Hi Lilyalic, sorry to hear about your problems. This is just my educated guess, but your problem sounds like it could be related to your jaw (not kididng!). I've had a lot of similar pain that you describe, and addressing my jaw problems has been a big help.
So, check out that you don't have problem in the jaw: the jaw joint (TMJ). This is best done by a professional (dentist, cranial chiropractor), but you can come a long way learning and trying out some things yourself.
First, a couple of questions:
- Do you experience tension in the
TMJ (temporomandibular joint). Start to observe your jaw - are you tensing your jaw (e.g. when you speak)?
-Do you experience teeth grinding (usually at night; you might not notice this yourself), clicking or popping noises when opening your jaw (wide open)?
-Is there any skewness when you open your jaw wide open (the tip of the mandible doesn't follow a straight downward line)?
Excessive tension in the TMJ can put the whole body out of balance, and cause enormous pain in the spine, neck, shoulders, give you migraine etc. A good start would be to check out this video series, where it is explained how the jaw works and what the usual problems are - part 1 here:
https://youtu.be/8MKx5c0BRrQ
One of the things you learn by watching that, is that an imbalanced bite can cause the jaw to be drawn backward (that’s called a posteriorised jaw joint), which stresses the jaw muscles. An imbalanced bite can be a structural/genetic condition that you’ve had since being born. Or, as it often is, it can be the result of well meaning dentistry procedures, where a “perfect” occlusion (the coming together of the teeth) is achieved by various methods, e.g. removing teeth and installing dental braces or other contraptions.
One of the thing that you can start doing, is to learn how to open you jaw in the right way (as shown in the videos): open the jaw first slightly forward then down-back – to get it to
translate correctly. You might find that by training your jaw to open in this “new” way, other symptoms (clicking noises, neck pain, headaches) disappear. Another thing is to check the occlusion of your teeth with a dentist, possibly improving it. Perhaps the removal of your mercury fillings left some "bumps" and unevenness that need to be leveled. Many people I know (myself included) have found relief using a
bite splint. You need your dentist to take measures for making one. There are also many exercises you can do to relieve tensions in the TMJ - do a search on YouTube on "TMJ exercises" to find them.
Very closely related to this, is something called
tongue thrust. That alone, can be the cause for excessive tensions in the TMJ. In short, tongue thrust is a disorder where you for various reasons have learned a wrong way to swallow
and developed the habit of resting the tongue against your lower teeth. It can be surprising to learn, that the correct resting position for the tongue is keeping the tip of your tongue behind the upper gum ridge (just touching it) and slightly aligned with the hard palate. The scientific literature mentions a few possible causes for developing tongue thrust, all during infancy:
-Obstructed nasal pathways (perhaps due to allergies, food sensitivities), leading to 'mouth breathing' instead of 'nose breathing
-Not being nursed (mother's milk), instead being fed with a baby bottle => not learning the correct swallowing pattern
-Tongue tie, also called
Ankyloglossia
A good and easy way to try and to correct this, is to strengthen the tongue muscle called
styloglossus (a muscle pulling the tongue up/backwards) by doing 'tongue clicking' several times a day. And to learn the correct swallowing pattern, and the correct resting position for the tongue.
For more information check out
this article, and this excellent video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZKRT8liqFA
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I agree with others, that finding a good chiropractor is a very good idea. Lastly, check out this video with easy-to-do exercises for neck and shoulder pain, also explaining the importance of a good posture (most of us sit on a chair all day long, which causes problems). I do these exercises daily at work, and they've been very helpful in relieving my pain.
. I don't think of myself as "old" but I do have a sendintary job and moving a little Every Day has really been helping me. It's like I don't realize how much stress and tension I hold in my shoulders while I slump over my keyboard until I get up at the end of the day. Then I feel like a creaky staircase.
