Are TMJ & hereditary migraine mutually exclusive?

Hello hellzbellz

I have been suffering with continous severe headaches for twelve years now. I have done all treatments available, done all the meds and seen several specialists.

I would suggest still seeing a TMJ specialist just to rule out a tmj disorder to make sure. I was disagnosed with such but my headaches have continued. Bowen treatment was also a tx i tried but no success.

Also I would suggest seeing a neurologist who specializes in headaches.

You mention London: Ontario?

I don't know how long you have been suffering with migraines but I would keep a journal, i am on my nineth journal.

Hope to hear back from you.

Take care

Suzane

Hi both - thanks for your replies

Suzanne, sorry it's taken a while to respond. In my case London = England (about 90 mins away from me).

I've been having migraines for over 20 years now (and keeping a journal on & off since 2005), but for many years alcohol was almost the only trigger. Having discovered triptans (first Imigran, more recently Zomig) about 15 years ago I have been able to manage them but in recent years I think hormonal changes, exacerbated by my determination not to let them interfere with work or personal life, have made them increasingly bad.

Over the years I've tried a wide range of treatments (Osteopathy - normal & cranial, Chiropractic, ****zu massage, trigger point therapy, Chinese herbals, etc.) with no luck. I find acupuncture (which I've been having for 8 years) helps and regular deep tissue shoulder massages are also good. FYI, I first tried Bowen a year or so ago after my family all told me how successful their treatments had been, but since their practitioner was 90 mins away I found someone local. It did nothing. However, having now seen Brenda a couple of times I'm really encouraged, not least because she identified my jaw as being a problem area without me mentioning TMJ! Following my last post I actually went 8 days without a migraine at all - 2-5 a week has been normal for me in recent years!

I think the results are so dramatic because my stress levels are also down - I've been off work for the past 2 months with post viral fatigue (which I'm sure was brought on partly because my body was under such stress from the migraines). The real test will be what happens when I go back to work (likely to be in the next couple of weeks, initially part time).

Anyway, I saw my doctor and talked about my disappointment with the neurologist (who I was referred to because he specialised in headaches) and about the TMJ. She is very interested in migraine, and thankfully was really positive about my proactive research and has agreed to refer me to Dr Casson. In relation to the question with which I started this thread, she also said (something I had thought myself) that perhaps the tendency to TMJ can be inherited!

Jewishmother, I also agree that there is no 'cure'. I read an article years ago that suggested that everyone has the potential to get migraines but that some people may only need one or two potential triggers to bring one on while others might need a dozen factors in place and will thus never experience one. This makes a lot of sense to me.

The neurologist did make one very good point: there is no other disease (his word) where we would just mitigate the attacks (eg, with triptans) rather than try to reduce their frequency, and I know that daily medications have proved very helpful for some people. I just have an inherent resistance to working through a list of strong drugs in the hope that one may work (and meanwhile suffering the side effects of those that don't) if there is any chance that something else - eg, TMJ - may be a contributing factor.

I'm going to contact Dr Casson. Will let you know what happens!