Effective Home Remedies That You Could Try To Prevent Tmj From Worsening

If you often suffer from headache, clicking and popping in your jaw

, or consistent pain on your face, neck and shoulders, the cause of these problems might actually be found in your head. Chances are, you are suffering from what is known in the medical community as temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ). TMJ is a condition wherein a person's temporomandibular joint, the joint that allows your jaws to open, close and move sideways, is misaligned. It has been found out that as many as ten million Americans are suffering from this condition. Unfortunately, it often goes undiagnosed or misdiagnosed and untreated.

TMJ may occur due to a variety of reasons. It can be induced by the teeth not fitting together properly caused by genetics, orthodontia, or teeth clenching (bruxism); bad habits like cradling the phone between one's ears and shoulders; and injuries brought about by accidents, whiplash, or heavy blow to the jaw. Stress is also pointed out as one of the primary reasons why TMJ arises, as many people who were able to experience their first TMJ noted that they have encountered the condition during a stressful moment in their lives.

For many individuals afflicted with TMJ, their condition can be painful on their jaws, and could also cause popping and clicking in the jaws, migraines as well as discomforts on the face. Even though the treatments for TMJ are primarily focused on dental and medical interventions, and sometimes would also require surgery, not all health plans have a coverage for the treatment of TMJ. Yet, if you're one of the many individuals suffering from TMJ, you don't have to expend hundreds of dollars to seek medical intervention or to go under the knife so as to relieve yourself from the pain that TMJ afflicts you with. In order to help people with TMJ who have no access to expensive medical and dental treatments, there are actually myriads of doctor-recommended TMJ home remedies that can serve as ideal alternatives for these medical treatments.

One of the most effective TMJ home remedies often suggested by medical professionals is to help the sufferer become aware about his or her position when sleeping. If you're always sleeping on your side or on your stomach and you're affected with TMJ, you have to immediately change your position by sleeping on your back. Sleeping on your side reinforces teeth clenching, and could also cause bad jaw, neck and shoulder alignment. To prevent yourself from side sleeping, you could try pinning a shoulder pad on your sleeping clothes as these materials would discourage your from turning on your side while you sleep.

Another simple home remedy for TMJ is to apply ice or frozen wash cloths to the jaw for 10-15 minutes several times a day. Sometimes icing the forehead during a headache caused by TMJ can also be helpful in reducing the pain. It is also recommended that you feed on soft foods for a few days, and abstain from eating chewy and hard foods as these could reinforce TMJ. When possible, do not open your mouth too wide when yawning.

Breathing exercises, relaxation techniques and contemplative exercises like Tai Chi and yoga are also effective TMJ home remedies that you could do in order to lessen the pain caused by TMJ. It is important to note that a tense body and a tense person are likely to suffer from TMJ pain. As such, through these exercises, you would be able to relax your body and relieve yourself from tension by allowing you to achieve good posture, proper spine alignment, and correcting standing and sitting in tensed positions. Overall, relaxation is the main key in preventing TMJ from worsening, as many physicians would suggest getting into a "relaxed mode," especially an hour before you go to bed could help avoid your jaw from tensing up and your teeth from clenching.

by: Kevin Bates

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