3 Things People Get Wrong When Treating Jaw Clicking or Locking

If your jaw clicks, pops, catches, or locks, it is very easy to assume that the answer is to treat the place where you feel or hear the problem. If your jaw clicks on the right side, you naturally think, “Something must be wrong with the right side of my jaw.”

But the body rarely works that simply.

One of the biggest mistakes I see when people are trying to address jaw clicking or locking is focusing entirely on the symptom without asking why that symptom is happening in the first place. Your jaw is part of a larger movement system, and how it functions is influenced by what is happening around it.

Here are three things I commonly see people get wrong when trying to address jaw clicking or locking.

1. They only treat the side that clicks

This is probably one of the biggest ones. If your jaw clicks on the right, it does not automatically mean that the right side is the first thing that needs to be addressed. When I assess someone with jaw clicking, I am not just looking at the side that makes the noise. I want to understand how both sides are moving, how the jaw is being controlled, and whether one side is having to compensate for something that is not moving well elsewhere.

For example, I may find that the opposite side is not moving well enough, which means the clicking side has been taking on more of the workload for a long time and that altered movement can contribute to changes in how the jaw moves and, in some cases, to displacement of the disc within the joint.

This is where you may hear terms like anterior disc displacement with reduction or without reduction.

With reduction is often associated with the clicking or popping sound people notice when they open and close their mouth. Without reduction can occur when the disc no longer reduces during opening, which may lead to a sudden change in your ability to open your mouth or the feeling that your jaw has become stuck.

The important takeaway is that the sound itself is not necessarily the problem. The more useful question is: why is the jaw moving the way it is moving? That distinction matters because treating only the clicking side may completely miss what is contributing to the altered movement in the first place.

2. They think the answer is a mouth guard

I have nothing against mouth guards when they are appropriate for the person and the situation, but a mouth guard is not automatically the answer to TMJD. Too many people are provided a mouth guard for any type TMJ problem.

A mouth guard can have a role in certain cases (for a certain amount of time), particularly when there are specific dental or loading considerations that need to be addressed. But it does not necessarily correct the underlying movement or functional issues that may be contributing to your symptoms.

If the way your jaw is moving is being influenced by restrictions or poor coordination elsewhere in the system, putting something over your teeth does not automatically change that movement. This is why I am always cautious about one-size-fits-all approaches to TMJD. There is no single tool, exercise, appliance, or technique that is going to be the answer for everyone. You have to understand what is actually happening first.

3. They try to treat the jaw without looking at the rest of the system

This is where I think a lot of TMJD treatment misses the bigger picture.

Your jaw does not exist in isolation… so why would you treat it in isolation?

The jaw is connected to the rest of your body through a complex system of muscles, joints, movement patterns, breathing mechanics, posture, nervous system input and more. When I am working with someone who has jaw clicking, locking, tension, or pain, I want to know what else is happening throughout the system.

How is the head and neck moving?

How well is the thoracic spine moving?

What is happening through the ribcage? Pelvis? Feet? Cranial bones?

How are the muscles around the jaw and neck working together?

Is one side moving differently from the other?

And perhaps most importantly, what is the jaw being asked to compensate for?

Sometimes the answer is local. Sometimes it is not. But often it’s a combination of both.

There are specific exercises and manual techniques that can help restore movement and function, both at the jaw and in the areas that influence how the jaw moves. When you address those contributing factors, you may be able to change the way the jaw is loading and moving rather than simply trying to quiet the symptom.

That is a very different approach from chasing the click.

The loudest symptom isn't always the place you need to treat

This is probably the biggest thing I want you to take away.

If your jaw clicks on one side, that does not automatically tell you where the problem started.

If your jaw locks, that does not mean you should only focus on getting the joint to move again.

And if you have been told that you simply need a mouth guard, that does not necessarily mean the functional component of your TMJD has been addressed.

Your symptoms are information. They are telling you that something about the way your system is functioning deserves attention.

The goal is not always to make the symptom disappear as quickly as possible (because often, band-aid solutions often come back). The goal is to understand why it is happening and what your body needs in order to move more efficiently.

That is the difference between chasing symptoms and actually addressing the system.