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TMJ and Clenching/Bruxing
TMJ (TemporoMandibular Joint Dysfunction) can have multiple
symptoms and recovery can be difficult. With TMJ you can have
limited jaw opening, jaw pain, headaches, even ear pain. Your
dentist may have also noticed excessive tooth wear caused
by conscious and unconscious bruxing (clenching) behavior.
Traditional methods of
splints, surgery and/or medication will have limited benefits
unless you stop your bruxing habit.
Chronic tension of the jaw muscles and grinding of the teeth
jaw can lead to damage and dysfunction in the jaw joint, pain
and difficulty eating. Night guards can be helpful in preventing
future tooth damage but they don't necessarily stop jaw joint
damage or change your grinding behaviors.
To stop the deterioration of your
jaw joint
and tooth wear you must first stop the habit of bruxing.
It is imperative to stop bruxing to stop the progress of
damage to the jaw muscles and joints. Many people don't realize
how much they brux and feel powerless to stop. Bruxing occurs
during the day and also at night. We have seen many successes
in our biofeedback practices where people were able to stop
bruxing during the day and stop the progression of damage
as well as obtain relief from pain and other TMJ symptoms.
It is also possible to learn how to stop bruxing at night,
which is not easy. As you
and anyone who sleeps with you knows, sometimes the night
time bruxing is so loud others are woken up by
the sound of grinding teeth!
First stop bruxing
during the day.
We recommend a two part approach to the problem of learning
how to stop your bruxing habit. The first part teaches how
to break the bruxing habit during the day and the night. We
teach a class called Stop
Bruxing Now based upon the behavioral principles of change
and this class teaches specifically how to stop bruxing during
the day.
You can purchase this class alone
or take it for free
when you purchase the Antense muscle tension monitor
.
The Antense muscle tension monitor gives feedback about
how tense your jaw and face muscles are. It has been our experience
that with chronic bruxing and clenching that the face muscles
show evidence of chronic tension and to not easily or quickly
relax. In fact, it can take several weeks to train the muscles
how to relax down to normal. Our course is designed to teach
you step by step methods to return your jaw muscle tension
to normal thereby reducing pain and training yourself to stop
bruxing.
The Next Step is
Yours...
Changing your chronic habits doesn't occur without first
becoming aware of what you are doing and then focusing your
attention on creating new behaviors. It is quite possible
to stop bruxing and heal much of the damage caused by TMJ
and bruxing. The best approach is to train your mind and body
consciously during the day to stop bruxing and with practice
this new habit and focused awareness will learn how to stop
bruxing during the night.
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