March 9, 2012

• Lucky Chick

  I had a really rough four years. The wear and tear of emotional pain and heartfelt grief morphed into physical pain. My thoughts were restless and seriously lacked any kind of peace. I was indeed a whirlwind of emotion. I cried a lot. I cried myself to sleep. I cried when I woke up.  I had difficulty sleeping. It was a combination of not wanting to go to sleep and sometimes being unable to fall asleep. I would stay up until 3 a.m. and get up at 6:30 a.m. to take my kids to school. So, also not enough sleep. When I did sleep, I clenched my teeth. Sometimes, unknowingly while I was awake I was also clenching my teeth. The physical pain I felt was excruciating. My face was incapacitating me. That’s when we learned that I had developed Tmj.

  Almost a year prior to developing Tmj, I had my wisdom teeth removed. The pain I felt after the procedure (almost immediately) was insane. My cheeks were swollen. I could barely open my mouth and did not even want to try. The doctor told my husband that I had the wisdom teeth of a 300lb man. The doctor was amazed. He also reported that they really had to “work” to get them out. I am fairly certain that a combination of this surgery and the stress I was enduring are the reasons why I have Tmj.

  The first Tmj doctor I had, wanted me to get a mouth guard. He also wanted me to pay 3,000 dollars. I couldn’t afford it. He treated me with meds, such as pain relievers, muscle relaxers, and stress/panic meds. Then his nurse taught me some mouth exercises I could do to relax and stretch the muscles. He also suggested some massage therapy. It helped for a little while. Then one day it all “magically disappeared”. I thought maybe I was miraculously healed. Then 3-6 months later, I was back in the same boat. I went to see him again, but all he had to offer was again stuff to mask the pain (in my opinion). I was so frustrated. Then I woke up one day and thought why not get a second opinion!

  My second Tmj doctor was A W E S O M E. He was motivated to get me better. Doc explained that Tmj was like a fire and from time to time things were going to poke the fire. His job was to help me get my muscles relaxed again and work on ways to manage/prepare for when they started to flare back up again. I also purchased a mouth guard from him for 550 dollars.

   This is what I have learned from it all.  C.S. Lewis, once said, “Pain is God’s megaphone.” I don’t ever want to just “mask” pain, issues, or conflict of any kind in my life. You can distract yourself all you want, but its a limited time offer. Whatever your trying to mask or pull the proverbial rug over will manifest itself again. I would rather work through life’s pains with God honest truth and then change, forgive, and heal, than be bound by manipulation, people pleasing, anger, or bitterness. I hope that I always choose freedom and love, because that is what is in my heart, God given. Despite all I have been through and I can testify to some serious storms, I am a lucky and grateful chick(woman).

  Peace, love, and Jesus,

  helmschick –out

  P.S. I am currently receiving acupuncture for my muscles and my muscles are the most relaxed they’ve been in months. I don’t know if this is the final answer, but being able to function like I am suppose to is truly a blessing. I know I am not alone in any of this and God is working on me in more ways than one.

   

  • 6:21 pm
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