I have had a lot of clients with jaw pain (TMJ) and headaches. These headaches are usually behind the eyes and on the forehead. This is a normal occurrence, with one exception, and that is the amount of people this is happening to right now.
I am a VERY big supporter of masking up and I require all of my clients to wear masks in my office. With that said, the masks are creating a problem with the cranial bones and their alignments.
In CranioSacral Therapy, we use about five grams (the weight of a nickel) of pressure to move tissue and bones. Wearing a mask (or two!) is exerting more than that amount of pressure over long periods of time, thus moving bone and tissue in a way that is not desirable. This includes pulling the temporal bone forward into the sphenoid bone that runs behind the eyes all the way across the head, which creates pressure and does not allow the sphenoid to move properly.
When the temporal bone is moved forward, the mandible, or lower jawbone, is then pushed out of the joints, creating a weird feeling that is almost always followed by a clenching of the jaw, which results in muscle and tissue tension/pain (TMJ).
There are other bones affected in this process, since the sphenoid touches almost every bone in the head, thus effecting the complete cranium.
Good news! We can help ourselves with these issues by simple pulling on our ears and wiggling our jaw. OK, is it really that simple? Yes, it is; however, we HAVE to be gentle with our ears. So here are the directions for this process, along with the following disclaimer: Since I have not seen you in my practice you must take responsibility for your own body. First, place your index finger at the bottom of your ear right by the ear canal and your thumb behind the ear. Gently (with five grams of pressure), pull back at a 45 degree angle and hold for 2 to 3 minutes. If you are like me, wearing your mask almost all day long, it’s a good idea to do this two or three times a day. You may also incorporate pulling at a 90 degree angle, too.
This was published in the March-April production of Natural Life News & Directory.
