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Right-sided jaw/neck pain only when chewing certain foods — muscle or

Posted by bannerrat @bannerrat, Mar 18 1:15pm

I’m trying to figure out whether this is muscular or joint-related.

About a month ago, I carried some heavy equipment. Shortly after, I noticed that when I chew on the right side of my jaw, I get an immediate uncomfortable sensation. It’s not sharp pain — it feels more like a “pulling” or tight sensation in my face, and it’s somewhat painful.

It is only on the right side and only happens when chewing.

Details:
• Pain is non-radiating
• Completely absent at rest
• No pain when clenching teeth without food
• No lingering pain after chewing — it stops immediately
• No clicking, popping, locking, headaches, or ear fullness
• No sensitivity to temperature or acidic foods
• The right sternocleidomastoid (SCM) muscle feels tender when I press on it

The sensation feels like it may involve the upper SCM or masseter area, but it’s hard to pinpoint exactly.

It’s also somewhat triggered by certain foods, especially:
• Chewy or dense foods (thick sourdough bread)
• Hot dogs
• Chicken nuggets

Softer foods don’t seem to cause the same issue.

I’m unsure if this is:
• A muscle strain (from carrying something heavy?)
• TMJ-related
• Bite alignment issue

Has anyone experienced something similar, or have insight into what this might be and what type of specialist would be most appropriate?

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gently | @gently | Mar 18 4:49pm

bannerrat, something has altered the muscle balance in your jaw. It sound as though it could be the lifting has altered at C1-C2 and/or caused a slight dislocation of the TMJ joint. My guess would be that liftin caused a slight dislocation in the neck causing muscular imbalance in the face leading to the imbalance in the jaw joint. naturally TMJ misalignment causes bit maladjustment. I'd see a chiropractor. But I'm just guessing (about you. But I do have four chiropractors who adjust my jaw and my neck.

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animallover25 | @animallover25 | Mar 19 9:01am

Hi, I have TMJ issues and have had them for awhile. It sounds like TMJ. Here's my suggestions:
1.) See a Dentist about this situation and/or and ENT Dr. they can diagnosis you properly. If you go to a Dentist, call and ask them if they treat TMJ-make a mouthguard or an appliance for it. Some do and some don't, it varies. Better to call and ask first. If you have co-workers or friends with the same issue, get a recommendation for an ENT or a Dentist.
2.) Chiropractor is an option as it might be a problem with your neck. Might want to go to them first to make sure there isn't more issues going on with your neck or spine. The Chiropractor will take an X-ray (majority of them do) and tell you if you have a neck issue or anything going on elsewhere back/shoulders, etc... Our Chiropractor also has red light therapy and deep compression machine, which might also help you. I tried the red-light therapy and didn't notice a difference with my TMJ, however I have swallowing problems and noticed my throat was a little better. Our Chiropractor told us that 80% of people absorb the red light and 20% of people do not absorb it.
3.) If they say you do have TMJ, a mouthguard could help you at night. Dentists can make these appliances and also specialty clinics- I go to one in Kentucky- Oral Facial Pain Clinic and they have others in the U.S. However, they are not in every state, so you may have to drive to get to one. I use one for my sleep apnea and I don't use the CPAP machine; I use this instead. For my mouth guard, I have many options- I have 5 different choices to choose from for the sleep apnea mouthguard. They offer more than a Dentist office can offer. Usually Dentists have 1 option, one brand of mouthguard and that is what they give you.
4.) There is physical therapy for TMJ. They do massage on your face and inside your mouth cheeks and TMJ area. They give you exercises to do at home, which can help. You would need to talk to your primary care dr. about this and get an order for physical therapy, in order for you to go there. My TMJ is definitely triggered my crunchy or hard foods and gets worse with those, as opposed to softer foods. I don't chew gum either as that can trigger it also.

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jeepgrl | @jeepgrl | Mar 26 4:43pm
In reply to @animallover25 "Hi, I have TMJ issues and have had them for awhile. It sounds like TMJ. Here's..." + (show)
Profile picture for animallover25 @animallover25

Hi, I have TMJ issues and have had them for awhile. It sounds like TMJ. Here's my suggestions:
1.) See a Dentist about this situation and/or and ENT Dr. they can diagnosis you properly. If you go to a Dentist, call and ask them if they treat TMJ-make a mouthguard or an appliance for it. Some do and some don't, it varies. Better to call and ask first. If you have co-workers or friends with the same issue, get a recommendation for an ENT or a Dentist.
2.) Chiropractor is an option as it might be a problem with your neck. Might want to go to them first to make sure there isn't more issues going on with your neck or spine. The Chiropractor will take an X-ray (majority of them do) and tell you if you have a neck issue or anything going on elsewhere back/shoulders, etc... Our Chiropractor also has red light therapy and deep compression machine, which might also help you. I tried the red-light therapy and didn't notice a difference with my TMJ, however I have swallowing problems and noticed my throat was a little better. Our Chiropractor told us that 80% of people absorb the red light and 20% of people do not absorb it.
3.) If they say you do have TMJ, a mouthguard could help you at night. Dentists can make these appliances and also specialty clinics- I go to one in Kentucky- Oral Facial Pain Clinic and they have others in the U.S. However, they are not in every state, so you may have to drive to get to one. I use one for my sleep apnea and I don't use the CPAP machine; I use this instead. For my mouth guard, I have many options- I have 5 different choices to choose from for the sleep apnea mouthguard. They offer more than a Dentist office can offer. Usually Dentists have 1 option, one brand of mouthguard and that is what they give you.
4.) There is physical therapy for TMJ. They do massage on your face and inside your mouth cheeks and TMJ area. They give you exercises to do at home, which can help. You would need to talk to your primary care dr. about this and get an order for physical therapy, in order for you to go there. My TMJ is definitely triggered my crunchy or hard foods and gets worse with those, as opposed to softer foods. I don't chew gum either as that can trigger it also.

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@animallover25 That is really cool. I myself have had TMJ issues. I was initally going to say to see an oral & maxillofacial surgeon. That's who helped me when I had issues with the TMJ and had to undergo arthroscopic surgery to have the joint basically cleaned out from tissue entanglement. I didn't realize, however, that you could undergo physical therapy for it. For future reference. A lot of good advice here.

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