What is the TMJ?
The temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are the joints that connect the top of your skull with the lower jaw. They allow your jaw to open, close, slide forward, and move side to side so you can talk, chew, yawn, and swallow. Many people suffer from TMJ dysfunction and are completely unaware that physical therapy can help with their symptoms!
What causes TMJ issues?
TMJ dysfunction rarely has a single cause. More often, it develops from a combination of factors that stress the joint and surrounding muscles over time. Some common causes of TMJ dysfunction include:
- Muscle tension and overuse – Jaw clenching from stress, grinding your teeth at night, or consistent gum or ice chewing can fatigue the jaw muscles. When these muscles become tight and fatigued, they can pull on the joint unevenly.
- Poor posture – Forward head posture, which can be associated with long hours at a computer or phone, changes the way the jaw sits relative to the neck and head, causing increased stress on the muscles and joints of the jaw, head, and neck.
- Previous injury – Injuries to the jaw, head, or neck can be a catalyst for TMJ problems, sometimes years afterward. Whiplash injuries and falls directly onto the chin are commonly associated with TMJ dysfunction down the road.
- Stress and anxiety -Stress and anxiety contribute significantly to TMJ disorders. In the midst of stress, people tend to hold tension in their jaw and facial muscles, often unintentionally.
What are the symptoms of TMJ disorder?
Common symptoms of TMJ dysfunction include:
- Jaw pain/tension
- Headaches
- Ear pain
- Painful popping/clicking in the jaw
- Difficulty chewing
- Difficulty opening mouth fully, like when yawning
- Concurrent neck and upper back pain
- Pain radiating into the teeth that does not have a dental cause
- Dizziness
- Tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
Can physical therapy help?
The good news is that many TMJ problems respond very well to physical therapy. TMJ physical therapy follows a unique, curated treatment plan with hands-on care, exercises, and posture correction. This approach often reduces pain and restores normal jaw movement without medication or surgery.
Your PT can assess what specific muscles are contributing to your symptoms and can treat the painful and tight muscles with manual therapy including dry needling, soft tissue mobilization, and joint mobilization as needed. The literature shows that dry needling effectively manages pain in patients with TMJ disorder. Dry needling and other soft tissue work can be done not only to the muscles of the jaw and face, but also the neck, shoulder blades, and upper back, which all can contribute to TMJ disorder. Once the muscles are more relaxed and less painful, your physical therapist can progress the strength and endurance of your jaw, neck, and postural muscles in order to reduce stress on the TMJ and prevent the muscles from tightening back up.
In addition to hands-on treatments and exercises, your physical therapist can educate you on relaxation and stress management techniques, diet modifications, sleeping positions, postural corrections, and other external factors that can help reduce stress on the TMJ muscles and joints.
At Elite Muscle Recovery, we treat the whole person and will consider all impairments and factors that could be aggravating your pain in order to address the root cause of the issue. From there, we will make a personalized plan to help you achieve your goals. If you are suffering from symptoms of TMJ disorder, please reach out to us! We’d love to help you get relief and get back to doing the things you love!
If you have TMJ pain and would like to be evaluated, or if you have any questions, please call or text us! We’d love to help you. ☎️ (423) 228-8120
Elite Muscle Recovery
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