Author Topic: Clenching post-op?  (Read 2115 times)

Gregor Samsa

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Clenching post-op?
« on: March 26, 2014, 02:10:17 PM »
Is it normal to clench after your surgery? I'm constantly doing it and my muscles have started to ache as a result. Sometimes when it gets cold I can't stop my muscles from constantly twiching which can be annoying to say the least.

treevernal

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #1 on: March 27, 2014, 12:47:33 PM »
Yes, it happened to me after surgery.  Ive clenched like crazy my whole life without realizing it ive had to unlearn it.  It's taken over a year to unlearn but im getting there.  Learning to relax my jaw amd deal with tension/stress differently is difficult for some but meditation/yoga/biofeedback/medications do help.  Im taking amitriptyline at night which is supposed to reduce night time clenching (which cant be consciously controlled) and its supposed to reduce it by 85%.  Im hoping to not have to take it after another year or so but we'll see.  It takes a long time to build the correct muscle memory after decades of doing it wrong.

Gregor Samsa

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #2 on: March 27, 2014, 01:08:23 PM »
I didn't clench before the surgery though and most of the time I can't seem to control it.

applejuice

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #3 on: March 27, 2014, 01:17:09 PM »
You need to get physiotherapy asap.

LoveofScotch

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #4 on: March 27, 2014, 02:03:51 PM »
Is it something that you are aware of doing during the day, or are you waking up with sore masseter muscles and/or joints in the morning? It is evenly sore on both sides?

Gregor Samsa

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #5 on: March 27, 2014, 02:17:11 PM »
I'm constantly aware of it and try to avoid doing it but all of a sudden I'm doing it again. My jaws were spazzing out for at least ten min when I left the airplane after my flight a couple of days ago (I had to clench in order to prevent the jaws from opening and closing rapidly).

applejuice

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #6 on: March 27, 2014, 02:27:08 PM »
I had muscle spasm and clenching too. The muscles have a hard time to adapt to the new situation. The problems were gone after about 10 physiotherapy sessions. Dont wait too long. You risk relapse and chronical problems.

Gregor Samsa

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #7 on: March 27, 2014, 02:29:06 PM »
I don't even know what kind of physician to go to. I'm not sure we have those kinds of physicians here at all.

LoveofScotch

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #8 on: March 27, 2014, 02:37:23 PM »
Where do you live? Do you have health insurance?

LoveofScotch

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #9 on: March 28, 2014, 08:50:26 AM »
A few things that I thought of, if this helps. I have not had surgery (yet), this is just info. from someone who used to have both a clenching issue (night only) and problems with facial pain. Ideally, you need to know why you are clenching in order to best treat it, but, of course, that is not always possible. I'm under the impression that clenching post-op is not ideal, so you may want to check with Johnson and see what he thinks (also consider getting a scan of your joints, particularly if this continues).

You can usually get physical therapy/physiotherapy covered by insurance, and they can be helpful. Biofeedback can also be useful, and is usually covered by insurance. I would not normally recommend pharmaceuticals, but they can really help (particularly in an acute situation; please don't take them forever). You could request muscle relaxants, benzodiazepines, etc. These can be hugely addictive, so if you have a personal history of addiction (or even a strong family history) you should probably steer clear. Botox is another idea, but if you go that route, I would make sure it's only a one off; there is evidence that it can reduce bone density (I'm only talking about if it's used for this application; if you get it in your forehead (for wrinkles), your bone density will be fine).

I have personally found acupuncture, CranioSacral therapy (it sounds crazy, FYI), and the use of an LED light (In Light Wellness Systems makes a solid product) really helpful. Another thing to keep in mind is that angry muscles usually respond favorably to heat. You could try a heat pack, hot water bottle, or even just run really hot water over a wash cloth and hold it on the spot that is sore.

Being that this is seemingly only a daytime issue this probably wouldn't apply, but if you are still wearing bands at night, any chance they are too tight?

Cheers!

LoveofScotch

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Re: Clenching post-op?
« Reply #10 on: March 28, 2014, 09:32:41 AM »
From what I've been told, no, not really. If you are a grinder, a dentist will often be able to see wear on your teeth; but often by the time wear/damage is present...it has been a very long time! If you clench, but don't grind, it's really only an assumption based on symptoms because your teeth will usually not show wear/damage.

If you clench during the day, it is as simple (I'm not saying it's easy) as being aware of your jaw position during the day.

A person that clenches while they are sleeping will often wake up with a headache (that can obviously be a symptom of other issues, as well), jaw pain (in the joints), pain in the masseter muscles (particularly, where the masseter comes up and inserts into the coronoid process; it's on the underside of your cheekbone, midway down), or just overall facial and/or head pain (the temple area seems to also be a common offender).

I have also been told that if you clench at night, the pain you will potentially experience in the morning is often pretty evenly distributed on both the left and right side, but not always.

Sorry, I wish I had something more definitive.