Let’s talk food

If you are on a diet because of you TMJ/TMD, I feel your pain. 

I am 5’5’ and struggling to stay a healthy weight.  According to the Internet, someone my height should weigh 113-138 pounds.  According to my general doctor, I should weigh 120-125 (& she has asked about my eating habits and dropped hints about an eating disorder).  Currently I am at 112 and am loosing weight every week.  I am too skinny, and know that I look healthiest at 120-125. 

Now I realize that the majority of people I know cannot relate to my problem. Lol.  Many of my friends, colleagues, family, and neighbors say that they wish they had my problem.  I understand that dieting is the norm; however, I am doing the opposite. 

At the moment, I am eating 3 meals a day and a snack.  For breakfast, I always eat yogurt.  It’s just a habit.  It’s quick, easy, and I enjoy it.  For lunch I eat a sandwich.  For dinner I eat a normal, healthy meal.  I am attempting to eat unhealthy.  Though that sounds odd, I am one of the few people out there who truly loves healthy food.  If I was able, I would eat salads and vegetables all the time…but I can’t.  Today I even bought ice cream in an effort to gain some pounds.

My goal, before surgery, is to gain weight.  I want to be at 125 when I have my total joint replacement.  I recognize that I will probably loose 10 pounds.  I am aware that I will be on a liquid diet for an extended amount of time, and it will frustrate me.  However, I also grasp that when I am completely healed in a year or so I might be able to eat like the average person.  I just don’t want to go into surgery at 110 pounds and lose another 10 pounds.  That is ridiculous. 

 I am a picky eater, but there are foods I can eat. 

First, people who have jaw problems are on different diets.  If you are having issues here are some foods to avoid:

Gum (always a big NO)

Bagels

Apple

Baguettes

Raw carrots

Celery

Corn chips

Corn on the cob

Hard breads

Hard candy (if you chew on it)

Jawbreakers

Jellybeans

Licorice

Now and Laters

Nuts

Peanut Brittle

Pizza (or just the crust)

Popcorn

Pretzels

Raw Veggies

Salads

Snickers

Skittles

Starburst

Sugar Babies

Taffy

Tootsie rolls

Chips

Steak

Pork

Hot dogs

Crackers

Hard cookies

Cheese (might be too chewy)

The list goes on & on & on

I try to remember if it is gummy, crunchy, or requires a lot of chewing, I can’t eat it.  Also, if I have to open my mouth real wide, I can’t eat it.

Is the restrictive diet annoying? Yes.  Do I ever crave food that I can’t eat? Absolutely.  Do I ever cheat?  Well….every once in awhile (especially now that I know I am having surgery, but up until I had decided I didn’t cheat).  Honestly, when I do cheat I MUST take a muscle relaxer and I sometimes have to ice my face.  After surgery, I will not cheat.  I will not even think about cheating.  I will not even complain about foods I cannot eat (okay, that might be a bit of a stretch after awhile).

There are times you might go out to eat with friends or colleagues, and you might be unsure if you can eat something at the table.  When this occurs, I either ask someone who is eating the same thing to tell me if it is soft or I reach over and nonchalantly touch it.  Even French fries can be too hard for me to eat.  I test all my food because I have made the mistake of biting into something I assumed was soft (a hash brown) and it was very well done.  If I get a large burger or am at an office party where a sub is served, I will either cut it into pieces or pull it apart and eat what I can separately.

 I use to be embarrassed about my eating habits, but it no longer bothers me.  Most people around me know that I am on a special diet and understand that I am not being rude by touching my food, or pulling it apart, or whatever odd things I have to do to make certain I can eat it.

What foods can someone with TMJ/TMD eat?

Chicken

Hamburger meat

Fish

Creamy peanut butter

Super soft cookies

Eggs

Chocolate (if it’s too hard, I pop it in the microwave for a few seconds)

Instant breakfast

Soup

Yogurt

Ice cream

Pancakes

Muffins

Cake

Beans

Rice

Soft, cooked veggies

Cold cuts

Turkey

Some fruits (I would cut everything up and leave off the skin) (I can’t eat apples)

Potatoes

Macaroni/pasta salad (you might have to avoid some ingredients)

Cheese (can be a bit chewy for me)

Cereal (must let it got soggy before you eat it)

Hot cereal-grits, oatmeal, cream of wheat

Quinoa

Pasta-lasagna, macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, etc.

Risotto

Canned tuna/chicken

Cottage cheese

Tofu

Nut butter

Creamed spinach

Avocados

Pudding

Jell-O

There are still plenty of foods a person with jaw problems can eat.  Of course, what I might be able to tolerate someone else might not be able to.  Each person is in his/her own unique situation and knows what is best for them.

For my last birthday, my mom asked me if I wanted one of those high-powered blenders.  I told her no.  I was against paying a high price for something I probably wouldn’t use that much.  She explained that Kohl’s was having a sale and she also had a coupon.  I suggested that she save her money and just buy me the lipstick that I wanted.  Well, I went to her house one day after work and she and my dad bought me the Bullet blender.  I brought it home and read the instructions. 

If you do not have a high-powered blender, I suggest you go and get one.  They are amazing and there are millions of recipes on the web.  I am a fan of making yogurt smoothies, but you can make soup, meals, nut butters, etc.  I love it!