TMJ Case

I'm a 45 year old female, good health. I had braces when I was 13, only on my top teeth. I experienced headaches and clicking in jaw from ages 35-40. Was diagnosed with TMJ by neurologist, dentist and orhtodontist in 2008. I paid $11,000 to an orthodontist/tmj specialist in Nov. 2008 for TMJ treatment. I was in an orthotic/expander and electrical pulsing for 13 months (all my TMJ symptoms were gone and I was feeling great). My ortho got rid of the orthotic and put me in braces. After 1.5 years, my orhto said I was almost completed with my treatment and he put a bracket "a button" on the back of tooth 16 and hooked an elastic from the back of tooth 16 to the front of tooth 17 and an elastic on the front of tooth 4 to the front of tooth 30. I immediately experienced spinning vertigo, stabbing pain in my ears, headaches, neck aches, jaw spasms, jaw locking, fullness of ears, ringing in ears. Kept telling my orthodontist something was wrong, he didn't do anything. After 2 months of this debilitating pain, I demanded an X-ray and my orthodontist was shocked that the right side of my jaw had slipped out of socket. He put me back into a new orthotic and the electrical pulsing again (felt a little relief from above pain symptoms) for the next 5 months. Now, I’m-in elastics again and I am feeling worse now than when I came in for my initial consultation. I spoke with my ortho and told him how discouraged I was that I’ve been in treatment now for 4 years and I feel worse now than I did before my treatment. He keeps telling me I can come in for the electrical pulsing if I want to and he keeps telling me he’s trying his hardest to get my jaw aligned and I will probably be finished in two months. Here’s my question. I’ve been in treatment now for 4 years and I feel worse than ever! I can barely drive, sometimes the dizziness is so bad, that I can’t drive or do my normal daily activities. Is there any way I can get my money back from this orthodontist, because I want to seek treatment with a different orthodontist? Please, please, please help me.

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