(no subject)

[rynne]

So at the end of December, I had a period of about three or four days where my ear was really hurting and I didn't know why. I thought it might be an ear infection, and figured that I'd talk to my parents about finding a doctor, but then it went away and I let it go.

Now it came back. For the past few days, my ear has been hurting, enough so that it's hard to sleep on it (I'm a side sleeper, and can't sleep when I'm not on my side). This time there was jaw pain as well, especially when chewing.

Today I went to see someone at the school health center, and she said it might be TMJ, or pain in my temporomandibular joint. I looked it up and it makes sense given that that's basically where the pain is, and it does hurt to chew, and it says it's commonly mistaken for ear pain. But looking at wikipedia's list of causes, I'm not sure what caused mine (if TMJ is what it is), since I don't grind my teeth, or chew gum or my nails, or neglect my teeth. The person I saw today suggested I see a dentist for a proper diagnosis, so I think I'll talk to my parents about doing that when I go home for spring break.

Now another annoying thing is that yesterday my parents emailed and said that my little sister is thinking about coming to visit me for her spring break. This would be completely awesome and I'd love to have her, but I don't know where she'd stay. Now I want to talk to my RA and see if there are any options, or if she has any suggestions, but she's not here. She wasn't here last night, and she hasn't been here all afternoon, and she seems to not be here very often.

Am I being unreasonable to think this is not a good thing for an RA? I mean, the entire point of a resident assistant is to be available to your residents for questions and assistance. Yeah, I'm living in an upperclassmen dorm where maybe she thinks that people already know how dorm living works and therefore don't need her that often, and I really don't need her that often, but when I do need her, I'd like to be able to find her within twenty-four hours, at least. Of course she has her own life, but why apply to be an RA if you're not willing to spend time to be available to your residents? She seems to be gone far more often than she's around, and it's annoying.

Comments

[terredancer.livejournal.com]

You have my sympathies on the TMJ, if that is what it is.

I've had it for probably about three years or so now, and it's a bit of a confusing mess at times.

[rynne.livejournal.com]

I talked to my parents, and when I described what was happening, my mom said the first that that she thought of was TMJ. She has it herself, so it probably is what it is. *sigh*

How has it been for you? A real problem, an inconvenience...?