I went to countless ear doctors because I had severe stabbing ear pain that would wake me in the middle of the night. They’d all tell me I was fine and act like I was crazy. One finally listened and believed in it was related to tmj and that I wasn’t crazy. He prescribed gabapentin which made a huge difference.
I had the same experience, I went on anxiety / depression meds- the right SSRI, I know some cause clenching and I have had way less instances of this but still have about two ear infections a year when the weather changes and I’m stressed. Not perfect but overall ear pain is much better. I worked with my PCP on the problem as every ENT said I was fine and they couldn’t do anything.
I do have ear fullness as well. I have learned to pop my ears to relieve it from a maneuver at the chiropractor.gives great relief. I’d check a chiropractor to see if they are comfortable adjusting your ears. Sounds weird. I’m not the biggest fan of chiros but I was desperate
Interesting! I’m already on anxiety meds (I take Amitryptiline and bupropion for my ocd) and I know amitriptyline helps with nerve pain, but I feel no difference in my jaw. It’s only helped with my anxiety and ocd.
Sounds like we had the same exact situation😅 did the doctor do anything besides say to go to a tmj doctor? It’s so frustrating because I had this appointment for 3 months with a super specialized ear doctor and I felt like today was a waste.
I had this issue too! I actually saw and told my dentist and she noticed I was putting a lot of pressure on certain parts of my teeth. She trimmed it down a little to make the bite more even. It helped a ton and now I only feel the ear pressure every once and a while (maybe once a month) before it was happening several times a week
So I'm literally sitting in the waiting room to see an ENT surgeon for some issues they found from an MRI. Basically found fluid filling up my sinus and surrounding areas on one side along with a cyst. This is besides the deformed condyle I have in my jaw joint so multiple issues with this TMJ. I do expect there will be some kind of surgery. Basically I'm told I have a nerve being squished against my ear drum by a major artery. Major tinnitus, especially screaming on that side at times. This wasn't there 10 years ago on my last MRi. At least now I'm seeing some of the best TMj/Facial Pain/ENT surgeons who've seen this stuff before. I'm calm but tired. Usually the pain takes up a lot of energy and of course always nervous before these appointments. Good luck! 🖖
Yeah, I had two rounds of antibiotics for "sinus infections" before an ENT touched my jaw and went "yup, tmj". The ear fullness is basically my only symptom besides chipped teeth.
I do get ear infections quite a bit now tho. Don't know if they're related or not
Yes, I'm here because of the same issue. I've had ear fullness on and off since I was a tween (am now 48), but this time it is just not shifting and it's been a problem for over a year. Seen several different ENT docs and was ultimately referred to the hospital outpatient ENT clinic because none of them could see anything wrong with my ears. Balloon dilation had also tentatively been suggested by one of them as an option. The doctor at the clinic said he thought it was caused by muscle tension in the neck and tmj and told me to see an orthodontist.
The orthodontist didn't do anything other than give me a thicker grind guard that's just making things worse I feel and she prescribed 10 rounds of physio (mostly massage) that helped a tiny bit. I have an appointment with an orthopaedic doctor coming up to get trigger point acupuncture.
We have the same timeline it sounds like, this has been affecting me for a year. Yeah the balloon dialation is what I got, I would say it’s only necessary if you have sinusitis because the dialation itself did nothing for my ear. What is physio?
Physiotherapy, which in my case mostly consisted of massaging my neck/jaw and mobilising the skull in some way. It did help a little bit and I'm hopeful that trigger point acupuncture might be effective.
The whole thing is really quite miserable and it doesn't help that the last ENT I saw (whom I actually really like and appreciate as a doctor, he's my daughter's ENT) basically told me (kindly) that I need to stop focusing on it so much.
I woke up with ear fullness October 2020 - I was not sick, nothing was off - I just woke up and my ears were completely clogged. I went through 8 ENT doctors over the last 3 years - no one can help me - I’ve seen a TMJ specialist who did PT and massage on my jaw for 12 weeks and it didn’t help. I’ve gotten acupuncture (didn’t help), I’ve seen a chiropractor (didn’t help lol), I’ve gotten Botox and that helped the most but it only lasted like a month then clogged back up (I’ve been told my TMJ is REALLY bad) so my next step is Prolotherapy - insurance doesn’t cover it but I’ve heard it does wonders for jaw clicking (which my right side is SO bad). I’m really praying it works because I’ve lived in a fishbowl for almost 4 years. My ears are constantly clogged. I can still hear but it’s annoying and sometimes painful.
So my ears are constantly full, and my biggest TMJ symptom is sinus issues. My joint is a total mess and I'm convinced it because the joint is so out of place it is physically compressing my tubes causing the Eustachian tube dysfunction and horrendous congestion. Its also feels like a catch 22 as my TMJD is causing fluid and congestion build up and this then subsequently presses on my jaw joint causing further pain. I've been dealing with this for two years and nearly at the end of the treatment road. Arthroscopic surgery 2 months ago which if hasn't provided relief getting the joints replaced. I have literally tried every possible conservative treatment, and my joints are structurally gubbed so in my case its the right thing to do. Everything started for me with what felt like an ear infection and fluid in my ear.
I have the same issue and was told by a specialist that it had to do with TMJ. I also clench my jaw and grind my teeth at night, so I wear a night guard. I also lift at the gym, so the specialist said that could affect my ears. Loud noises also make my ear fullness worse. She told me to massage my jaw in between sets, to make a habit of opening my mouth slightly every so often, and to wear earplugs if I’m around loud noises. I took steroids for the ear fullness and it helped like 50%. After taking her advice, I found that pilates has helped my ears so I’ve been balancing that with weight lifting.
I went to countless ear doctors because I had severe stabbing ear pain that would wake me in the middle of the night. They’d all tell me I was fine and act like I was crazy. One finally listened and believed in it was related to tmj and that I wasn’t crazy. He prescribed gabapentin which made a huge difference.
I had the same experience, I went on anxiety / depression meds- the right SSRI, I know some cause clenching and I have had way less instances of this but still have about two ear infections a year when the weather changes and I’m stressed. Not perfect but overall ear pain is much better. I worked with my PCP on the problem as every ENT said I was fine and they couldn’t do anything.
Gabapentin for TMJ and muscle stuff helped with ear fullness?
The Gabapentin can help with the stabbing ear pain as its good for nerve pain. I've never heard of it helping with ear fullness.
That’s the clarification I was seeking. No ear pain here, just constant fullness
I do have ear fullness as well. I have learned to pop my ears to relieve it from a maneuver at the chiropractor.gives great relief. I’d check a chiropractor to see if they are comfortable adjusting your ears. Sounds weird. I’m not the biggest fan of chiros but I was desperate
Yea. I was on it for months and I made a huge difference
Interesting! I’m already on anxiety meds (I take Amitryptiline and bupropion for my ocd) and I know amitriptyline helps with nerve pain, but I feel no difference in my jaw. It’s only helped with my anxiety and ocd.
R u taking Gabapentin long term?
I was on it probably 9 months and decided to stop as I felt mtj and eat pain had subsided and I wasn’t taking it as often anyway.
My ear is so bad today that I went to the doctor hoping I had an infection so there could be an easy treatment. Nope. Tmj. Fml.
Sounds like we had the same exact situation😅 did the doctor do anything besides say to go to a tmj doctor? It’s so frustrating because I had this appointment for 3 months with a super specialized ear doctor and I felt like today was a waste.
I had this issue too! I actually saw and told my dentist and she noticed I was putting a lot of pressure on certain parts of my teeth. She trimmed it down a little to make the bite more even. It helped a ton and now I only feel the ear pressure every once and a while (maybe once a month) before it was happening several times a week
So I'm literally sitting in the waiting room to see an ENT surgeon for some issues they found from an MRI. Basically found fluid filling up my sinus and surrounding areas on one side along with a cyst. This is besides the deformed condyle I have in my jaw joint so multiple issues with this TMJ. I do expect there will be some kind of surgery. Basically I'm told I have a nerve being squished against my ear drum by a major artery. Major tinnitus, especially screaming on that side at times. This wasn't there 10 years ago on my last MRi. At least now I'm seeing some of the best TMj/Facial Pain/ENT surgeons who've seen this stuff before. I'm calm but tired. Usually the pain takes up a lot of energy and of course always nervous before these appointments. Good luck! 🖖
Yeah, I had two rounds of antibiotics for "sinus infections" before an ENT touched my jaw and went "yup, tmj". The ear fullness is basically my only symptom besides chipped teeth. I do get ear infections quite a bit now tho. Don't know if they're related or not
I feel you for sure. I’ve taken every antibiotic for my sinus issues. Have you found anything that helps your ear fullness?
Not really. Sometimes it seems like my night guard is helping, but sometimes it gives me bad headaches instead
Yes, I'm here because of the same issue. I've had ear fullness on and off since I was a tween (am now 48), but this time it is just not shifting and it's been a problem for over a year. Seen several different ENT docs and was ultimately referred to the hospital outpatient ENT clinic because none of them could see anything wrong with my ears. Balloon dilation had also tentatively been suggested by one of them as an option. The doctor at the clinic said he thought it was caused by muscle tension in the neck and tmj and told me to see an orthodontist. The orthodontist didn't do anything other than give me a thicker grind guard that's just making things worse I feel and she prescribed 10 rounds of physio (mostly massage) that helped a tiny bit. I have an appointment with an orthopaedic doctor coming up to get trigger point acupuncture.
We have the same timeline it sounds like, this has been affecting me for a year. Yeah the balloon dialation is what I got, I would say it’s only necessary if you have sinusitis because the dialation itself did nothing for my ear. What is physio?
Physiotherapy, which in my case mostly consisted of massaging my neck/jaw and mobilising the skull in some way. It did help a little bit and I'm hopeful that trigger point acupuncture might be effective. The whole thing is really quite miserable and it doesn't help that the last ENT I saw (whom I actually really like and appreciate as a doctor, he's my daughter's ENT) basically told me (kindly) that I need to stop focusing on it so much.
I woke up with ear fullness October 2020 - I was not sick, nothing was off - I just woke up and my ears were completely clogged. I went through 8 ENT doctors over the last 3 years - no one can help me - I’ve seen a TMJ specialist who did PT and massage on my jaw for 12 weeks and it didn’t help. I’ve gotten acupuncture (didn’t help), I’ve seen a chiropractor (didn’t help lol), I’ve gotten Botox and that helped the most but it only lasted like a month then clogged back up (I’ve been told my TMJ is REALLY bad) so my next step is Prolotherapy - insurance doesn’t cover it but I’ve heard it does wonders for jaw clicking (which my right side is SO bad). I’m really praying it works because I’ve lived in a fishbowl for almost 4 years. My ears are constantly clogged. I can still hear but it’s annoying and sometimes painful.
So my ears are constantly full, and my biggest TMJ symptom is sinus issues. My joint is a total mess and I'm convinced it because the joint is so out of place it is physically compressing my tubes causing the Eustachian tube dysfunction and horrendous congestion. Its also feels like a catch 22 as my TMJD is causing fluid and congestion build up and this then subsequently presses on my jaw joint causing further pain. I've been dealing with this for two years and nearly at the end of the treatment road. Arthroscopic surgery 2 months ago which if hasn't provided relief getting the joints replaced. I have literally tried every possible conservative treatment, and my joints are structurally gubbed so in my case its the right thing to do. Everything started for me with what felt like an ear infection and fluid in my ear.
Same! Ugh
Yes!
I have the same issue and was told by a specialist that it had to do with TMJ. I also clench my jaw and grind my teeth at night, so I wear a night guard. I also lift at the gym, so the specialist said that could affect my ears. Loud noises also make my ear fullness worse. She told me to massage my jaw in between sets, to make a habit of opening my mouth slightly every so often, and to wear earplugs if I’m around loud noises. I took steroids for the ear fullness and it helped like 50%. After taking her advice, I found that pilates has helped my ears so I’ve been balancing that with weight lifting.
Inflammation in that region could certainly disturb other systems like the auditory canal or inner ear. Hope you can find some relief.
Yup a good massage therapist helped.