Talk to Orofacial Pain Specialist on About Mouth

I feel as though the muscles that connect my jaw to my skull are swollen. I am unable to chew properly because my bite strength feels reduced to about 10% of normal. Instead of chewing, I can only press the food lightly with my tongue or teeth and then swallow it. Whenever I bring my upper and lower teeth together in a normal resting position, my lower jaw slowly drops open again within 2–5 seconds, as if something is preventing it from staying closed. It feels as though there is some kind of restriction or tightness in my jaw. The pain is present on both sides of my face, including in front of my ears, along my jaw muscles, under my jaw near my neck, and around the wisdom tooth area. Although there is no visible swelling, I can feel swelling internally. This problem developed gradually over several days. I experienced a similar episode before, which improved after about 15–20 days, but this time the symptoms are much more severe.