Tag: Austin

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Treating TMJ issues: acupressure points for self-care

Recently I wrote about how acupuncture can help relieve jaw pain and the stress that often accompanies it. Today’s post is about doing acupressure on yourself for TMJ issues.

Keep in mind that if you see an acupuncturist, they will do an evaluation that may show other issues that they can address, with a focus on getting your whole system in balance.

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Image source: acupressure.com

But acupressure can help. The leading expert on using acupressure, Michael Reed Gach, Ph.D., has a page on pressure points for sinus problems, jaw, TMJ, and bruxism and includes a 4:07 video (go to 1:18 for the jaw points).

He recommends holding them for a couple of minutes 2-3 times a day for a few weeks or months for best results if your jaw pain is chronic. Sinus, Jaw, TMJ and Bruxism Acupressure is 4:08.

Heather Wibbel’s video (3:43) shows four points to apply pressure.

This site has good images of four points, two of which Heather covers (SI 19 and ST6), with two other points on the cranium (ST7 and GB12) that can help.

(Note: If you Google this topic, be aware that not all the results are credible. I found one that pictured ST36 on the leg while describing a point on the face!)

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Treating TMJ issues: an upper-body yoga sequence

Often neck and shoulder tension accompanies jaw pain. I’m enjoying this seated yoga sequence for neck and shoulder tension, recommended in a FB conversation about what people with TMJ do for self-care. It’s 8:29 in length.

Yoga for Neck & Shoulder Tension

I’m a big fan of yoga, having practiced it since 1982. It’s definitely helped with stress, tension, flexibility, energy, body awareness. I’ve taken yoga teacher training and taught restorative yoga and one-on-one classes for yoga newbies.

My yoga orientation is alignment-oriented hatha yoga like Iyengar and Anusara, which I combine in my home practice with sun salutation vinyasas and balance poses to meet the needs of my body. I notice I’m becoming more and more attracted to kundalini yoga.

If you do yoga, do you have any favorite asanas or breathwork practices for jaw pain?

My Practice

Treating TMJ issues: what various professions do to help

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:

  • reducing stress (massage therapist, acupuncturist, yoga teacher, meditation teacher)
  • reducing tension in your external jaw muscles (massage therapist)
  • releasing trigger points in your external jaw muscles (massage therapist)
  • doing myofascial release on your external jaw muscles (massage therapist)
  • releasing neck tension (massage therapist, physical therapist, chiropractor)
  • 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.

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Treating TMJ issues: reducing daytime clenching

A new follower of my Facebook business page is working on reducing her daytime clenching.

Along with any kind of helpful stress-reducing practice (4-7-8 breathing, yoga, meditation, epsom salt baths, etc.), you can retrain your jaw and mouth muscles to be more relaxed.

Actually, you can retrain your entire nervous system to be more relaxed — and this may take several years of dedicated effort, including finding less stressful work along with committing to yoga, breath work, and/or meditation practices and other lifestyle changes. I plan to write more about resetting your nervous system in the future.

So for today, one step at a time: how to relax your jaw and mouth muscles when you experience daytime clenching.

The first step is to notice when you are clenching or grinding and deliberately move your teeth apart.

Next, do this to relax your tight jaw muscles: Circle the tip of your tongue on the biting surfaces of your teeth (upper and lower) 5 times in each direction. Gradually add some repetitions each time, up to 15, to help release the muscle tension of clenching by exercising the jaw muscles and tongue.

Then gradually reduce the number of repetitions to whatever it takes to loosen up.

Follow this by working to develop a new habit, because that’s what clenching is, a habit: Visualize a coffee stir stick turned sideways between your upper and lower teeth in front. That’s as far as you need to move your teeth apart.

Imagine your lower jaw hanging loosely from its hinges. Close your lips. You can give your jaw muscles a massage.

Let your tongue flatten and soften so the outer edges protrude slightly into the spaces between your upper and lower molars. Let the tip of your tongue rest gently behind your upper teeth.

This is the new relaxed resting position when you are not using your mouth. If you unconsciously begin to clench again, you will bite your tongue, and that will remind you to move your teeth back apart. (This was passed on to me by a yoga student of Maria Mendola in Tucson, and I want to give her credit.)

At first you will need to practice this a LOT and it will seem tiresome. Keep doing it anyway. Some days will be easier than others.

You may become aware that your clenching is related to suppressing speech. There are so many reasons we might do this: bad boss, difficult situation, consequences you don’t want, etc. Find a way to let those words out, even if just on paper. Discover your own truths.

Seek help if this level of change seems overwhelming.

When you have practiced unclenching and relaxing your mouth enough, one day you will notice that you did it without thinking about it. The old clenching habit may return under stress, but you’ve got the resources now to put it firmly back in the past.

If you can master this one simple change in habits, you can do almost anything. I’m wishing you success.

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Treating TMJ issues: using essential oils for pain relief

A couple of weeks ago, I inquired of a Facebook group for women what they do for jaw pain.

A couple of women mentioned specific essential oils they use for jaw pain.

One said she puts lavender oil on her aching jaws. Another mentioned layering marjoram, lemongrass, and wintergreen essential oils.

All of these oils are analgesics and help relieve muscle pain. 

Dr. Axe (one of my favorite internet doctors) recommends peppermint oil for pain, frankincense oil for inflammation, and lavender oil to relax tense muscles.

You need to dilute the essential oils with a carrier oil like olive or coconut oil to reduce the intensity, because some oils are so strong, they can irritate your skin.

Then massage into your jaw muscles. It doesn’t hurt that they smell nice! 

When people come into my office feeling stressed, I often wave an open bottle of Young Living’s Peace and Calming essential oil under their nose to help them relax faster. 

I take a whiff myself, too. I just love this oil. 

If I know someone is going through an unusually stressful period, I rub a drop or two of Young Living’s Valor essential oil into their feet, focusing on the K1 area in the middle of the sole under the balls of the feet. 

This point’s poetic name is Bubbling Spring, and pressing it has a calming influence. 

Do you use essential oils for jaw pain? Please share in the comments what helps you.

My Practice

Post-concussion self-care

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” →