Jaw clicking on one side occurs when the disc inside the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) moves out of sync with the surrounding joint structures. Although painless clicking can be normal, habits like clenching, teeth grinding, muscle tension, and excessive jaw opening can contribute to symptoms.
Learn simple strategies to help reduce jaw clicking, including TMJ protection, resting tongue posture, controlled jaw opening, and reducing clenching. When symptoms persist or become painful, physical therapy and individualized TMJ treatment can help improve jaw movement and function.
In our last blog post we talked about jaw clicking…what it is, why it happens, and when to do something about it. Go back and read it if you haven't already.
Now here are all the details on what to do about it!
Remember that painless jaw clicking on one side can be totally normal. However, if you’d like to do something about it, we are spilling all our favorite strategies here for you today.
Here’s what we are going to talk about in this blog post:
What causes jaw clicking on one side?
How to stop jaw clicking on one side
When to get extra support for jaw clicking
How physical therapy can help with jaw clicking on one side
What causes jaw clicking on one side?
If you haven’t read our last blog post, Jaw Clicking on One Side: What it is, I highly recommend going back and reading it. It lays the foundation for everything we are talking about today.
Whether you read the last blog or not, here is a quick review:
Jaw clicking on one side happens when the disc inside of the jaw joint moves out of sync with the rest of the joint.
The jaw has a disc between the two bones that helps the jaw move smoothly. When the disc moves out of sync with the rest of the joint, that’s when pops and clicks happen.
Check out this video to see the disc and what jaw movement looks like.
Here are some reasons jaw clicking on one side can happen:
Chronic stress
An isolated episode of opening your jaw too far
Underlying hypermobility condition (like Ehler's Danlos syndrome)
Muscle tension and imbalances
Jaw habits like nail biting, chewing lips/cheeks, or chewing gum
Teeth clenching or grinding
Chewing food predominantly on one side of the mouth
Jaw injury or trauma
How to stop jaw clicking on one side
There are several things you can do at home to start helping your jaw feel better and click less. Here are our favorite strategies that we teach our clients on a regular basis:
TMJ protection strategies
Just because your jaw clicks does not mean it's a party trick. Avoid reproducing the clicking over and over again. When you open your mouth try not to open it all the way…just as far as what's needed. This is especially important with eating and yawning. When eating, take smaller bites so you're not maximally opening your mouth with each bite.
Limit jaw habits
Try to limit things like chewing gum, biting your nails, or biting/chewing your lip or cheek. These repetitive habits over time can increase strain on the TMJs, especially if you do them on one side only, and eventually lead to popping and clicking.
Pay attention to your resting tongue posture
Your tongue has a resting posture just like the rest of your body. You want the tip of your tongue to rest on the roof of your mouth just behind your front teeth, as if you were going to make the N sound, like "no" or "never." Start paying attention to what your tongue is doing throughout the day and see if you can keep it in its resting spot!
One of our favorite things to recommend to clients to build awareness on this is to take a small mint or a sunflower seed and place it between the tip of the tongue and the roof of the mouth in that resting posture. Keep it there for 10 minutes or so while you are working, doing dishes, cleaning the house, driving, or doing something where you're not talking.
Controlled opening drill
This is our favorite drill for helping to coordinate movement of the jaw and tongue. To perform, place the tip of your tongue in the resting posture on the roof of your mouth behind the front teeth. Keep your tongue there as you slowly open and close your mouth. Keep this in a pain-free and also popping/clicking-free range of motion. Notice how your tongue may get tired!
Pay attention to clenching
If you clench or grind your teeth during the day, bring awareness to when and how long you do this. Take body checks every hour or so to check in with your face, jaw, and neck. If you're holding tension here, take a few breaths and consciously release that tension. Paying attention to your resting tongue posture while doing the mint or sunflower seed strategy can be really helpful for reducing daytime clenching as well.
If you are wondering if stress could be related to your jaw popping and clicking, take our free nervous system quiz! You’ll receive our Empowered Nervous System Recalibration Guide to help you better process and relate to stressors in your life. This can have a big impact on improving how your jaw feels on a regular basis.
When to get extra support for jaw clicking
Jaw clicking on one side can be normal and not concerning. However, if the clicking is associated with any of these symptoms or patterns, or you just want extra support to help it stop, it is time to get extra support:
Jaw pain or tenderness
Pain with chewing and eating
Limited ability to open your mouth
Jaw locking or catching
Pain associated with the pop or click
Frequent headaches or facial tension
Snoring or sleep apnea
Symptoms progressively getting worse
How physical therapy can help with jaw clicking on one side
Physical therapists with extra training in the jaw can help so much with clicking on one side of the jaw and any other jaw symptoms. Here at Empower Physio and Wellness, we love helping people with jaw pain and symptoms!
We start with an in-depth evaluation to really understand your symptoms, your history, lifestyle factors, and your goals. Then we do a movement assessment, looking at how your jaw and neck move and checking for tension in the surrounding muscles. We also look at things like breathing strategy, core stabilization, stress processing, sleep, posture, and any other factors we think are playing a role in your jaw symptoms.
Manual therapy is often part of how we treat jaw symptoms. This can include manual soft tissue work (external and/or inside the mouth), dry needling, cupping, and joint mobilization. Pairing manual therapy with something active is really important. It helps you get the most out of the hands-on work and makes it more effective. We always pair manual therapy with things like breath work, movement retraining, mobility drills, and strengthening exercises. We also put a huge focus on nervous system regulation and stress processing, and we build this coaching into our physical therapy plans of care.
No two plans look the same because every human is unique, and so are the factors contributing to your symptoms. We tailor your plan specifically to you!
Where to find physical therapy to stop jaw clicking on one side
Have you tried the strategies from this blog and want more individualized support?
If you are located in or near Westerville, Ohio we can help you with physical therapy to help you learn how to stop jaw clicking on one side!
You can get started right away by learning more about our physical therapy services, TMJ treatment, or getting in contact with us.
We also offer virtual coaching throughout the world to empower you with your health and get to the root of what is holding you back. You can learn more about our virtual coaching program here.
If you have additional questions, we would love to talk with you, hear your story, answer all your questions, and see how we could help.
You can call or text us at (614) 423-9731 or schedule a free discovery call. You can also learn more about Empower Physio and Wellness + our team or check out other services we offer.