Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) Dysfunction may be caused by a direct injury to the jaw, dental work, chewing to one side, sleeping on your side with your mouth open, or resting your chin in your hand. It can be extremely painful, or you may merely experience an audible clicking or popping. Other symptoms associated with TMJ are headaches, jaw aches, neck pain, difficulty eating/chewing, and difficulty opening and closing your mouth.
To alleviate pain or discomfort, try these exercises:
Place your closed fist directly under the jaw joint. Press the jaw into your fist, hold the pressure for a count of 10, release, and go to the opposite side. Repeat 10 times.
Place three fingers at each jaw, below the joint, and apply light pressure evenly. Slowly open the jaw and do not allow any noise. If there is clicking or popping, you may have tension in the jaw, release the pressure and begin again. Repeat 20 times.
Curl your tongue upward, and place the tip as far back in the roof of your mouth as you can. Now hold in place while opening and closing your mouth. Repeat 20 times.
If these therapies do not help and your pain persists, a few modalities offered by the Advanced Wellness Center that may help alleviate your pain or discomfort are: chiropractic care, cranial adjusting, acupuncture, massage, ice and exercise to balance the muscles of the jaw.
Healing Tip of the Week
If you have a noisy or painful jaw, you should not chew gum. We tend to chew on one side and can further misalign the jaw and imbalance the muscles causing more problems.
