TMJ pain and no sleep -- moving from oral appliance to CPAP

Sleep issues for the last 30+ years TMJ for the last 15+ years Sleep study a year ago determined I have mind sleep apnea and was given an oral appliance 5months ago. This only made my TMJ worse, which only increased my anxiety and stress level, which made my sleep apnea worse, which has led to migraines, etc you know the drill. I am constant pain on a daily basis, only sleeping a handful of hours per night. I'm totally regretting going down this path.

In 2 weeks I'm picking up a CPAP machine. The thought of having to wear a device to sleep for the rest of my life is depressing, but if it works, I'm on board.

Has anyone gone down this path? TMJ, oral appliance didnt work, ended up with CPAP and saw an improvement? Please tell me there’s some hope out there.

I was initially given a CPAP, but opted for a dental device ($2K out of pocket) because I was doing a lot of International travel for work and it was difficult to use the machine on a plane.

After spending a week in Europe in 2005 using the device, I was a total Zombie. Turned out I was a bad candidate, because I desaturated too badly. Net/ net I got bad TMJ before I got relief from the OSA. Reverted to CPAP only with much better results.

CPAP can take some getting used to. Getting the machine set up properly and finding a mask that works for you are the keys to success. Assuming you have a machine like the ResMed or DreamStation that captures data on a SD card, it is worthwhile downloading it and viewing it with a freeware program called OSCAR. That will let you know how well the CPAP is working for you and what adjustments may be needed.

I use a CPAP but have no TMJ issues. My wife also uses both a CPAP and a TMJ splint made by the dentist. The combination seems to work for her.