Stretches to Reduce Fibromyalgia Jaw Pain or TMJ
Fibromyalgia patients often experience jaw pain… I am one of them! When you’re in pain, regardless of where it is, often it shows on your face. And when our loved ones see us and ask if we’re doing ok, we appreciate the concern, yet somehow at the same time we are annoyed at the question. Maybe we feel like we failed at hiding how we feel (not that we should do that) or just don’t want to be reminded by someone else about what we’re feeling. Well, when the actual jaw joints in your face are hurting, I think we just have to concede, that it’s going to show.
Today I’d like to share with you some exercises that help to actually reduce lower jaw pain. The moves help me feel much better and I know it can help you with your chronic condition, as well. Addressing some of these smaller pains can improve your quality of life in little ways. Wouldn’t it be great to get to be out with your friends or family and you don’t have to fake how you feel? Believe me, this is definitely worth a try! But, before we get to the workout, let me share with you a little information about joint pain in the jaw and TMJ disorders.
Temporomandibular Disorders
Today we use the term “TMJ” to describe the pain in the jaw joints that are on either side of our face, just in front of the ears. Basically, it’s the hinge where our lower jaw is connected to the skull and where the rotation occurs when we open and close our mouth. Technically, TMJ refers to the just joint itself, temporomandibular joint is the long way to say it. And, when there is a disorder, it’s called a temporomandibular joint disorder, so you may see it referred to as TMJD when you’re researching the topic.
TMJ pain can be triggered by several things, including rheumatoid arthritis, habitual grinding or clenching of the teeth or growth disorders. However, to be quite honest, there are many who experience TMJ without any of those conditions, so the actual cause of the disorder is sometimes unknown.
As you probably know, fibromyalgia symptoms often include TMJ, so the triggers may be similar: prolonged stress, food intolerances, etc. In my MITFIT 90 fitness program I help you through three phases of lifestyle and nutrition changes to help reduce your triggers. For this article, I’ll share a few tips to give those muscles of the jaw a much needed stretch to help relax and train them to reduce the widespread pain.
The Jaw Pain Stretch
I’m excited to share with you my own personal jaw pain stretch to help with your condition. The exercises I use in this routine are specifically designed to help lessen pain in the jaw and upper neck areas so you should find relief if you do this routine often. The full workout is available with my Cocolime Fitness TV subscription. Here’s a preview of the workout:
Type of workout: Stretch
Features: Helps to lessen jaw pain caused from TMJ disorder or Fibromyalgia
Workout position: Seated - can also be done standing if needed
Energy level required: Low
Intensity level: Low
Equipment needed: Exercise mat or bed
Duration: 10 minutes
Special Recommendations: Great also to lessen headaches and neck aches as well as stress.
Exercise: Push your jaw/chin forward and hold for a few seconds and release. Repeat 3 times.
Exercise: Lift the back/side of your head up with your hand, turn your head towards the other hand stretched outward and take 3 full breaths. Repeat for the other side.
Exercise: Drop your ear to meet your shoulder, push your head back at an angle and stick out your tongue. Hold the opposite shoulder with your fingers to intensify the stretch. Repeat 3 times per side.
These are just a few examples from the full 10 minute workout. Some of the exercises are also strengthening moves, so over time you can experience less and less pain as the muscles firm up. And if you experience fullness in your ears, I will show you a move to help relieve that as well. Tension in the upper back and neck sometimes contributes to jaw pain, so you’ll learn some moves to work on easing that tension. During some of the moves you’ll be sticking out your tongue - this is super important at releasing the jaw tension, so don’t be shy - you may look funny to others, but it’ll be worth it!
In the requirements I suggest using a mat, or being on a soft surface, because at times we’ll utilize the entire body to execute the stretch effectively, so make sure to treat this one like any other workout/stretch - you’ll be doing much more than just sitting in place. And like you see in the preview, I’ll demonstrate up close how to perform each move so you can do them effectively.
If at any time a particular stretch feels too painful for you, make sure that your form is correct and/or stop and take a break from that particular stretch. The first few times you do this you might feel more pain afterwards, but this is normal, just try it a few times before you decide if it is good for your condition.
No More Pretending!
Believe me I know how frustrating and difficult it is to hide your chronic pain conditions when they flare up at the worst possible time! My goal with Cocolime Fitness is to help you reduce your fibromyalgia pain, muscle spasms, joint pain, etc. so you can enjoy your precious time with family and friends. We want the muscles of the jaw to be hurting from smiling too much, instead of from TMJ!
As a precaution, I always recommend you listen to your body to reduce the risk factors. Pain signals that persist no matter what you do may require a physical exam from your doctor to better determine the cause.
Dealing with muscle pain in general can be a challenge. But when the tender points are located in your jaw, it’s even more challenging because we use these muscles so much throughout the day. I sincerely hope you can experience some lasting relief from your fibromyalgia jaw pain and I invite you to try Cocolime Fitness TV where you will find this routine and over 150 others designed to help you reduce pain, lose weight and gain more energy to do the things you love to do!