- Pain in your jaw or around your ears
- Stiffness opening and/or closing
- Inability to fully open
- Difficulty and/or pain whilst chewing
- Clenching
- Neck pain and stiffness
- Dental problems like an uneven bite
- Clicking, popping or clunking noise whilst chewing
Often there does not appear to be a reason for the problem to begin in the first place. However things like a heavy knock to the chin, previous history of dental work, eating hard food, moderate to high levels of stress and anxiety can all be triggers for the injury to begin.
An Osteopathic treatment with aim to alleviate the pain, reduce the inflammation present and restore function. Treatment may include soft tissue massage, mobilisation, joint articulation, dry needling and intra-oral techniques.
Of course, it is rare that the TMJ will be problematic by itself. As Osteopaths, our understanding of how other structures, such as the neck and upper back, can relate to this injury means we often deal with these at the same time to ensure we aren’t missing anything.
Post treatment advice on exercises for rehabilitation, things to do and to avoid and lifestyle changes (just to name a few) are aimed at helping in a more rapid recovery.
Our Osteopaths can identify important types of dysfunction in your body and provide individual management & treatment plans.
What to expect in your consult?
Your initial consultation will involve a comprehensive assessment where we ascertain your relevant past history, including previous injuries and medical history, followed by a physical exam to determine not only the diagnosis but also find the root cause of your problem. This will be discussed with you and a treatment plan will be formulated to accommodate your needs.
The treatment itself will vary from individual to individual, but will often include a combination of hands on therapies, dry needling, taping, advice, exercise prescription as well as other options.
FAQ's
Osteopaths are covered by most Private Health insurance schemes. To be sure you are covered please consult your insurance policy. We have HICAPs facilities available for those with Private Health so you can automatically claim your treatment and only have to pay the gap.
No referral is necessary to come to our clinic.
Osteopaths like to be thorough and hence our consults tend to take half an hour on average.
It is advised that you arrive between 5 and 10 minutes prior to your initial consult as you are required to fill out a new patient and informed consent forms before treatment can commence.