What are some ways to get rid of TMJ?

How to get rid of TMJ symptoms and pain.

Clients often ask, “How can I get rid of TMJ completely?” The answer is you can only treat the pain and other symptoms that come from temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ disorder). And honestly, you probably wouldn’t want to get rid of your temporomandibular joint (TMJ), since it’s the joint that connects your jaw to your head and helps you open and close your mouth.

So, let’s focus on treating the symptoms and relieving pain. And hopefully, you can experience some TMJ pain relief after trying some of the inexpensive treatment options mentioned in this post.

Additional Resource:

Learn more about TMJ: What is TMJ?

Keep your jaw relaxed throughout the day.

Clenching your jaw puts pressure on your TMJ, and it can overwork the jaw muscles around the jaw joint. A good way to keep your jaw in a relaxed position is to make sure your top and bottom teeth don’t touch. If your top and bottom molars (the teeth in the back) are touching, then you are clenching your jaw. Additional Reading: What are signs and symptoms of TMJ? Anger and stress are the top reasons why people clench their jaw, most of the time without even noticing it. Whenever you experience these two emotions, try to instantly tell yourself to relax your jaw. If anger and stress is an “all day affair” in your life, we recommend asking a licensed psychologist for better ways to cope with your specific circumstances. Additional Reading: What are the causes of sudden TMJ pain?

Massage your TMJ a few times every day.

Even if it’s just for a minute, a facial massage can help ease tension and boost your mood. Here’s what you do: Slightly open your mouth and run your index and middle fingertips down your jaw line from your ear to your chin, applying enough pressure without causing additional pain. In the start position, your index finger(s) should be placed behind your ear lobe(s) and your middle finger(s) should be right below your side burn(s). Do this for 1 to 15 minutes every day. And make sure your jaw is relaxed (not clenched) when you’re massaging your TMJ. Even if you don’t have TMJ pain or TMD, this simple massage feels great and is easy to do every day! Additional Reading: How to treat TMJ.

Don’t do things that cause jaw pain.

We see several TMJ clients every week, and we always provide information and resources to help them manage their TMJ symptoms. But when they go home, they totally forget to do their TMJ stretches and exercises daily. So, with that said, here are the hardest things to remind yourself NOT TO DO every day when you have TMJ:

Don’t bite your nails, or anyone else’s.
Don’t bite or chew on your cheeks or lips.
Don’t place your hands under your jaw to hold your head up.
Don’t push your tongue against the back of your teeth.
Don’t yawn. (Did you yawn?)
Don’t yell, scream, or sing loudly.
Don’t take big bites of food.
Don’t eat chewy or crunchy food or candy.

As you can see, it’s not easy to avoid all these things that can trigger your TMJ pain. But with time and practice, your TMJ symptoms should subside and go away completely.

Additional Reading:

How to relieve TMJ jaw pain.

How to get rid of ear pain from TMJ.

Is there any way to cure TMJ naturally?

How posture correction exercises improve TMJ symptoms.

Featured on Virginia This Morning:

Jana Powell recently sat down with Jessica Noll from Virginia This Morning to talk about TMD.

Schedule Your First Appointment Today!

Want to get rid of TMJ pain once and for all?

Are you looking for a long-term solution to TMJ issues or jaw pain? A TMJ massage at Attune Massage Therapy can help you alleviate TMJ and TMD symptoms with customized treatment options, education, and more.

In addition to teaching you different TMJ exercises, Jana can also help you get same-day relief from TMJ symptoms!

If you are in the Richmond area, you can schedule your first TMJ session with Jana today!

For more information about Pediatric TMJ Massages, please visit: Pediatric TMJ.

This article should be used for educational purposes only (not advice, diagnosis, or treatment).

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