TMJD
What is your TMJ?

Many of us have heard the term TMJ, but what is it actually? TMJ stands for temporomandibular joint. It is what most of think of when we say our “jaw joint”. And if you stop to think about it, your TMJ is probably one of the most used joints in your whole body on a day-to-day basis. We use it to eat and talk, we clench it when we are stressed or even just concentrating hard…and sometimes we even clench when we are sleeping. It hardly ever gets a rest!

It’s also one of most complicated joints in your body! It is the only bilateral joint in the body, meaning it is the only single joint with articulating surfaces on both the left and right side. It has more than its fair share of muscles—big and small—not only on your jaw but on the sides of your head and on the front of your neck. And they are all putting a tremendous amount of pressure on relatively small areas.

And even though we use it almost constantly, we hardly ever think about it or appreciate it…until it starts hurting or not working properly.
 

Some causes of TMJD
When we develop pain and dysfunction in the TMJ, it is referred to as temporomandibular joint dysfunction or TMJD.

This can develop from a variety of causes:

• Traumatic accidents or injuries, especially to the head and neck: auto collisions, falls, during contact sports, or even just biting down to hard on something
• Dental work: spending extended periods of time with your head awkwardly tilted back, holding your mouth open wide, often with your jaw being pushed or pulled on
• Malocclusion: misalignment of the TMJ can cause uneven demand and wear on the muscles and joint
• Stress (physical or emotional): extended or extreme periods of stress are often mirrored by tension in the jaw muscles, bruxism (teeth grinding), and continuous clenching of the jaw muscles
• Migraines/frequent headaches: issues with your TMJ can cause headaches, but conversely frequent headaches can also lead to clenching, bruxism, overuse and even TMJ damage over time
   

Signs and symptoms of TMJD

• Pain or tenderness in the face, jaw, neck and shoulders, and in or around the ear when chewing, speaking, or opening the mouth wide
• Difficulty chewing due to pain or weakness, or limited range of motion in opening your mouth
• Jaws that get “locked” in the open- or closed-mouth position
• Clicking, grating sounds or popping in the jaw joint when opening or closing the mouth, especially when chewing
• Headaches
• Malocclusion (misalignment of the teeth): you might feel that your teeth “don’t line up” when you close your mouth. This can lead to dental problems and discomfort when eating

How can we help?
Massage and manual therapy can help ease not only the symptoms of TMJD, but can also help to resolve the underlying causes of the dysfunction.

During your session, our goals will be to:

• Decrease or eliminate muscle tension, trigger points, and facial restrictions in and around the TMJ which often gets rid of the pain, weakness and limited range of motion
• Restore proper biomechanics to the joint by restoring proper muscle and joint function, thus decreasing or eliminating grating, clicking, popping, and locking of the joint
• Potentially helping to address malocclusion issues if it is due to functional not structural causes

When should I receive TMJ treatment?
There are many reasons why a TMJ treatment would benefit you if you

• have many or all of the signs and symptoms listed above
• have been diagnosed with TMJD by your physician or dentist
• have just been through a long or intense dental procedure*
• will be going through a long or intense dental procedure*

*TMJ treatment can not only be beneficial to treat symptoms that you are already experiencing…this treatment can be incredibly helpful as a preventative measure before or after dental work to prevent developing symptoms.