Are you wondering why you suffer from frequent HEADACHES? Around 1 in 6 people do and the answer could be inside your mouth!
Yes, that’s right. The answer could be related to what’s going on with your muscles, joints & ligaments around the jaw and face.
Nearly all of us will suffer from headaches at least once during our lifetimes. Headaches affect your work, energy levels, concentration and how you feel. It’s worth noting though, that most headaches are due to non-life-threatening causes and can be relieved through appropriate treatment.
There are many different causes of headaches; put simply- anything that causes irritation to the nerves around the face, head, neck, or even inside the skull, can cause pain in the head. These may include: dental problems, neck strain, eyestrain, eye diseases, jaw problems, blood pressure problems, ear/nose or throat problems, muscular tension etc. As you can see there are many factors that can be aggravating and this is why headaches should always be investigated by appropriately trained professionals.
A great percentage of headaches with no obvious cause are often found to be related to the jaw AKA the temperomandibular joint. These jaw-based headaches can themselves have many underlying causes- jaw trauma, bruxism (grinding and clenching of the teeth, often at night or due to stress), ergonomics, malocclusion of the jaw (when the teeth in the upper & lower jaw don’t meet properly as you bite) and sometimes teeth, jaw restriction and related neck dysfunction are all causative factors.
Despite all of this, many practitioners rarely think of the jaw when treating headaches. In these cases you must be able to really understand the anatomy and be able to think past the obvious. The jaw’s structures and nerves are very much related to the upper neck, skull and face and have clear links to headache causing structures or directly cause headaches themselves. There are even muscles inside your mouth that attach to the base of your skull and can directly influence tension on structures like the meninges (the wrapping around the brain) and cause headaches.
The good news is- all of these areas can be effectively, safely and easily treated and managed. We see a lot of patients like this everyday, so next time you get that annoying headache stop and think- do I have jaw pain or neck pain? Do I grind my teeth? Do I hold stress in my jaw? Then book an appointment with us.
Dr Ed
www.badbak.com
