Why do I have a painless click/locking of the jaw?!
Question: Sometimes I'm fine, but it usually gets bad in the morning/evening, and after I wake up. The right side of my jaw will click when I open my mouth/chew. Usually it's tolerable but annoying, but then after a few minutes of this, if I open my mouth my jaw will lock, and I will have to reach up and push my jaw (not hard or anything, just a gentle push) back to the left. Sometimes when I chew, it'll get bad, and I'll feel an annoying grinding sensation on the right side of the jaw, or I'll have to shift my jaw bone to the left before I speak, because I can feel it's not "aligned." It's completely painless, but really obnoxious, especially when I need to chew or speak, and my jaw's in a locked position and I have to shift it over. Also, I can move my jaw bone to the right "locked" position at will, and back, and sometimes catch myself doing this when I'm bored.
Answers: Sometimes I'm fine, but it usually gets bad in the morning/evening, and after I wake up. The right side of my jaw will click when I open my mouth/chew. Usually it's tolerable but annoying, but then after a few minutes of this, if I open my mouth my jaw will lock, and I will have to reach up and push my jaw (not hard or anything, just a gentle push) back to the left. Sometimes when I chew, it'll get bad, and I'll feel an annoying grinding sensation on the right side of the jaw, or I'll have to shift my jaw bone to the left before I speak, because I can feel it's not "aligned." It's completely painless, but really obnoxious, especially when I need to chew or speak, and my jaw's in a locked position and I have to shift it over. Also, I can move my jaw bone to the right "locked" position at will, and back, and sometimes catch myself doing this when I'm bored.
This is usually caused by a triggerpoint or other source of excessive muscle tension in the Lateral Pterygoid muscle. The muscle attaches to the Intra-articular Disc in the jaw. The disc must move in synchrony with the opening and closing of the mandible. The Lateral Pterygoid controls this movement. When the muscle is not functioning correctly, the disc does not move 'in-sync' with the mandible and you feel or hear a 'click' or 'pop'.
Sadly, most dentists have no training and no knowledge of how to 'fix' this problem (even though they like to 'think' they can treat 'TMJ' - which is a meaningless label {saying you have TMJ is like saying someone with knee pain has 'knee'}). You may want to have an evaluation performed by your family Chiropractor (ask if they do have training and expertise in treating conditions that affect the TM Joint).
A dentist may be of value for you in providing you a night-guard. It sounds like you may be aggravating this condition by clenching or grinding your teeth at night. A night-guard won't cure this problem, but it can reduce the stresses on your teeth and jaw.
Best wishes and good luck.
This sounds to me like TMJ.
Talk to your dentist about it.
I have this same problem, my only way to make it not do it when not eating is not to think about it.
it actually could be muliple things like clinching while you are asleep or grinding. i acually had the same symptoms and i was diagnosed with tmj. the ortho will fit you with a mouthpiece and you wear it at night. the retainer helps align the jaw back. i hope this helps!!
Jaw clicking and locking happens due to the anatomy of your temporomandibular joint (TMJ). The joint contains an anatomical structure called the articular disk that exists b/w the upper and lower jaw bones. Depending on how the disk is shaped, some patients can experience clicking/locking more often than others.
Opening the widest you can is a bad idea, since that can cause locking of your jaw (my best friend did that...locked so bad she had to see her dentist to unlock it). Since you're saying that its the worse in the morning, you may be also clenching or grinding your teeth at night. If that's the case, you may want to consider having a nightguard made to help alleviate some of the jaw pressure. There's nothing you can really do to prevent jaw clicking, since its all about anatomy. Surgery in this field is still new, and results aren't guaranteed at all. If pain does occur, you may want to see a dentist who is also a TMJ specialist
Here's a link with some more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temporomand...
Hope that helps
Please try to stop locking your jaw at will! This can lead to futher problems.
What you are describing is a TMJ issue. ( Tempro Mandibular Joint ).
Please see your dentist and explain the same thing that you have explained online.
Sounds like you have a mild case and there may not be anything to do about it right now.
Down the road it may get worse, and then you may have to see an oral surgeon to correct it.
I know it's annoying! By all means....avoid bagels! Anything chewy like a bagel!
have you had braces recently?
after i got my braces off last year my jaw started locking too.
it was because i had an overbite, so when the braces corrected it, my jaw because messed up and would lock.
try to think if you have had any other dental work done on your mouth that would have caused the locking.
i would also go to the dentist soon before it gets really bad.