Twenty جلسةs.
Twelve minutes each.
A jaw that rests.
Five phases, 120 different movements, no repeats — from the rest position and gentle isometrics to controlled opening, neck work, jaw strength and habit change. For clicking, locking, clenching, jaw pain and the headaches driven by the jaw and the upper neck.
Before you start
SEE A DENTIST, DOCTOR OR MAXILLOFACIAL SPECIALIST before continuing with any of these: a jaw that locks closed and will not open, or locks open and will not close; jaw pain after a blow or a fall; a hot, swollen face or jaw with fever; numbness of the face or lip; a lump or swelling; opening that is getting worse week by week; a new or severe headache unlike any you have had; or jaw and neck pain with chest tightness or breathlessness on exertion, which is a heart question rather than a jaw one.
The rest position is the whole foundation. Lips gently together, teeth apart, tongue resting on the roof of the mouth. Your teeth should only touch when you are eating — a few minutes a day, not hours. Every جلسة returns to it.
Nothing forces the jaw open. Everything stays inside a comfortable, pain-free range, and resisted work uses about two fingers of pressure. More is not better and usually flares it.
A painless click is not an emergency. Clicking without pain is found in a large share of people who have no jaw complaint at all. Clicking that comes with pain or locking is different and needs assessing.
Tongue up when you open. Opening with the tongue held on the palate keeps the movement straight and inside the safe range. It is the single most useful cue in this programme.
Three practical changes from day one: soft food for two weeks, no chewing gum, and chew on both sides. They cost nothing and they do a great deal.
Kit: a chair, a mirror, a towel and your own two hands. Nothing else.