Snap, crackle, Pop!

Snap, crackle, pop is a cheerful sound as you munch on your breakfast cereal. They are not sounds you want to hear if it is your jaw, and they are accompanied by pain when you chew.

Tempromandibular Disorder (TMD), a condition that causes pain in the jaw joint, the TMJ (tempromandibular joint), and the muscles that control moving the jaw and chewing, affects an estimated 10 million Americans according to the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR).

Cereal or TMD?

There are essentially six symptoms caused by TMD:

1) Your dentist notices that your upper and lower teeth fit together differently than they once did.

3) Your jaw locks when you try to open your mouth, or you have limited side-to-side movement of the lower jaw.

4) The pain radiates from your jaw to your face or neck.

5) Your chewing muscles are stiff.

6) You hear the telltale snapping, clicking or popping

Sweating Bullets

Always it comes about that the beginning of wisdom is fear. Miguel de Unamuvo How can I still be afraid of getting a filling at my age? the elderly man thought, shaking his head as he sat in the waiting room. He was a deep-sea diver, a cave explorer and taught self-defense classes. Yet, the small stainless steel dental hand piece made large beads of sweat drip down his forehead and his heart race. He had put off having that old worn out filling replaced, but now the pain forced him to schedule an appointment. He could smell that familiar sterile odor that some dental offices have, which made him even more fearful of what was to come. If this sounds like you, you are not alone. According to the Academy of General Dentistry, an estimated 25 million people avoid going to their dentist because of fears and phobias that include