Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) are a group of conditions that cause pain and dysfunction in the jaw joint and muscles that control jaw movement. “TMD” refers to a disorder and “TMJ” refers only to the temporomandibular joint itself. TMD symptoms can include but are not limited to: inability to open the jaw very wide, use of a night guard, bite guard or splint, headaches or migraines, facial pain or tension, clicking/popping/grinding from the jaw joint, neck and shoulder pain or tension, pain in the muscles around the jaw joint or above the ear.

There are 4 main causes for jaw pain:

• Clenching and Grinding - this activation of the fight/flight response of the nervous system often activates as a drive to be able to open the airway to breathe better. This activation of the facial muscles often occurs while you are sleeping in many cases bringing the lower jaw forward (much the same way you would manually bring the jaw forward to open the airway when performing CPR). The activation of the face muscles can exert as much as 1000psi of force on the teeth often leaving them worn down, cracked, and broken over time.

• Forward Head Posture - low tongue posture, mouth breathing, and a compromised airway lead to forward head posture. This is a subconscious attempt to open up the airway, in order to breathe better. T As the head comes forward, the muscles of the neck can become fatigued and strained. This extra weight by having the head forward of its center axis can lead to head, neck, and back pain in additional to TMJ pain.

• Compensations - when a tongue tie restriction, low tongue posture, or mouth breathing is present, it changes the way that the muscles in your face work. Compensatory habits of facial muscles put strain on the jaw joint and the muscles that open and close the joint. Dysfunctional use of those muscles and the joint itself can lead to pain.

• Changes to Occlusion - a narrow upper arch, flattening of the biting surface of the teeth (due to grinding) and incorrect tongue posture may lead to disc compression and displacement. Over time the TMJ will be pushed out of its ideal position because the teeth are not meeting the way they are supposed to.

Myofunctional therapy can help alleviate the long-term causes of TMJ pain by restoring the muscles to their normal function by reaching correct tongue posture and a proper swallowing pattern. Myofunctional therapy for temporal mandibular joint pain is typically done in conjunction with a variety of other treatments often including: splint therapy from a dentist, physical therapy by specialists trained in the TMJ, intra-oral and extraoral massage therapy, and prescription medication from medical doctors as needed for your individual care.