Over the past couple of years I have been having a reoccurring pain that starts in the lower part of my left ear where it connects to my head, and extends down into my neck and carotid artery area. The pain is a dull burning sensation as if in the nerve. The pain is not inside my ear, rather it starts in the base part of the area where my ear protrudes from my head, travels down my neck from behind the ear and under my jaw/chin into the carotid artery area. In the past I have had pluresy (sp?) in my carotid arteries on one side and then on the other, but was told that was just a common infection of the lining of the atery at that time.
The pain often starts in the ear area and later develops in the neck area in a burning throbbing manner which is quite distracting, but not extremely painful. If I place pressure on base of my earlobe, or on the area just behind my ear at the bottom where it connects to my neck, or on the carotid artery itself (underneath my jawline at the neck), the pain is slightly relieved. To me it seems like a nerve pain. My doctor suggested I go to the dentist about it and see if it is TMJ, but somehow it does not seem to me like it would be a TMJ pain.
What are your opinions on this pain?
Thank you in advance for any information you can offer.