Jaw pain and discomfort

Jaw pain and discomfort is also called Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMJD). It can be painful not only in the jaw area, but also all the connecting areas such as the neck and shoulders, or by causing headaches and migraines. There are many people who suffer from TMJD and it has a lot to do with tongue placement in your mouth. For individuals with a low resting tongue posture, tongue tie, mouth breathing-the jaw is not engaged in holding itself up. Rather, the lower jaw is hanging down and the tongue is resting low on the floor of the mouth, therefore the jaw is not stable. Our tongue is the strongest muscle in the body, it should be holding our bottom jaw up. If it's not, the muscles in the face, neck and shoulders become strained causing pain and discomfort.

Similar to physical therapy, proper tongue placement and muscle exercises can help engage weak muscle groups and stabilize the jaw joint. OMT is a great option for those who do suffer from TMJD because it's not invasive, doesn't involve funky appliances, and only takes a few minutes a couple times a day to complete.

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