Stress and the Jaw Joint

Mental Stress and Its Impact on the Jaw Muscles

Mental stress has a significant influence on the human body! Very often, this also manifests in effects on the jaw muscles. Haven't we all noticed ourselves clenching our teeth unconsciously in particularly stressful situations? Or waking up at night because we're clenching or grinding our teeth so tightly... And then we wonder why our cheeks feel so tense and we have pain in the jaw joint or even in the teeth.

If you have experienced this yourself, it's worth reading on!

First, a terminology clarification: What is "mental stress"?

The term "stress" describes an unpleasant or even threatening imbalance between demands (social, professional, mental) and one's ability to cope. Stress arises when the qualitative and quantitative demands on a person are greater than their ability to manage them. Generally, people can handle stress well. It only becomes dangerous when one is constantly exposed to intense pressure or lacks relief factors. "Mental stress" refers to a stress situation with heightened mental arousal or emotionally triggered stress (e.g., the loss of a loved one).

This article specifically addresses negative stress, also known as distress.

The Importance of This Topic

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), stress is one of the greatest health threats of the 21st century. If stress becomes chronic, various symptoms can arise:

• Unpleasant feelings such as anger, anxiety, and overwhelm

• Physical effects such as increased muscle tension, high blood pressure, and elevated heart rate

• Altered behavior such as forgetfulness and difficulty concentrating

The consultation rate for musculoskeletal system complaints at osteopaths is 80.9%, a portion of which involves the jaw muscles. It has not yet been scientifically explained how and why stress affects these muscles. It can only be demonstrated that mental stress leads to activation of the sympathetic nervous system, which has some influence on various body regions and possibly also on the jaw muscles. There are also theories related to human evolution. In any case, it's often observed that many affected by stress-related headaches and jaw muscle tension are very likely to be suffering from chronic mental stress.

Due to constant mental tension, sufferers unconsciously clench their teeth, leading to continuous activity of the jaw muscles, which in turn leads to tension if it persists for a long time.

Possible Symptoms and Their Consequences

It is important to seek help as soon as these tensions are felt. Their consequences can range from mild to severe:

• Myofascial tension pain in the jaw muscles, and subsequently also in the neck and shoulder muscles, which can spread to the upper body and along the spine

• Headaches around the temples that can become chronic

• Pain or problems in the jaw joint up to joint wear

• Migraine and decreased concentration

• Gum recession

• Gingivitis

• Erosion of tooth enamel

• Loosening and even falling out of teeth

Therapeutic Approaches in Osteopathy and Physiotherapy

For osteopaths and physiotherapists, these muscles are daily companions. They cannot magically eliminate the patient's stress. It remains the patient's task to identify and address stress triggers.

However, they excel in treating the symptoms with the aim of:

• alleviating complaints (see above)

• reducing pain

• counteracting progressive tissue destruction

They can provide relief to patients by directly addressing the affected jaw and head muscles and resolving the myofascial structures through stretching or massage techniques. Dry needling is also a very effective method for treating and eliminating painful trigger points in the jaw joint area. The fasciae connected to the jaw are released, and the tension on the joint and head is normalized.

Through manual joint techniques, the jaw joint itself can also be treated, and any movement restrictions reduced and optimized.

In addition, education and instruction regarding the complaint and trigger mechanism are always part of a physiotherapeutic or osteopathic treatment. Often, people have pain and are unaware of the reason. With broad knowledge of processes and interactions within the human body, therapists can provide important education and help to become aware of the triggering problem. Working on changes in dealing with stress factors are important steps in successful therapy.

However, every patient must take action and participate to combat the negative and unhealthy stress and break old patterns.

Relaxation, breathing, or awareness exercises can be developed with the physiotherapist and contribute to an improvement in symptoms.

If you need us, we are here for you!

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Osteopathy and Physiotherapy | Rehabilitation and Training

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Image Credit

Henry Vandyke Carter creator QS:P170,Q955620 Henry Gray creator QS:P170,Q40319, Gray309, marked as public domain, details on Wikimedia Commons