Are You Accepting Less Than You Deserve?

Everyone has to deal with headaches, neck or shoulder pain at some point in their lives. For some, taking pain medication is enough, however for many others the pain is so severe that they struggle just to get through the day.

It is estimated that 45 million Americans suffer from frequent headaches. Many will either assume its due to a stressful job/life or its a result of getting older. Others will go from doctor to doctor searching for a cure. While prescription medicine sometimes provides the necessary temporary relief, it often only addresses the symptoms and not the underlying cause.

Do You Have Any of These Symptoms?
Headaches or migraines
Stiffness or soreness in the neck, shoulders and back
Tingling of the fingertips
Insomnia
Sensitive teeth
Clenching or grinding
Dizziness
Ear congestion
Ringing in the ears
Limited mouth opening

Many individuals do not realize that these symptoms could be related to misalignment of the jaw. Neuromuscular dentistry treats the causes and the symptoms in a non-invasive way without the use of medications or surgery.

As we use our teeth they wear and shorten, causing them to be over closed when they are in contact. At complete rest, teeth are separated by a certain amount (freeway space). Now imagine since you have worn or shorter teeth your freeway space is larger and now the muscles have to contract more to get the teeth to make contact. The muscles do not like this and compensate by staying contracted, causing spasm and pain.
Using electromyography to monitor jaw muscle activity, along with joint sound and jaw tracking, the problem can be diagnosed and treated accurately and conservatively.

The optimal position of the jaw can be determined by measuring the relaxed position of the head and neck muscles, and then repositioning the jaw to achieve those exact measurements. Malocclusion is relatively easy to correct. Treatment options include adjusting the bite, orthotic, orthodontic, or restoring the teeth to their correct position.

So, next time you reach for that medication, think of what it would be like to be pain free. You may want to have a comprehensive exam to see how you can improve the quality of your life.