Have noticed stiffness in my jaw when eating food. Today I felt resistance and pain while trying to extend open my mouth. Pain is at top of jaw on both sides.

I guess this is another effect of RT?

Any advice/suggestions?

Thanks

Ken

Hello Kenny

The stiffness and pain you are experiencing could be jaw muscle pain. It is often related to clenching and/or other oral activity. Try keeping your teeth apart, not leaning on your jaw, stopping any mouth activity like biting your lip, fingernails, cheek, chewing gum, etc and go on a soft diet to rest the muscles. Also follow the advice given previously. If I am right, you will notice an improvement. If not , it is a reaction following radiotherapy. This requires similar management; warm wheat bag or equivalent applied to sides of face over stiff muscles followed by gentle "draw-bridge vertical" opening and closing stretching exercises. Do not wiggle the jaw as it makes it worse! Let me know how you get on.

Best wishes
Vinod

I too am having jaw problems, post RT. I still find it hard to open my mouth wide enough to eat as I used to and sometimes suffer from jaw ache if eating firmer foods.

I also get occassional cramp in my jaw and neck, and as well get muscle spasms in my neck.

I really don't feel I should be feeling like this 16 months after finishing my treatment.

Hey ho!

Hi Ken and Ray, 11 years on I can open my mouth but not quite wide enough for a Mars bar. I get the occasional cramp under my chin, and my jaw aches if I eat a lot of chewy stuff.
The worst bit now is the cramp which really pisses me off because I never got it before. Everyone is different though so you may not experience your symptoms for so long. Hagg.

Likewise Hagg. I didn't have the cramps and aches until a few months ago. The annoying thing is that you are told one thing by a doctor/nurse etc, and then when that doesn't prove to be true they use the old cop out by saying "well we don't really know as it isn't an exact science".

With the amount of people who go through this, you'd think they would have a better idea.

I wasn't told about any of the long term side effects, just the ones that would happen during and just after the RT. If I'd known about the mouth opening (or lack of it) I probably wouldn't have had RT at all but then I might be dead so I figured they didn't tell me on purpose . Now I'm used to it all I'm glad I had it. Hagg.

I tend to agree about the "deliberate" lack of information. I am sure that if they had the time to go into all the whys and wherefores then they would, but with the ever increasing workload and the depth they would have to go into it probably isn't feasible.

I really didn't have any option but to have RT. An operation was out of the question as the thing was too far gone and an op (according to my consultant) was out of the question. One of my best friends is an ENT surgical nurse (at a hospital in Devon) and had seen my paperwork. She showed it to her consultant who enquired if I realised how serious my condition was...she said no. She told me all this after my treatment so as not to upset me (as if!) and added that the consultant had said that if they had operated, it would of necessitated going in through both sides of the neck. Oo-er!!

That meant that I had to have aggressive RT and chemo which has buggered up my body rather. It would be churlish of me to moan about being alive, but as the treatment has left me unable to eat properly (little taste and next to no saliva) and has given me thyroid problems, I feel like I have to have a little whinge at times.

It really doesn't help that it is coming up to the most miserable time of year for me (and others) and this probably exacerbates the situation.

One other thing as well whilst I'm having a Meldrew moment, I really do feel the cold now. Am I turning into my grandparents??

Hi Vinod,

I don't bite my lip, fingernails or cheek, well yet! I have been having MLD once a week for the last three weeks and it has really helped relax me.

Will focus on the jaw exercises and keep trying to open mouth, trying to eat one apple a day but it hurts.

Big Ray/Hagg: I seem to be going through a mega "Meldrew" period and all these small things are dragging me down. I do know the alternative though and I am grateful to be alive just finding it all bit of a struggle at the moment. This too shall pass!

Many thanks

Ken

Hi Fellas
OK, I give in. I tried to resist but in my weakened state at 12.51am I have to ask ...... who or what is Meldrew?
I can figure it out that it's to do with the miseries but would like to know the background.
Give yourselves a break, you two. What terrible, traumatic experiences you've both been through, life will never be the same and the list goes on, so be nice to yourselves and give yourselves permission to let the bubbles rise to the surface sometimes.
Ray, like you, Trevor's thyroid has been thrown out of whack from his initial treatment (mind you, nearly 50 kg weight loss might also be a contributing factor!). He was always one to wear shorts and T shirt, summer or winter but these days he's only just taken off his thermals! We have had a couple of 36/37 days this week! I think he's even been feeling the cool worse than my dad and man that's saying somehing.
Keep smiling you blokes, and be kind to yourselves or else ............. (please don't make me try to think of a punishment, just don't have the energy at present).
Love from Down Under
Deborah

hi deb
victor meldrew is a character in a comedy programme called one foot in the grave,he plays an old man who is always complaining but funnily enough everything seems to happen to him.it is hilarious dont know if you get this programme down under. love shirl xxx