You describe exactly what I experience. I can't afford to see specialists so in the past 15 years, I have taken time to listen to my body in an attempt to figure it out. It's been a long journey of self-discovery and healing but the progress I have made have been worth it. I recently discovered that I had bruxism as a child and wonder if that caused the TMJ. I also started eating dates and that helps alleviate some of the tightness I feel on the left side of my body.