Hello, I can understand your concern. If you are having pain that increases while eating hot or cold food, tooth pains while chewing and if there is some areas in oral cavity where food particles get stuck everytime you eat and it is difficult to remove them, then it could be tooth infection. If you experience pain while opening or closing movements of jaw, hear/feel clicking or popping sounds while opening and closing movements, then it could be TMJ problem. However, the symptoms you are explaining indicates more towards to possibility of an impacted wisdom tooth that may have infected surrounding gums and may be causing pressure on the adjacent teeth. You should visit a dentist and go for xray of the wisdom tooth area of the lower left side. If the tooth is indeed the cause, then its removal is advised. For now, you can take an over-the-counter painkiller like NSAID to have relief in pain. I hope this answer helps you. Thank you for choosing HCM. Let me know if you have follow up question. Best, Dr. Viraj Shah