9 Best TMJ Exercises for Pain Relief

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TMJ pain may go away on its own. But certain exercises and other doctor-recommended practices, such as wearing a mouth guard, may help fix the issue sooner.

You may not think about your temporomandibular joints (TMJ) much, but you use them a lot. The joints connect your jawbone to your skull. Your TMJ springs into action each time you talk, chew, and swallow.

TMJ disorders occur when something goes wrong with your jaw joints and jaw muscles. Oftentimes, this happens because of a jaw injury, inflammation such as with arthritis, or overuse.

TMJ disorders may cause mild to debilitating symptoms, such as:

• pain while chewing
• pain in the ear, face, jaw, and neck
• clicking, grating, or popping sounds in the jaw when you open or close your mouth
• locking of the jaw joint
• headaches

It’s unclear exactly how TMJ exercises may relieve pain. They’re thought to help:

• strengthen jaw muscles
• stretch the jaw
• relax the jaw
• increase jaw mobility
• reduce jaw clicking
• promote jaw healing

According to one 2010 study published in the Journal of Dental Research, performing TMJ exercises increases mouth opening range more than using a mouth guard in people with TMJ disc displacement.

These nine exercises from the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and the Royal Surrey County Hospital may help relieve TMJ pain and improve the movement of your jaw joints. For some exercises, there are frequency recommendations. For exercises where frequency recommendations aren’t available, ask your doctor or dentist for guidance. TMJ exercises shouldn’t be done when you’re in severe pain. The AAFP recommends waiting until your pain is better before starting a TMJ exercise regimen.

1. Relaxed jaw exercise

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Rest your tongue gently on the top of your mouth behind your upper front teeth. Allow your teeth to come apart while relaxing your jaw muscles.

2. Goldfish exercises (partial opening)

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Place your tongue on the roof of your mouth and one finger in front of your ear where your TMJ is located. Put your middle or pointer finger on your chin. Drop your lower jaw halfway and then close. There should be mild resistance but not pain. A variation of this exercise is to place one finger on each TMJ as you drop your lower jaw halfway and closed again. Do this exercise six times in one set. You should do one set six times daily.

3. Goldfish exercises (full opening)

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Keeping your tongue on the roof of your mouth, place one finger on your TMJ and another finger on your chin. Drop your lower jaw completely and back. For a variation of this exercise, place one finger on each TMJ as you completely drop your lower jaw and back. Do this exercise six times to complete one set. You should complete one set six times daily.

4. Chin tucks

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With your shoulders back and chest up, pull your chin straight back, creating a “double chin.” Hold for three seconds and repeat 10 times.

5. Resisted opening of the mouth

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Place your thumb under your chin. Open your mouth slowly, pushing gently against your chin for resistance. Hold for three to six seconds, and then close your mouth slowly.

6. Resisted closing of the mouth

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Squeeze your chin with your index and thumb with one hand. Close your mouth as you place gently pressure on your chin. This will help strengthen your muscles that help you chew.

7. Tongue up

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With your tongue touching the roof of your mouth, slowly open and close your mouth.

8. Side-to-side jaw movement

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Put a ¼ inch object, such as stacked tongue depressors, between your front teeth, and slowly move your jaw from side to side. As the exercise becomes easier, increase the thickness of the object between your teeth by stacking them one on top of each other.

9. Forward jaw movement

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Put a ¼ inch object between your front teeth. Move your bottom jaw forward so your bottom teeth are in front of your top teeth. As the exercise becomes easier, increase the thickness of the object between your teeth.

Over-the-counter pain relievers such as ibuprofen and acetaminophen may help relieve TMJ pain. Muscle relaxers may be prescribed for severe pain. Doctors may also recommend:

• mouth guards to prevent teeth grinding and jaw clenching
• mouth guards to help realign your jaw
• warm towels
• ice, no more than 15 minutes per hour and not directly on the skin
• stress-relief techniques to help prevent behaviors that cause jaw tension
• acupuncture to relieve pressure in the affected area

Severe pain caused by damaged joints may require more invasive treatments, such as corticosteroid injections into the TMJ. Surgery may be considered as a last resort. There isn’t any scientific evidence that surgical interventions for TMJ disorders are safe and effective.

TMJ pain may also be managed with simple lifestyle changes. You may wish to:

• eat a soft diet to allow the TMJ to relax
• avoid chewing gum
• avoid biting your nails
• avoid biting your lower lip
• practice good posture
• limit large jaw movements, such as yawning and singing

If you have TMJ, it may be painful to practice basic oral hygiene. This includes brushing your teeth, flossing, and getting routine dental cleanings.

The TMJ Association recommends these tips to reduce pain and help make sure your teeth and gums stay healthy:

• Use a soft-bristle toothbrush or a sonic toothbrush.
• Use a rubber tip stimulator or water flosser if you can’t open your mouth to floss.
• Add an antiseptic mouth rinse to your daily dental care regimen.
• Tell your dental care team if you’re in pain during a dental procedure.
• Apply ice or heat after a dental procedure.
• Talk to your dentist about ways to remove plaque other than flossing. For example, they may suggest wiping your teeth with cotton gauze.

In some cases, TMJ disorders go away on their own. If your symptoms persist, TMJ exercises may help bring pain relief. TMJ exercises shouldn’t be done when you’re in severe pain. The AAFP recommends waiting until your pain is better before starting a TMJ exercise regimen.

When doing TMJ exercises, start slowly. You may feel some pain at first, but it should be tolerable and gradually improve. If the pain isn’t tolerable, consult your doctor. You should do TMJ exercises when you’re relaxed. If you do them when your muscles are tense, it may defeat the purpose.

If your pain worsens after doing TMJ exercises, make an appointment with your doctor.

Learn more: TMJ (temporomandibular joint) disorders »

TMJ Ear Pain Relief Exercises

Are you suffering from TMJ? You are not alone. There are millions of people who suffer from TMJ pain but while it is common, it does not make things bearable. Knowing the proper techniques to provide relief from pain can make your life easier and more manageable.

TMJ and Ear Pain

TMJ is the joint that acts as a hinge for your jaw. It is positioned directly beneath your ears. If you suffer from TMJ, the grinding action of your teeth are causing pain and tension in your ear. The intensity of the pain will significantly differ from one person to another and depending on how much you are grinding them. But most of the time, this type of pain is persistent enough to impact your daily activities.

With that said, there are plenty of remedies available to soothe the pain. This is essential to do especially if it starts to interfere with your daily life.

TMJ and Ear Pain on One Side

Since it has been established that ear pain can result from TMJ, it is important to note that the pain you feel might not always be on both sides of the ear. There are some cases wherein the pain can be felt only on one side of the ear. Treating the pain you feel on one ear uses the same approach as when you experience pain in both ears.  

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But before you perform these exercises, you need to see a doctor to diagnose if this is really TMJ. You can also use their expertise to ensure that you are not suffering from any other condition. Otherwise, you could aggravate the condition.

Best Exercises to Relieve TMJ Pain

Pain in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is quite common affecting up to 35 million people in the US alone. If you suffer from the symptoms of this condition, the pain can range from moderate to extreme. Fortunately, there are exercises that you can perform to alleviate the pain. These exercises are designed to stretch the muscles in your jaw area and to strengthen them. By doing these exercises on a regular basis, you are also able to train the muscles in that area to move correctly so as to cause as little pain as possible. Whenever you do an exercise on one side of the face, make sure to do it on the other side for best results.

You can try these exercises in order to get relief from pain and restore function in your jaw and chin area.

• Chin Tucks – A chin tuck is a simple exercise that you can perform standing or seated. This exercise is self-explanatory because all you have to do is tuck your chin close to your neck, and then extending it back. Do this for a few more times on several repetitions. Hold each position for three seconds before you move to the next step, and so on.
• Jaw Stretches – Stretching your jaw on a regular basis is important to remedy TMJ pain. But there is a proper way to perform the jaw stretching exercises. First off, you need to relax your jaw. After that, open your mouth as wide as you possibly can. Like the chin tucks, you have to do several repetitions of this exercise.
• Jaw Massage – Performing a massage on your jaw is another simple technique that you can do to relieve your jaw and chin of pain. Use your fingers to perform a downward motion on your jaw and chin. Do this for as long as desired and throughout several times in a day.
• Zig-zag Stretches – This is another stretching exercise that you can perform to relieve TMJ pain. This is also one of the simplest stretches you can perform that will instantly ease the pain you are feeling. You need to keep your mouth closed throughout the duration of this exercise. The next step is to shift your eyes towards one direction (you can choose right or left). You can stretch your jaw as far as you can towards one direction. When you do this, do not move your head or your mouth.
• Chin Resistance – To alleviate the pain from TMJ, it is important to strengthen your chin. There are plenty of chin exercises to help with that. To do this exercise, you need to place your thumb underneath your chin. With the thumb at the center of your chin, slowly open your mouth. As this happens, you need to apply gentle pressure with your thumb at the bottom of your chin. Keep your mouth open for up to 6 seconds at a time. Repeat this a few times each day.

TMJ Pain in Ear

Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is quite common affecting up to 35 million people in the US alone. If you suffer from the symptoms of this condition, the pain can range from moderate to extreme. You can try the exercises recommended above when you feel the pain. But if the pain you feel is persistent, and especially if the pain worsens over time, you need to consult a TMJ expert that can fix the problem. 

Hallendale Beach TMJ Pain Relief

Do you have recurrent headaches or unexplained pain in your face, jaw or teeth? Do you have neck or back pain, tingling in your fingers, or ringing in your ears? Have you been to a doctor (or several doctors) many times, but you can not get relief? If so, then you may be one of the millions of Americans suffering from TMJ, a disorder of the temporomandibular joint. The good news is that we can help. A neuromuscular dentist specializes in treating TMJ symptoms. Contact our office today! Call +1 (954) 457-8308.

TMJ symptoms

One of the reasons TMJ can be so difficult to identify and treat is that it has so many symptoms. TMJ symptoms include:

• Migraines and other severe headaches
• Neck pain
• Facial pain
• Ringing or stuffiness in the ears
• Numbness of fingers or hands
• Jaw restriction
• Clicking, clicking or grinding sound in the jaw joints
• Excessive wear, chips or cracks on teeth or restorations
• Unexplained loosening of teeth
• Periodic pain or soreness in the jaw
• Unexplained toothache that affects many teeth and may travel through the teeth

​If you suffer from some of these symptoms, you may have TMJ. In this case, a neuromuscular dentist can help.

What is a Neuromuscular Dentist?

A neuromuscular dentist is a dentist who studies the relationship of muscles, nerves and other soft tissues with bones and teeth in the mouth and jaw. Based on 30 years of clinical experience and research, Neuromuscular Dentistry has developed scientific, reliable and predictable treatments for TMJ. This means that we can relieve your symptoms for a long time, including pain in the head and neck.

We can also reduce or alleviate your TMJ pain by determining the ideal position of the jaw at rest. By correcting an overbite, we can reduce wear or damage to the teeth.

How is TMJ treated?

We start treatment with TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation), a type of electrical massage. TENS relaxes the muscles of the head and neck and stimulates the release of endorphins, natural pain relievers.

Once your muscles have relaxed, we can determine the ideal rest position for your jaw. Computerized jaw tracking is used to identify any irregularities in jaw movement. An EMG (electromyography) is used to measure the electrical activity in your muscles to find out when your muscles are at maximum rest. An ESG (electrosonography) is used to evaluate joint noises to determine if there are any destructive or degenerative processes in your TMJ.

These sophisticated instruments have many years of successful application in various medical specialties. In neuromuscular dentistry, we use them to assess jaw dysfunction, which can cause symptoms throughout the body, although headaches are the most common symptom. We combine these measurements with specialized x-rays to determine the best treatment for TMJ. Sometimes regular TENS massage and lifestyle changes are adequate treatment. In other cases, an orthopedic mouth guard may be recommended.

Tekscan

Occasionally, dentures may be used to improve jaw function in whole mouth reconstructions. Therefore, we can use another advanced technology, Tekscan, to measure your bite force at each point. This will confirm that your new bite is balanced and healthy and that no tooth is being subjected to more force than it can handle.

Is surgery required for TMJ?

Only rarely is surgery required to treat a temporomandibular joint disorder.

TMJ is a chronic condition that can take years to develop and is likely to worsen with age. However, our scientific diagnosis and treatment can help you get relief even when other doctors have failed.

If you have questions about a TMJ disorder, please contact us at +1 (954) 457-8308 today to schedule an appointment.

Treatment of TMJ dysfunction in Moscow: prices | Pain dysfunction of the TMJ

Symptoms of diseases of the TMJ

Here are some common symptoms of TMJ dysfunction:

• Jaw pain
• Difficulties in chewing and eating
• Jaw clicking/clicking
• Mouth restriction
• Headaches, including migraines
• Crack in the jaw
• Pain in and around the ear
• Blurred vision
• Neck pain
• Facial pain

How long do symptoms and signs of TMD last?

Treatment of TMJ dysfunction should ideally start early. If the disease is detected at an early stage, the doctor will treat in a short time, help correct harmful actions or habits (for example, prolonged chewing gum) that exacerbate problems with the temporomandibular joint. See your doctor if you have pain in your temporomandibular joint, head and neck muscles, or chewing muscles, if it hurts to open and close your mouth, or if you have difficulty chewing or swallowing food.

Diagnosis of diseases of the TMJ

Detection of dysfunction of the temporomandibular joint can be difficult because the symptoms of the disease can often be masked as other problems, such as neuritis of the facial nerve, otitis, sinusitis, neuralgia of various etiology, etc.

Consultation with a gnathologist for the diagnosis of TMJ diseases includes:

• Examination of the jaw joint for pain.
• Presence of clicking, crunching or grinding when moving the jaw
• Check for problems such as high fillings, misaligned teeth, cavities and uneven tooth surfaces.
• Checking the correct bite
• Grinding and clenching test
• Mouth opening measurement
• Checking the condition of the muscles of the maxillofacial region
• Examination of the muscles around the shoulders, arms and back
• Rule out other conditions such as infections, ear disorders, nerve problems, and headaches after questioning and reviewing the patient’s medical history.

If during the consultation the dentist revealed symptoms of dysfunction, then in order to establish an accurate diagnosis and draw up a treatment plan, you may need:

• CT maxillofacial area including TMJ (large)
• MRI to detect problems with the articular disc or surrounding soft tissues
• Photograph of the patient’s teeth and face
• Scanning teeth or impressions (models)

TMJ dysfunction treatment

The course of treatment will depend on your individual condition and symptoms.

The main treatment options are listed here. Only a dentist can answer the question “how to treat TMJ dysfunction” after an examination and diagnosis.

1. Medicines

At the initial stage of the disease, TMJ pain dysfunction syndrome, the doctor may suggest medicines to relax the muscles and joints. These medicines will help you relieve pain:

OTC pain relievers and anti-inflammatories
Tricyclic antidepressants for stress relief
Muscle relaxants for jaw relaxation

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Splint therapy (orthotic) is a device that is worn over the teeth to put the jaw in the correct position. It looks like a kappa and is usually made and fitted by prescription from a gnathologist.
TENS therapy. Transcutaneous (transcutaneous) electrical neurostimulation (TENS) sends a gentle, ultra-low frequency pulse to the muscles of the jaw to relax and reduce pain in overactive muscles and force underactive muscles to work. This helps to get a new jaw position for TMD treatment.
After the jaw takes the most comfortable position at the stage of treatment on a mouthguard (orthotic), the patient, depending on the state of his bite, can be offered two options for its correction – orthodontic and / or orthopedic treatment. Orthodontic treatment of the TMJ includes correction of the bite, mainly with the help of braces or aligners. Orthopedic treatment can be the next step after orthodontic treatment or be carried out immediately after stabilization of the position of the jaws, if there is no malocclusion. Installation of crowns and/or veneers provides a stable result, fixing the lower jaw in the found position, which guarantees the absence of problems with the temporomandibular joint for many years, and also gives you a beautiful smile.

3. Surgery

If medicines and conservative treatment do not help, the doctor may suggest surgery. Surgical options include:

Arthrocentesis is a procedure that involves injecting fluid into a joint through a small needle to remove adhesions and excess inflammatory fluid from the joint cavity.
TMJ arthroscopy. In some cases, arthroscopic surgery can be as effective in treating various types of TMJ disorders as open joint surgery. A small thin tube (cannula) is inserted into the joint space, then an arthroscope is inserted and small surgical instruments are used for the operation. TMJ arthroscopy has fewer risks and complications than open joint surgery, but also has some limitations.
Open joint surgery. If jaw pain does not improve with more conservative treatment and seems to be caused by a structural problem in the joint, your doctor or dentist may suggest open joint surgery (arthrotomy) to repair or replace the joint. However, open joint surgery carries more risks than other procedures and should be considered very carefully after discussing the pros and cons.

Arthroscopy and open joint surgery are performed in rare advanced cases in the department of maxillofacial surgery in a hospital setting. In most cases, dental surgeons try to use arthrocentesis, as this procedure is performed with minimal intervention and gives good results with fewer consequences.

4. Lifestyle changes

Home remedies and lifestyle changes provide temporary relief and can therefore be used in an emergency when you cannot see a doctor. Here are a few effective ones:

• Watch your posture so you can improve the position of your jaw, head, neck, sternum and shoulder blades at rest when you sit and walk.
• Follow a TMJ diet and eat soft foods that don’t need to be chewed much, avoid chewing gum.
• Regularly perform basic jaw exercises (myogymnastics) to relax the muscles of the maxillofacial region, you can also massage the muscles.
• Cope with stress and try relaxation therapy to relax your jaw muscles.
• Cognitive behavioral therapy is a psychotherapeutic technique aimed at correcting the distorted perception of current events and the environment, which leads to destructive behavior.

What is the prognosis for TMJ treatment?

Most TMJ dysfunction resolves completely with conservative treatment and drug therapy.