Exercises to Help Treat TMJ Pain

Pain in your jaw can make eating, talking, and even smiling difficult. When our patients are suffering from TMJ dysfunction, we have treatments that can help here at Lehigh Valley Smiles in Easton, PA. There are also some lifestyle changes you can make like doing jaw exercises to help with pain and stiffness.

There are several exercises that can help relax your jaw, relieve pain, and allow you more range of motion. There are a few of them listed here. Remember that these exercises are supposed to help, so if they make the pain or stiffness worse, do not continue doing them.

• For a tight jaw, the exercise can help. Close your mouth and place your hand on the right side of your mouth. Gently and slowly push your lower jaw into your hand. Do this a few times on each side.


• To help relax your jaw, use this smiling exercise. Smile as wide as you can with your mouth open about two inches. Hold this smile for a few deep breaths and then relax. Do this exercise several times until you feel your jaw and facial muscles relax.


• TMJ dysfunction can be especially frustrating when you cannot open your mouth very far. To improve your jaw’s range of motion, gently open your mouth as far as you can without pain a few times in the morning and a few times at night. After doing this every day you will begin to notice you can open your mouth wider and wider little by little.

TMJ pain and stiffness may cause some frustration in your life but fortunately, there are ways to treat it. To schedule an appointment with Lehigh Valley Smiles in Easton, PA, call our office at (610) 252-7414 or visit our website, www.lehighvalleysmiles.net. 

Flossing with Braces

As Dr. Alan Dilsaver, DDS, FAGD will tell you, flossing can be difficult when you have traditional metal braces, but it’s more important than ever to keep the gaps in your teeth clean when you have a mouth full of metal. Many folks who have braces don’t know how to floss with them or think that they can’t floss at all if they have braces and this is not true. At Lehigh Valley Smiles, we've already taught you how to brush with braces, so it’s only fair that we share some tips for flossing effectively and keeping those brackets and wires clean.

• Use waxed floss, because unwaxed floss is more likely to get caught and shred in your braces.


• Use about 18 inches of floss and thread it carefully.


• Take the floss and gently thread it under the main wire of the braces before passing it between two teeth. Then remove the floss and re-thread it under the main wire to pass between the next pair of teeth.


• Be sure not to snap the floss. Simply move the floss up and down carefully against the side of each tooth.

If you have questions about orthodontic oral care, please give us a call. To learn about services we provide at the practice, visit www.lehighvalleysmiles.net for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Alan Dilsaver, DDS, FAGD in Easton, PA, call 610-252-7414.

Brushing with Traditional Braces

If you have braces, you should be working overtime on practicing proper oral hygiene. This is because braces have tiny spaces where food particles and plaque get trapped, and inadequate cleaning while wearing these wires can cause enamel staining and tooth decay around brackets or bands. At Lehigh Valley Smiles, Dr. Alan Dilsaver, DDS, FAGD can’t stand behind you to monitor how you often you brush, but he can provide you with the following routine that will help make brushing with traditional braces both simple and effective.

• Prepare to brush – take off elastics, and any other removable parts of your orthodontic appliance.


• Clean your braces – use your brush at a 45-degree angle to clean around the wires and pins of your braces. Brush the top of each wire and then from the bottom. Take time to ensure that all plaque and debris are removed.


• Brush your teeth – clean each tooth individually. First, place your brush at a 45-degree angle to the junction between the tooth and the gum, and then apply gentle pressure as you move in a circular motion. Use the same brushing action on all outer and inner tooth surfaces, tilting the brush as needed to better reach the insides of smaller front teeth.

If you have questions about orthodontic oral care, please give us a call. To learn about services we provide at the practice, visit www.lehighvalleysmiles.net for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Alan Dilsaver, DDS, FAGD in Easton, PA, call 610-252-7414.