months) in Mexico....however, when I look at their xrays and clinically look at their teeth....I would swear they have never had their teeth cleaned! I hope I don't offend anyone by this, but just stating what I've seen in my office.
Nancy, Just sent you PM and will try and call when the hour is decent. Need emergency dentist this morning! Thanks, Kris
dentist I'm sorry to hear Kris is in pain this morning, but wanted to hijack the thread to tell of my wonderful experience at Clinica American Smile. A couple of weeks ago, I broke a tooth. It had a very large, old filling in it and it was just a matter of time before it broke. Of course, I'd hoped to have a bit more notice that....oh, zero seconds. One minute I was chewing and the next minute I felt like I was chewing rocks. Well, those "rock" were pieces of my tooth. Nice. I had not been to the dentist since moving to Mexico almost 5 years ago...because I'm a big chicken like CancunCanuck. Needless to say, I wasn't overjoyed about having to go now. I made the 5 minute walk from my house to the American Smile office. Since I wasn't in pain, I simply made an appointment to return the next day. I spoke with Laura, the receptionist. She speaks some English and seems to understand it very well. She did a great job explaining everything to me in a combination of English and Spanish. Anyway, the next day, I went back and saw Dr. Grassi. I didn't have to wait at all. He took me right into the scary room with the horrible sounding drill. (isn't that drill the worst sound in the world??) After roughly 30 seconds of inspection, he informed me that I needed a root canal. Since I knew I barely had any part of that tooth left, I knew he was right...but had been hoping he'd say I didn't need a root canal. He told me that Andy, CancunNurse's hubby, would be arriving that night and he could do the root canal the next morning. Oh goodie. I left the office in a panic. It's all I could think of. I couldn't sleep because I was worried about it. I really was freaking out. I arrived at the clinic the next morning, with my favorite cds in hand. I met Andy (and CancunNurse was there too). CancunNurse told me what a fabulous dentist her husband is and said lots of things that calmed me down (thanks Nancy!). I went into the scary room with the chair and drill and got the cd player with headphones all set up. I chatted with Dr. Grassi and Dr. Myers (Andy) until they were ready to begin the torture. I am happy to report that I didn't feel a thing! I didn't even feel the needle when they gave me the injection to numb my mouth. I was in a full-blown panic when I walked into the office, but now I know I worried for nothing. I had no pain afterwards either but, for a few days, my mouth was a bit "tender" on that side. That is understandable. I went back to be fitted for a crown. A week later, my crown arrived. When Dr. Grassi put it in, I expected he'd need to make some adjustments. Nope....it fit like a glove. No adjustments needed. I've had crowns before, and a root canal too. This dental experience rivals the treatment I always got from my FANTASTIC dentist in Denver. Actually, American Smile is just a bit better than my dentist in Denver because, in Denver, every time I got a crown, they had to make quite a few adjustments before it felt ok. Oh, and the price for American Smile was not bad at all. In Denver, my insurance paid 50% of crowns and root canals, etc. I believe I would've ended up paying more in Denver than I did here....and I don't have dental insurance here! So, to sum up my very long post, I HIGHLY recommend Clinica American Smile.
dentist Hi Kris... I'm glad you connected with Dr. Grassi...and I hope you're doing well! Sue...thank you for all the nice things you said about the Clinic...it is very much appreciated! We really try to make it a family and home-like atmosphere because it is always last on everyone's list of important things to do. I am so glad that you had such a god experience and I hope you are no longer intimidated by that nasty chair and drill and room! Now you know....there ARE painless dentists out there! Please don't wait another 5 years to come back. Every 6 months is best, for an exam, x-rays and cleaning. It's always better to catch something when it's a little thing than having it go on to something BIG! You know where to find us if you ever need us! Nancy
