The Root Cause
I noticed that Maggie's muscles had responded to her surgery similarly to the way that a muscle responds when someone breaks a bone -- except in her case, the muscles didn't know when it was okay to relax again. When you break a bone, the muscles near that bone instantly contract to protect the bone and stabilize it. As the bone heals, the muscles relax and return to normal. I believe that if Maggie had received massage shortly after her surgery, the muscles would have relaxed more quickly and she possibly would have never developed TMJ. I think that the muscles in her neck and head were contracted for too long, and that may be how the jaw pulled out of the joint. I have no proof of this; this is just my theory.Combining Reiki and Massage Treatments
One course of treatment for TMJ is to create a splint for the patient's mouth. The splint holds the jaw in place so that when the mouth opens, the disc won't be able slip, thus forcing the bones and muscles to align properly. Maggie had gotten a splint many months before she came to see me but it had been made incorrectly and she eventually stopped using it.After nearly three months of Massage and Reiki Therapy, Maggie sought out a neuromuscular dentist who specialized in TMJ and had a splint made to properly fit her mouth. Her dentist was amazed that Maggie had managed to function so well without a splint. Since discontinuing use of her "bad" splint, she had only received Massage and Reiki Therapy in conjunction with some physical therapy.
Maggie has also continued to see her various physicians for checkups. At one point the fluid build-up in her left ear caused an infection and the doctor drilled a hole in her eardrum to release the pressure. She received Reiki treatments afterwards and the hole healed in three weeks, half the amount of the time that it usually takes.
The Road Back to Health
Before Maggie turned to alternative medicine, her doctors implied that she might never be able to eat solid food again and would simply have to adjust to that and having Tinnitus for the rest of her life. Another obstacle Maggie faced was her doctors' disbelief when she described her pain and dizziness.Her surgeon said that everything appeared to be normal and he didn't understand why she couldn't eat solid food. She tried again, but her jaw immediately locked. The doctors began to demand that she seek psychoanalysis and treatment for depression. Maggie feels that she is anything but depressed. Since she began addressing her problems with a program of Massage and Reiki, she has found that being able to do even the simplest of things actually brings her great joy. Beyond this, the Reiki treatments have enabled Maggie to cope with greater stresses and she no longer experiences major relapses with her predominant symptoms.
She still has a lot of healing to do before sheíll be able to eat solid food again and live completely free of Tinnitus and pain. Yet after only a few months of regular Massage and Reiki Therapy, she has made dramatic progress in regaining her health and her life, progress that had previously eluded her. She is now able to drive longer distances and attend spinning classes, walk around the mall for an hour and generally function for up to six hours a day without experiencing any dizziness.
Whereas before she would isolate herself socially because long conversations sparked excruciating pain, Maggie can now entertain out-of-town friends for an entire weekend. The ringing in her right ear hasnít returned and the volume in her left ear has diminished to manageable levels. Her myofascial and joint pain have also lessened.
Identifying the source of her pain and addressing it with massage therapy while using Reiki to treat the accompanying ringing and dizziness have put Maggie on the road to recovery.
