Tickle/Cold Sensation in Ear - Anyone?

Hey guys - new to the community but unfortunately been living in the land of TMJ for about 2 years now

I’ve had a constellation of issues with TMJ (started as ear lobe pain and fullness when I first had it, then this fall I developed tinnitus out of nowhere while also noticing my ears seemed to be able to pop or crunch on command if I tried .. so potential ETD??). I do know a big portion of it has to be posture because I bought an adjustable mattress that I would raise and my ear issues started soon after - and in 2023 they went away when I adjusted the bed.

But even with the bed flat these last months the tinnitus and ETD issues have persisted.

The new development this past weekend on Saturday that’s REALLY messing me up is this cold / tickle sensation in my right ear. It definitely started as more of a tickle - and what was weird was if I put in AirPods, or wore headphones, or chewed gum, or even had a beanie on (I know weird) .. it went away.

But now it’s slightly turned into this cold discomfort, and I’m not noticing anything helping it go away. I don’t even care about the god damn tinnitus at this point which previously had drove me almost to my breaking point when I first had it.

Has anyone felt this type of sensation? Could it be my TMJ causing issues with my ETD and causing this? This is by far the worst place I’ve been in with my health. I really don’t know that I can continue on like this.

I have an appointment with an ENT this afternoon so wish me luck (although I’m not expecting much).