Maybe you’re at home and you’re very busy doing the things that you do. You don’t even realise that your jaw has been clenched tight for most of the day and it’s starting to hurt. Then you try to open it and it hurts even more! Having a clenching jaw like this is incredibly frustrating and painful. So what’s causing this problem and what can you do today to start improving it? In this article I’m going to answer those questions with a couple of top tips that have been helping alot of people fix their clenching jaws.
So the most obvious option is usually the best, I’m going to be obvious here and tell you to see a dentist or doctor. As unpleasant as these visits can be, they will usually give you good advice and probably get the problem fixed much quicker than you or I. failing that though, maybe you’d like to find out why you have a clenching jaw and what you can do about it? The main reason people clench their jaws is due to stress. Stress may not seem like a physical thing, but it builds up tension in your body. Tension is of course a physical thing and tightens and restricts movement in your muscles, it can also give you jaw clenching headaches. This means that the muscles in your jaw become rigid and immobile; the state of rest of your jaw changes and you end up clenching your jaw when you would normally have it just softly shut.
Now you know why you have a clenched jaw, all that damn stress. But what can you do about it? One of the most effective ways to treat jaw clenching is by simply becoming aware. Take note of when your jaw starts to clench. Is it around a certain time, at work or around some people you don’t get on with? When you notice stress building up like this and your jaw starting to clench; take a few minutes out and close your eyes. Just breathe deeply for a few minutes. This will relieve your entire body of stress and tension and will results in your jaw feeling loose and relaxed.
Another common cause of jaw clenching is bad posture. When you don’t sit or stand properly for long periods of time, pressure builds up in areas of your body that shouldn’t happen. These smaller muscles can’t deal with the added pressure and so they rely on others and a sort of chain reaction of stress happens. If not stopped it can result in injury and the pressure built up can restrict movement. Which may be a another reason for your clenched jaw. To stop this, practice using good posture. Sit of stand with a strong straight back and make sure you’re using your big muscles to do the work of holding yourself up. Your lower back should be strong and your abs should be turned on. Also make sure your shoulders are back. If you change your posture like this, notice how it affects your jaw. Does it feel like it just relaxed a bit?
Now you know why your jaw is behaving so unreasonably. Put into practice what you learned today about jaw clenching and you will notice fantastic changes. one last tip, if you’ve been sitting or standing in the same position for a long time, take a few minutes to do some stretching. This will actually feel fantastic after your body has been stuck in the same position for ages and will greatly improve your jaw clenching.
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