At the age of fifteen-years-old, Kasia Redden began experiencing chronic pain. Even performing the most simple tasks became very difficult.
Kasia visited many different doctors including family practitioners, chiropractors, rheumatologists and physical therapist. She had blood work done, MRIs and CT scans performed. She was tested for Lupus and Multiple Sclerosis (MS). No one could figure out what was wrong with her. Because of the pain that averaged a 7 on a scale of 1 – 10, she experienced sleepless nights, clinched her teeth and was always feeling fatigued. She was moody at work. She had to rest for several hours after bringing in the groceries or mowing the lawn.
Finally she was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia syndrome, an invisible, misunderstood and debilitating condition that supposedly could only be treated with pain medication. Medications that left Kasia dazed and groggy, until the effects wore off and the pain returned. Because there are no outward signs of Fibromyalgia, none of Kasia’s friends or co-workers understood her condition. People would say, “it doesn’t look like anyting is wrong with you,” or “you look normal.”
Out of frustration, Kasia penned a letter to the editor that appeared in the local newspaper explaining how she dealt with her hidden pain and asking people to be more understanding of a condition that did not present obvious outward signals. Kasia received multiple responses from those who sympathized with her situation and thanked her for putting into words the frustrations that they shared with her.
One of those who read Kasia’s Op-Ed was Dr. Steve Childress of Stonewood Dental played a hunch and reached out to Kasia. Dr. Childress suspected that her Fibromyalgia pain was being exacerbated by a jaw misalignment condition of the temporomandibular joint commonly referred to as TMJ. The misalignment leads to the clinching and grinding of teeth and trouble sleeping.
Steve reached out to Kasia and told her what he was thinking. Without offering any guarantees, the Robinson, Texas dentist invited Kasia to come by his office to see if TMJ treatment could relieve her Fibromyalgia pain. Despite a healthy dose of skepticism, Kasis accepted the invite.
Dr. Childress explained that there were no guarantees and at the same there were no risk to the TMJ treatment. Considering what Dr. Childress had to say, Kasia agreed to give the treatment a try. After all, what did she have to lose?
The results of treatment were almost immediate. After being fitted with a bioesthetic MAGO device, Kasia slept through the night for the first time in years. Over the course of several months and a few return visits, Kasia’s pain in her head, neck and shoulders has been almost completely eliminated.
Dr. Childress concedes that treatment of TMJ does not cure Fibromalygia but both Kasia and Dr. Childress are pleased with the outcome.
“I could not guarantee that this treatment would work,” said Dr. Childress. “But I am glad we tried.”
Kasia’s feelings are summed up best in the follow up letter she sent to paper as a result of her treatment.
“The TMJ treatment I received at Stonewood Dental literally changed my life,” she said.
