TMJ / TMD

Don’t Treat Your Pain…Prevent It

Do you suffer from chronic headaches or migraines? Do you clench and grind your teeth? Do you suffer from jaw soreness, stiffness, or popping and locking? You may be one of millions of Americans suffering from TMJ or TMD, and you may not even realize it.

What is TMJ?

A sailboat requires a complex system of ropes, pulleys, and hooks to catch a wind in the sail and get moving. Your jaw is also made of an incredible team of muscles, bones, joints and tissue in order to function. If anything affects any one part of these pieces in your jaw, it could lead to chronic pain and problems with the joints in your jaw. TMJ is a broad term that includes any of this pain of dysfunction.

TMJ stands for the temporomandibular joint, and TMD stands for temporomandibular joint dysfunction, although the two terms are often used interchangeably.

Who Gets TMJ?

Did you know that more women report having TMJ than men? Otherwise, there are a few risk factors that increase your chance of having TMJ:

Grinding Teeth: you may or may not know for sure if you grind your teeth (especially in your sleep) but one sure way to know is if your teeth are visibly getting shorter. This pressure and movement can cause jaw problems.
Stress: if you have a stressful job or if your jaw problems crop up during especially stressful times in life, clenching your mouth is a mindless habit that can cause TMJ.
Recent Dental Work: your body is a complete system and one part easily affects another. If you recently had dental work or any medical treatment in your face, it could be causing TMJ.
Poor Bite or Teeth Alignment: if your mouth doesn’t close in a healthy line or if you have severely crooked teeth, it could be putting extra pressure on your jaw.
Arthritis: joint inflammation or another connective tissues disease anywhere else in your body puts you at risk for the same soreness in your jaw.
Injury: a blow to the face or whiplash can easily put your mouth out of line and cause TMJ.

Splint Therapy

If any of this sounds familiar, we may be able to help you with Splint Therapy.

Splint Therapy uses a custom mouth guard or oral appliance that you wear during sleep. This appliance prevents the teeth grinding, clenching, and TMJ tension that is the source of your pain. Splint Therapy offers incredible relief without prescription medication or invasive surgery.