The Beginning

After complaining to my dentist about the jaw pain and limited opening I was having, he told me I needed to visit an oral surgeon. My dad pulled up a list of the "in network" TMJ surgeons for our insurance. I picked the closest one to me that had the soonest available appointment, Dr. Buckles in Plano, TX (honestly, what was I thinking going to a doctor with the name of a clown). I drove to his office in Plano and walked into an office building that had decor older than me and I patiently filled out pages of paperwork before I was called back (note I was the only one in the whole entire office other than the nurses). I did the whole x-ray process and waited for them to print the x-ray on their outdated software. Dr. Buckles comes in (seriously Santa Claus in scrubs), really nice guy. He started talking to me and told me that my joint was slipped out of place and needed to be popped in place and he said he was going to attempt to do that now.....*WHAT - RED FLAG ASHLEY*. He put ice cold numbing spray on my cheek and jaw area, waited for it to dry and then with all his might tried to manipulate my jaw and push my joint back into place. It was so painful. I told him that it was uncomfortable and he stopped and said that he would like me to come back in so they can put me under for him to try again. He also said that I would need cosmetic surgery after the fact to fix the crookedness of my jaw. No thanks Mr. Buckles. Like I said, really nice guy. I'm sure his grandkids love him, seems like a cool grandpa.. but I would never recommend him to anyone who had TMJ issues. 

From here on, I was so nervous about going to see other oral surgeons. My next step was to go see the oral surgeon that my dentist recommended, Dr. Ranschaert in Prosper, TX. He was a great guy (with modern technology...) who recommended I see Dr. Larry Wolford in Dallas. Dr. Wolford is known for this type of surgery, he practically invented it. 

In my next post, I will talk about my experience with Dr. Wolford. 

Thanks for reading, 

Ashley