Mel...to be more specific about the Therabite...I found that the instructions that came with the device were pretty good. You need to start as soon as possible, and you need to do it for a set number of repetitions, holding the open position for a certain length of time...ie. 5-10 seconds each.....I kept my device handy, ie. on the little table next to my tv-watching chair, so that I could pick it up and do it from time to time. Note: I found that saliva collected on the appliance...it stimulates you to drool!!....so keep a tissue handy. You start where you are.....The first challenge is perhaps to get the mouthpiece inside your mouth. That is progress! Then you exert whatever pressure you are able to exert by squeezing the handles to begin forcing your jaws open. You are actually trying to tear the scarred tissue fibers that are keeping your jaw from opening. For this reason, you need to be diligent and consistent. You don't want to injure these fibers and then allow them to re-heal in a scarred position. Do this many times a day....4-6-8......make a pest of yourself. You will soon see progress....and when you get lazy, you will see a tightness return very quickly. I can't recall exactly when I found that I could get along without the device, but now I do my exercises without the device.....I simply force my mouth open as far as possible, and I gently force it open farther by pulling on my lower teeth. If I do not do this, my jaw will tighten up. I am over the hump now, but I did not have radiation....only surgery....but my surgery went all the way into my (former) jaw joint, since they removed all of my maxilla on that side, so that joint was pretty traumatized.
Check with your doctor first, but if he/she says that it is time to begin to work on the trismus, don't put it off!
There is a Therabite website for ordering more cushions. The cushions are very inexpensive, but you will be astonished....I was.....at the cost of the appliance itself! Your insurance will cover it, but still it is beyond all reason!....$460? $650? I don't recall, but in that range.
