I was curious about the reasons people have sought me out for Craniosacral Biodynamics sessions, so I looked through my intakes for sessions given since December 1, 2021.
It’s now March 29, 2022, so this sample spans nearly four months.
The variety is broad. The range includes working with very specific conditions in the tissues, chronic issues, acute issues, energetic issues, mental and emotional issues, imbalances of all sorts, recovery from medical treatment, recovery from illness, stress, and issues caused by stress.
I’m here to do my best for you. In this line of work, we are always seeking more health. You are too, or you wouldn’t be here. I look forward to working together.
Please read through my policies. I’m happy to answer any questions you have.
Appointments
Bodywork sessions are by appointment only. You may schedule your own appointment online. You may also contact me first (preferably scheduling a free phone consultation) if you have any questions.
Please try to arrive 5 minutes early to decompress before your session. If possible, allow yourself some down-time after your session to integrate.
Your appointment time is reserved exclusively for you. I send a reminder email and text 48 hours in advance of your start time.
If you need to reschedule, please be kind and do so as soon as possible. You may reschedule online or by emailing, texting, or leaving a voicemail for me.
If you miss an appointment with less than 24 hours of notice, you will be responsible for full payment for the session.
Rates
Initial appointments and 90 minute sessions: $165.
Follow-up appointments/60 minute sessions: $135.
Multi-session packages and subscriptions are discounted by 10 percent.
Payment
When you schedule yourself online, you prepay with a credit card.
If you prefer to pay with cash, check made out to MaryAnn Reynolds, or a cash app, I will need to schedule your session for you.
Special instructions for American Express cards: enter the card number minus the last digit. Then enter the four-digit CVV code. Then enter the last digit of the credit card number. If this doesn’t work, try another type of card or ask me to send you a payment request in PayPal or Venmo.
I accept Health Care Savings Account and Flexible Spending Account cards.
Tips are not accepted. I do appreciate feedback (both positive and about how I can improve), and spreading the word to others in person or in writing about a good experience is deeply appreciated.
I do not work with insurance companies, but if you request a receipt, I can provide one after your session(s) that you can submit to your insurance company or HCSA/FSA plan for reimbursement.
Packages
Multi-session packages are discounted by 10 to 20 percent.
Packages never expire, and they are non-refundable. If you buy a package and cannot use all the sessions, you may request a gift certificate for the balance.
If you would like to request a package or gift certificate not listed on my Scheduling link, please contact MaryAnn at 512-507-4184.
Mask policy
When Austin/Travis County is in Stage 4 or 5, masks are required at all times throughout the office suite and in my private office, regardless of vaccination status.
The only exception is during the intraoral portion of TMJ Relief sessions, when you will need to unmask. I will give you some antiseptic solution (Listerine or a 1% peroxide solution or salt water) to rinse your mouth with before proceeding.
In Stage 3 or below, you may be unmasked if you feel safe doing so, and I will ask you if you are comfortable with me unmasking. (I’m vaxxed and boosted.)
I run a Winix air filter at all times when I am working. It more than meets the highest CDC and WHO recommendations.
If you have a sore throat, fever, or other symptoms of illness, please reschedule your session.
I’d been having problems falling asleep and staying asleep. After yesterday’s session, I slept much better! ~ LL, November 2021
Facebook post and text from long-time client LM, October 2021After trading biodynamic sessions with AA, October 2021From long-time client LD, October 2021Two texts from MG, October 2021
It’s such a gift 💝 thank you ~ JH, October 2021
“You did such a great job of helping me relieve the issue, I’m so grateful for the change you made in my life. You will always be at the top of my list for referrals for tmj relief and cranial sacral.” ~ BT, July 2021
I invite you to work with me!
MaryAnn Reynolds Austin, Texas maryannreynolds.as.me 512-507-4184 (text or voicemail)
If you were building a tower, and one of the floors wasn’t level, it would affect the floors above it — unless you somehow compensated.
The Leaning Tower of Pisa is kind of like that, only it’s because it has settled unevenly on the ground beneath it. As they built it over the years, it would sink, stabilize, sink more…
The structure of the body is like that too — even when standing on level solid ground.
Because the jaw is near the top of the skeleton, imbalances below can affect the alignment and functionality of the temporomandibular joints (TMJs).
The primary cause of most jaw pain is asymmetrical hypertonicity. Thanks, TMJ Mastery teacher John Corry! That means that some of the muscles that affect the jaw are tighter than others.
I ask about structural anomalies in my TMJ consultations. I’m interested in whether one foot is flatter than the other, whether there’s a leg length discrepancy or a pelvic tilt or curvature of the spine.
I’ve been known to slide my hands under a client’s arches with them standing to see if their arches are symmetrical.
When a client is lying on my massage table, I can check for a leg length discrepancy.
I can also tune into their cranial rhythm and notice whether there’s asymmetry in the flexion and extension motions at the feet, which indicates asymmetry in the pelvis.
I also feel the space beneath the ears between the bones to see whether the skull is sitting symmetrically atop the spine.
When the skull and spine are out of alignment, it can contribute to multiple dysfunctions, with TMJ issues being one of them. (Ask me — I experienced intermittent right jaw clicking and my face drifting slightly to the left in meditation until a chiropractor realigned my AO joint, which also resolved issues that were all on my left side.)
1 shows the line between the mastoid processes. 2 shows the C1 vertebrae. From the sides, feel the convex bony area beneath your ears and come down up to 1/2″ to feel the ends of the C1 vertebrae. Notice if the space is symmetrical.
For more on this, including exercises you can do starting at 5:25, watch this video.
The last part of my evaluation for symmetry is to place the pads of my fingers (or have the client place their fingerpads) over the TMJs right in front of the ears and ask them to open and close repeatedly.
Often one side moves first.
Often one side feels closer to the ear than the other.
Sometimes one side sticks out more than the other.
One side may move with more ease than the other.
Try it on yourself. What do you notice?
None of this is super precise. I’m just getting a basic read on asymmetries in the client’s structure that may affect their TMJs.
Have you noticed that you have a dominant side? A side that feels stronger than the other? Most of your issues occurring on one side only?
Have you had a foot, ankle, leg, or hip injury? Can you still tell a difference between the injured side and the uninjured one? Can you balance as easily on your left foot as your right, or is one side weaker?
How’s your posture? How about your sleep posture?
Also, do you primarily chew on one side of your mouth?
Becoming more symmetrical can be a good long-term self-care project that can pay off with more ease of movement, less discomfort, better balance, injury prevention.
Symmetry is an ideal, like perfection. Most of us are doing the best we can. There’s always going to be some asymmetry in the body (our abdominal organs are asymmetrical), but we can definitely address our most dysfunctional areas.
The functional movement screen is a set of 7 movements you do with a trainer, who scores you and can prescribe workouts that strengthen your weaknesses.
FMS was developed to identify athletes who were prone to injury before they got injured. It can work for ordinary people too.
Practices of non-linear movement can help if done regularly over a long period. These movements work both sides of the body and increase neuroplasticity in the brain. They increase flexibility and balance and fluidity. And they are fun! Examples:
yoga, especially alignment-oriented types like Iyengar and Anusara
qi gong
tai chi
Gyrokinesis
martial arts
dance
The type of bodywork that directly addresses asymmetries is called structural bodywork. There are two main schools of training: Rolfing Structural Integration and Anatomy Trains Structural Integration. Neuromuscular therapy also assesses posture and gait pattern and can address imbalances.
I’ve learned that some widely used medications can cause jaw clenching and grinding as side effects.
The best known are in a class called SSRIs, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, commonly prescribed for depression and/or anxiety.
I’m sure you’ve heard of Prozac (generic name fluoxetine). Here are some other SSRIs that can cause bruxism. There may be others:
Zoloft (sertraline)
Celexa (citalopram)
Lexapro (escitalopram)
Paxil and Pexeva (paroxetine and paroxetine CR)
Viibryd (vilazodone)
Luvox (fluvoxamine and fluvoxamine CR)
Do not stop taking them without a doctor’s supervision, as you may have withdrawal symptoms, possibly dangerous.
This is a known problem. This link to an abstract of a 2017 journal article for psychiatrists has more. I don’t have access without paying a lot of money, but you can share this link with your psychiatrist if this applies to you, and there may be updates on this topic.
In general, if you take any of these medications and you are clenching or grinding your teeth, talk to your doctor about alternatives. From the abstract: “Alternative classes of antidepressants reviewed include serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants, atypical antidepressants, and monoamine oxidase inhibitors. Findings indicate that dopamine agonists and buspirone are currently the most effective medications to treat the side effects of SSRI-induced bruxism, but results regarding the effectiveness of specific antidepressants that avoid bruxism altogether remain inconclusive.” (My italics.)
One more bit of info: I had a new TMJ Relief patient who was taking an SSRI. I treated her and gave her the info above.
Unlike others I’ve treated, she didn’t notice a difference in how her jaws felt and moved at the end of her first session.
However, she emailed me the next day to tell me that for the first time in a while, she woke up without severe jaw pain and headache.
So even if you are taking one of these SSRIs and have jaw pain, one of my TMJ Relief sessions can help.
Recently I’ve had two clients come in for TMJ relief sessions who have previously seen multiple practitioners who worked inside their mouths. Between them, they have seen chiropractors, chiropractic neurologists, Rolfers, dentists trained by the Las Vegas Institute (LVI), and/or other massage therapists.
Each of these clients told me “No one has ever touched me there” after I worked on releasing tension in their lateral pterygoid muscles.
These small muscles are hard to access, being nearly surrounded by bones and tendons (cut away in the image below so you can see the upper and lower branches of the lateral pterygoid).
They are not easily accessible on everyone, being overlaid by the coronoid process of the mandible and the temporalis tendon, but they can definitely be influenced.
In my experience of giving over a thousand TMJ Relief sessions, many TMJ issues are due to an imbalance in muscle tension among the nine muscles that are directly involved in moving the mandible and numerous others that connect to the bones of the mouth and jaw.
The lateral pterygoids are often the muscles most responsible for releasing jaw tension and relieving clicking and popping noises on opening and/or closing.
Notice that the upper head of the lateral pterygoid is attached to the articular disc that separates the temporal bone and the mandible —the two bones of the temporomandibular joints.
When this disc does not move smoothly with the mandible when the jaw opens and closes in a hinge-and-glide motion, a clicking, popping, or crunching noise often occurs.
It’s not that the other jaw muscles don’t contribute. They do. I’ve found tension in the temporalises, trigger points and taut bands in the masseters, and taut bands in the medial pterygoids, not to mention strain patterns from lower in the body.
In sessions, I work on the lateral pterygoids after working on the medial pterygoids. They can take time to access and can be sensitive, because most new TMJ Relief clients have never been touched there.
It helps to have small pinky fingers, and even then the area is so tight that sometimes I need to ask a client to shift their jaw to one side to get my finger near the muscle and joint.
Most of my TMJ clients are not aware when they come in that there are even jaw muscles there!
When I massage a lateral pterygoid, it can be a revelation. “That’s the place!” clients exclaim when I remove my finger.
Once I get there, I don’t need to stay long to make a difference. I invite my TMJ clients to move their jaws after I work on each muscle pair. Releasing tension here helps create a sense of spaciousness and ease around the joint.
To feel it for yourself, retract your mandible backward as far as you can. In other words, pull your chin in. You should feel some muscle activation in front of your ears and even in your ears. Kd
If jaw pain and tension (and clicking or popping) are your major complaint, and you’d like a sense of ease and spaciousness in your jaws, schedule a free 15-minute Discovery Call or a TMJ Relief session on my online scheduler. (I live and work in the Austin, Texas, area.)
I have discovered an excellent source of information about TMJ pain and dysfunction. It’s a great website called Be My Healer offered by a doctor of physical therapy, Sophie Xie.
She’s got a couple of posts about TMJ issues. I am impressed with the quality of her posts in terms of credible information, writing to a lay audience, and her images. You go, Dr. Sophie Xie!
First, this article helps distinguish between types and causes of TMJ dysfunction. In short:
Type 1 is arthrogenous TMJ, meaning the problem is related to the functioning of the bony temporomandibular joint. There are two causes: arthritis and disc displacement. She recommends the best treatments for each cause. (Exercises* can help .)
Type 2 is myogenous, meaning muscle-related. Causes include bruxism (clenching and/or grinding), muscle imbalance (such as forward head posture, chewing on the same side, playing the violin), and systemicinfluence causing muscle tension (such as chronic stress, fibromyalgia, PMS).
Dr. Sophie Xie writes, “TMJ massage therapy can help by releasing the tense mastication muscle and provide pain and stress relief. However, you will need to call around to find a massage therapist who is specialized in intraoral release to receive the most targeted treatment.”
Here’s me raising my hand, signaling “Pick me!” I can help with all of the muscle-related types of TMD. I offer intra-oral work, help relieve forward-head posture, and help you relax from stress.
Again, exercises* can also help.
Type 3 is idiopathic, referring to a single cause: trauma impacting the joint from accidents, injuries, dental treatments, even violent laughing or yawning.
Dr. Sophie Xie writes, “Post-traumatic TMJ pain is highly preventable. Early intervention such as physical therapy and massage therapy are excellent in preventing scar formation and muscle stiffness. Gentle and progressive jaw stretching and exercises* will build a strong muscle function to keep chronic and repetitive TMJ pain away.”
She writes, “Most people experience significant TMJ pain reduction with daily exercises after 5-6 weeks. You should experience even faster results if you are also combining TMJ massage therapy with a nightly mouth guard.”
Her website has a contact page if you want to work with her. (I believe she’s practicing in Washington state.)
The sphenoid bone is one of the most fascinating bones in the body. If you were looking at someone and could see their bones, the sphenoid would be behind their eyes and in front of their ears, with the outermost parts (the greater wings) accessible at the temples, and the lowermost parts (the pterygoid processes) being what your internal jaw muscles attach to behind your upper back teeth.
The word sphenoid comes from the Greek for wedge-shaped. Its shape has been likened to a moth, a bat, a butterfly, and a wasp. It definitely has wings!
Here’s a picture of it, as viewed from the front.
It’s a central cranial bone that does many important things:
it connects to your internal jaw muscles
muscles involved in swallowing are attached to it
it helps form the orbits of your eyes
your optic nerves meet, cross, and pass through it
your pituitary (master gland) sits on top of it (in the “sella Turcica” — Turkish saddle!)
it contains two air sinuses, the sphenoidal sinuses, which open into the nasal cavity through the ethmoid bone
it has openings for major blood vessels and nerves of the head and neck
the tentorium cerebelli, part of the membranous system surrounding the central nervous system, attaches to it
The sphenoid has been called the keystone bone of the skull. It touches 12 other cranial bones: the two parietals, two temporals, two zygomas, two palatines, and the frontal, occipital, ethmoid, and vomer.
The occiput is considered the base of the cranium. The place where the sphenoid and occiput meet is called the sphenobasilar joint (SBJ).
You can see the SBJ in the middle of the image below where the orange and yellow bones meet.
The alignment of this joint is important. William Sutherland, DO, father of cranial osteopathy, believed that the alignment of the entire skeletal system is influenced by the SBJ.
Misalignment of the SBJ obviously affects other cranial bones, which fit closely together, something like a spherical jigsaw puzzle.
If the SBJ is out of alignment, it affects the temporal bones, the upper bones of the temporomandibular joints (TMJs), colored reddish-pink in the image above.
Your internal jaw muscles attach to your sphenoid. In my TMJ Relief sessions, the clinical intraoral work relieves tension in these muscles, helping to release tension affecting the sphenoid and SBJ.
If the bones of the joints are not aligned well, it can also affect the endocrine, nervous, and cardiovascular systems.
Alignment of the SBJ is also a consideration in migraines, headaches, sinus problems, head/neck/back pain, scoliosis, eye movement, and problems with behavior, personality, learning, coordination, hormones, and emotions.
Craniosacral therapists pay a lot of attention to it and can gently help it find better alignment.
Getting this bone and joint properly aligned creates an often-subtle shift that ripples out into more ease and better health.
What do various healing professions do to treat TMJ issues?
I’m going to try to answer that, to help you be better health-care consumers and know what to expect in terms of results.
By the way, I am a massage therapist who specializes in TMJ work, including intra-oral (inside the mouth) work, in which I’ve had advanced training from three teachers and experience since 2013. I admit, I am biased!
I want to say up front that most massage therapists do not work inside the mouth, which is where the jaw muscles most likely to be causing TMJ pain are located.
Most massage therapists do have the skills to release tension in the external jaw and neck muscles. Maybe that’s all you need, if your jaw pain is mild and intermittent. You will feel better after such sessions.
But if you are really suffering from long-term jaw pain and dysfunction, you definitely need more than that to get relief. You could greatly benefit from intra-oral work, which takes special training and experience to do effectively.
Do not hesitate to ask whether a therapist you are considering working with is trained in releasing tension in the internal jaw muscles.
Whole-body work can also help, when the TMJ pain is related to your posture (for instance, head forward posture) or to muscle tension due to stress.
Here’s a look at results you might expect from working with practitioners in different professions:
getting your pelvis aligned and balanced (massage therapist, physical therapist, craniosacral therapist, chiropractor)
getting your head aligned on top of your spine (craniosacral therapist, chiropractor)
preventing your teeth from cracking due to grinding (dentist or over-the-counter night guard)
checking whether grinding in your sleep is related to airway obstruction (sleep specialist)
reducing tension in your internal jaw muscles (massage therapist with special training, physical therapist with special training, Rolfer as part of 10-series)
restoring alignment in the cranial bones (craniosacral therapist)
repairing or replacing a dysfunctional articular disk (oral surgeon)
getting whole-body therapy to help with alignment issues and release strain patterns (craniosacral therapist, Rolfer, Zero Balancer, yoga teacher, yoga therapist)
There is one major caveat here: these are generalities based on my own knowledge and experience. Each profession has its specialties. Not all physical therapists work on the jaw or pelvis — in fact, not many do.
Do not hesitate to ask questions and do your own research.
This is a brief and imperfect overview to help you get the results you want, and there are many fine points not mentioned here.
What to do if you have jaw issues? I offer a 30-minute in-person TMJ consultation to gather information and evaluate your issues. I teach clenchers an alternative to clenching as well as the above information to stop grinding.
These habits are major contributors to TMJ issues, and you can change them.
If you’re not in Austin, I can do the above as well as help you learn what to ask about when seeking TMJ relief near you. Just let me know if you need a phone or Zoom consultation.
I offer a combination TMJ Consultation plus TMJ Relief session in person in Austin, Texas. The consultation serves as an intake, so I have a better idea of what your issues are and how we’ll measure progress. Your consultation is free when combined with your first TMJ Relief session. This is a two-hour session.
To be fair, when you’ve had TMJ issues for a long time, or they are acute, you may need multiple sessions to retrain your system to retain the ease and alignment, along with doing your homework to stop clenching or grinding your teeth.
I offer a package of four TMJ Relief sessions for 10 percent off single sessions, best done a week or two apart. These sessions are 90 minutes and integrate various bodywork modalities — including work in your mouth — so that you feel great when you get off the table. They are best done over 4 to 6 weeks.
I’m getting referrals for craniosacral therapy for people who have had concussions, and I want to help these folks recover. Not knowing what a doctor may have told them but knowing how busy most doctors are, I am providing information here that may help injured brains recover more quickly. If your doctor tells you something different, listen.
People who’ve had concussions may report experiencing pain, dizziness or vertigo, balance issues, vision changes, speech problems, confusion, lack of focus, forgetfulness, nausea, sleepiness, emotional problems, and perhaps other symptoms.
To be clear on the language, concussions are also called mild traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).
To simplify, imagine your brain is like jello inside a closed container (cranium) cushioned by a thin layer of water (cerebrospinal fluid), with substantial membranes separating the major parts (hemispheres, cerebrum and cerebellum). A major impact slams the brain around inside the cranium, damaging brain tissue. Some research points to the corpus callosum, which connects the two hemispheres, receiving the most damage from concussions. Continue reading “Post-concussion self-care”→
