TMJ Jaw Pain

Frequently individuals experiencing excessive popping and clicking in their jaw, will get pain from time to time as well. That was how mine behaved, then became worse in my teens with braces. When the pressure from the surrounding muscles and/or the dislocation becomes so serious that it impedes the movement of the jaw or pressure on nerves, it can become a chronic pain issue. This entire network of pressure, tension and pain can be exacerbated by clenching or grinding at night, along with the other reasons the TMJ jaw pain is exacerbated.

We have more information about the postural and structural stress on the TMJ on our TMJ Ear Pain page , and Pain Relief for TMJ Page.

In our clinic, we work with alleviating this jaw pain primarily through muscle work, and assisting our client in finding postural patterns and other habits that are making the tension patterns worse. Our therapists are trained in identifying and working with the muscles that are related to TMJ pain, including the muscles located inside the mouth. The many muscles which attach to the jaw can be softened through massage, hydrotherapy and stretching.

So many different joint pain patterns in our bodies could be alleviated or resolved, if we could open up stuck muscle patterns. We've had clients come in with years of pain in their joints that spontaneously resolved, when we focused on opening up a restricted muscle or connective tissue pattern. This has included TMJ jaw pain, knee pain, neck pain, hand pain...all of these have a remarkable amount of muscles crossing over the joint, so that when the joint(s) become too compressed by the pressure, there is less room for the joint to articulate normally.

The top suggestions we give our clients for TMJ jaw pain is to be sure that they are not sleeping in positions that compromise your jaw. This may be bad news for some folks, but the only way to truly have your jaw neutral is to sleep on your back, with a neck roll, or rolled towel. No big, puffy pillows, if you want to alleviate headaches or neck and jaw tension. This is very important!

Excessively chewy foods are something to avoid in general. My personal issues with TMJ jaw pain are under control, but sometimes I'll sleep poorly, clench my jaw for a couple of weeks and let the tension in my neck and jaw get too tight, and sure enough, I'll have TMJ pain. One sure-fire way to exacerbate or flare my TMJ pain is to chew gum for a couple of days, or eat things like Power Bars (I haven't had one of those in a couple of years, since I was training for a race and needed smooshable race food) or bagels.

Remember that the tension in a muscle structure is cumulative. If you do one or two of these things every once in a while, you will probably be able to manage your TMJ issue...but do several of them at one shot, and you may be looking at an all out flare, when you can't close your mouth for a day or two. I'm speaking from experience. During a really stressful time, I would wake up clenching and one day I couldn't completely close my jaw for an entire day. Obviously I jacked up the structure within the joint from creating a super-tight fortress of overused muscles around it. Massage, heat on the muscles and ice on the joint itself allowed me to be able to eat the next day, but I now know that it's possible to 'throw out' your jaw from too much stress and tension! Good thing to know.

If you want for your partner, friend or caregiver to help you out by learning some massage techniques for the head, neck or jaw, we have a Couples Massage video available for instant download that has some easy techniques to help to alleviate tension in those areas.

Chronic Pain
Sports Massage
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Headaches
Neck and Shoulder Pain
Couples Massage
Couples Massage DVD
Fort Collins Massage Therapist Page
Return from TMJ Jaw Pain to Fort Collins Massage Home Page

New! Comments