Upper Body Tension Can Grind Away at Your Lifestyle

“The jaw bone’sconnected to the  -- head bone … the headbone’s connected to the – neck bone…”

Many of us rememberthe children’s song that helped us to learn the skeletal parts of the body. Andin dentistry, the above line from the song couldn’t be more relevant. The wayour bones are connected – particularly the alignment of our jaw – can haveeffects on our head, face, neck and other body parts.

Listen To Your Body

If you’reexperiencing upper body pain or tension that doesn’t seem related to badposture, to activities that could be straining your neck, shoulders or back, orto any specific injury, you may have misaligned jaw joints. This is called TMDor Temporomandibular Joint Disorder.

There are severalsymptoms and ill-effects that poor jaw alignment can have on your upper body.

• Headaches
• Limited ability to open the mouth
• Pain behind the eyes
• Pain that spreads to the shoulders, neck, and back
• Spasm or pain in the muscles used for chewing
• Earaches
• Tingling or numbness in the fingers

Many Americans haveTMD without knowing it. They consult doctors for pain relief or takeover-the-counter painkillers and just live with the problem.

Tooth Grinding and Jaw Clenching

Many of us attributeour upper body tension to stress, anxiety or events in our lives. Teethgrinding and jaw clenching are common ways the body expresses its tension. Bothoften occur unconsciously while we’re sleeping and can put your jaw joint outof alignment. Conversely, they can be the body’s reaction to jaw joints whichare misaligned from some other cause.

And while thefriction of grinding can do its share of damage, a clenched jaw is alsoharmful. Clenching your teeth can exert up to 300 pounds of pressure, leadingto fatigue in the jaw muscles and joints and causing further tooth damage.

Therefore, it’s notunusual for people who regularly grind or clench their teeth to complain ofheadaches, neck stiffness, tense shoulders or backs and ear pain. The stressand tension of TMD aggravates other parts of the body, leading to the chronictension or pain we feel with headaches, backaches, and shoulder strain.

A Neuromuscular Dentist Can Help

With proper jawalignment, your face and neck will relax and work together properly. Aneuromuscular dentist can help you find this proper jaw placement. Once thatproblem is corrected, your body will shift into proper positioning and workmore smoothly. Creating this stability gives your body better balance, relievesmuscle tension and makes your sleep more restful.

A dentist who trulyunderstands the connection between your upper body and the importance of havinga properly-aligned jaw can be your greatest source of relief from chronicdiscomfort.

It’s important thatwe pay attention to what our bodies are telling us. And if your body is filledwith tension, the cause could be more than just day-to-day stress, particularlyif your lifestyle doesn’t point toward an obvious physical reason for yourpain. In such cases, find a neuromuscular dentist who can help you determine ifyour upper body tension is the result of your jaw joints being out ofalignment.