I’m not sure why this is, but there have been a growing number of new patients coming to our office with TMJ problems. Issues with your TMJ (temperomandibular joint, a.k.a. your “jaw”) most commonly lead to jaw pain and headaches.
TMJ issues can arise from a trauma to the jaw, like when you play sports or you happen to get hit. A lot of the issues comes from just going to the dentist. Not that the dentist did anything wrong, it’s just that when you have to hold your mouth open for so long and the muscles get tight and pull things out of place.
Then the jaw starts to pop or click each time you open your mouth. A lot of this can be accepted for awhile, but when it starts to lead to pain is when people want to take action. Some patients arrive in our office dealing with a totally different problem. Then I’ll get a question like, “Can chiropractic help my jaw?” Then the conversation begins.
The treatment is usually focused on working the muscles of the jaw. Kind of like massage, but more specific to the jaw muscles. Usually one side is way tighter than the other. Loosening up the tight side goes a long way in easing the pressure.
The TMJ itself can be adjusted through chiropractic. In our office, we can adjust the joint by using our hands, or the use of a low-impact adjusting tool called an activator. Both methods work well and seem to relieve the pain and pressure in the jaw.
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