TMJ Symptoms

TMJ is not the name of a disease or disorder. It is actually the name given to a jaw muscle called the temporomandibular joint. The disorder is actually called TMJ dysfunction (or TMD) but often simply referred to as TMJ by many.

Symptoms are many and varied and not all sufferers experience all the symptoms. TMJ Symptoms generally include a combination of some of the following:

• Clicking or popping jaw joints
• Grating sounds
• Jaw locking opened or closed
• Acute pain in cheek muscles
• Uncontrollable jaw or tongue actions
• Teeth grinding or clenching particularly at night
• Discomfort or pain jaw, neck, head, tongue, shoulders, back
• Limited ability to open mouth
• Uneven opening of the jaw
• Deviation of jaw to one side or the other when opening
• Inability for teeth to find correct bite position
• Regular headaches which can be as severe as migraines.

TMJ dysfunction occurs when the temporomandibular joint is under stress, which could be initiated by dental work, an impact on the jaw and even poor alignment of the spine and body, which is more often than not disregarded as a causal factor or a symptom. In one particular sufferer the jaw pain was caused in part by uneven and rounded shoulders causing stress on the joint.

As mentioned earlier TMJ symptoms vary amongst those who have it and in fact many may not even be aware that they suffer from TMJ dysfunction. While some feel acute pain, others feel no pain. Likewise others grind and clench their teeth but many don't.

There is not even agreement between health practitioners as to the best way to treat the condition or even diagnose the condition. The lay person suffering from shoulder or back pain would be unlikely to even consider that they suffer from a jaw ailment and in fact many practitioners are unaware to even consider this as the source of such pain.

It's understandable then that for people exhibiting some of the TMJ symptoms and not getting satisfactory treatment continue to be frustrated at the lack of progress in alleviating their pain without medication or surgery which in many cases just masks the real problem.

For some people a simple daily exercise regime may be the solution. A yoga enthusiast suffering from the condition made this observation increasing his exercise by way of yoga:

"With my improved muscle alignment, all of the problems with my ears, neck and jaw slowly but surely improved in unison. Now, whenever I lapse with my yoga and home physical therapy routines and spend too much time on the computer, my symptoms start to reappear."