Jaw Pain

March 11, 2004 1:28 PM

The TMD thread, below, made me wonder about my odd condition, which sounds a little like TMD, but not quite. I get a pain in my jaw-hinge sometimes after drinking alcohol. Sometimes I get it, sometimes I don't. Once I start to notice it, I know I have to stop drinking right away. If I have another few sips, it will become EXCRUCIATING. Anyone know what this is or how best to deal with it?
posted by grumblebee to health & fitness (12 comments total)

I can't tell you what it is, but I get the same thing sometimes. I usually just "drink through the pain" - if I keep drinking, the excruciating part usually only lasts for a little while.
posted by vorfeed at 1:40 PM on March 11, 2004

Now there's a piece of advice!
posted by anathema at 1:41 PM on March 11, 2004

I guess that same advice would work for any pain.
posted by grumblebee at 1:56 PM on March 11, 2004

Oddly enough, I get the same thing sometimes when drinking red wine. Not excrutiating, more just annoying. A friend of mine reports the same.
posted by adamrice at 2:00 PM on March 11, 2004

I guess that same advice would work for any pain.

heh, I guess it would... but I really was serious. I get the same thing, and I just ignore it and keep drinking. The pain rarely lasts more than a minute or two, for me at least, and I can't get drunk that fast.
posted by vorfeed at 2:00 PM on March 11, 2004

It seems to happen to me more with red wine than any other kind of alcohol -- but it's not exclusive to red wine.
posted by grumblebee at 2:03 PM on March 11, 2004

Tell us more... do you wake up in the gutter while experiencing this pain, after drinking?
posted by jpburns at 2:12 PM on March 11, 2004

This is weird - I'd really like to know why this would happen.
posted by agregoli at 2:33 PM on March 11, 2004

I don't have an explanation for the phenomenon but, while I don't drink red wine, I occasionally find that my jaw muscles will seize involuntarily in reaction to eating something with a sour or bitter flavor. The tannins or acidity of your wine may be the culprit, rather than the alcohol itself.
posted by Danelope at 3:10 PM on March 11, 2004

If it's what I think it is, it's your saliva glands going into overdrive. SPIT SPURT! Happens to me occasionally, usually with reds. Keep on drinking, it goes away.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 3:11 PM on March 11, 2004

I agree with Danelope's suggestion: it's the tannic acid. If that's the case, you should stay away from very young red wines.
posted by swordfishtrombones at 2:00 AM on March 12, 2004

It can also be sulfites, synthetic or otherwise. Also, don't discount a mild allergy to alcohol itself or other additives.
posted by skallas at 9:04 PM on March 12, 2004