{"id":3292,"date":"2023-05-11T14:02:37","date_gmt":"2023-05-11T14:02:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/?p=3292"},"modified":"2023-06-28T14:05:06","modified_gmt":"2023-06-28T14:05:06","slug":"cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does It Mean If Your Jaw is Stiff or Locked?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg\" alt=\"Senior man rubbing his jaw in concern\" class=\"wp-image-3293\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Under normal circumstances, you shouldn\u2019t have any trouble moving your jaw. So if it gets locked in place \u2013 thus preventing you from opening or closing your mouth \u2013 it can naturally be very alarming. What does it mean if your jaw has become stiff or locked? And what can you do about it? You can find out with the help of your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/meet-our-dentists.html\">dentist<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Can Cause a Stiff or Locked Jaw?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Oftentimes, the issue lies in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/tmj-treatment.html\">temporomandibular joint (TMJ)<\/a>. This is the joint that connects the lower jaw to the skull; you have one on both sides of your head, just in front of the ears. As long as your TMJ is healthy and functioning properly, you shouldn\u2019t have any problems with your jaw movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, sometimes the TMJ may become misaligned. This can make it more difficult for it to move the way it should, therefore resulting in limited jaw movement. Additionally, in some circumstances, the disc that separates the lower and upper parts of the joint might become dislocated. If this happens, your jaw might get stuck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Can You Do If You Have a Stiff or Locked Jaw?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If your jaw has become locked, try to remain calm. Sometimes you might be able to help the TMJ disc slip back in place by gently moving your jaw from side to side with both hands. You can also try applying a heating pad to the area. This helps relieve some of the tension in the muscles around the TMJ, making it easier for the disc to return to its proper alignment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you aren\u2019t able to unlock your jaw by yourself, then you should get to the nearest emergency room as soon as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Can You Do About a TMJ Disorder That\u2019s Causing a Stiff or Locked Jaw?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In circumstances where your locked jaw is the result of a TMJ disorder, your dentist might be able to help. They can give you a custom mouthguard that moves your jaw slightly forward, which relieves some of the pressure on your TMJ and gives it a chance to recover. By wearing your mouthguard as directed, you can often address the issues that caused your TMJ disorder in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Other forms of therapy might be necessary depending on what caused your TMJ disorder and how severe it is. There are also certain steps you can take at home that might help, such as avoiding hard foods, performing jaw exercises, and reducing stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019re having problems with your jaw due to a TMJ disorder, you can\u2019t afford to ignore it. Start exploring your options for treatment immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About the Author<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Matthew Hart earned his dental degree at the Tennessee Health Science Center. He always loves helping patients overcome their dental anxiety and get whatever care they might need. His practice, Beck Dental Care of Columbia, can provide customized mouthguards for treating TMJ disorders. To schedule a consultation with Dr. Hart, visit his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/contact-us.html\">website<\/a> or call (931) 236-2141.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Under normal circumstances, you shouldn\u2019t have any trouble moving your jaw. So if it gets locked in place \u2013 thus preventing you from opening or closing your mouth \u2013 it can naturally be very alarming. What does it mean if your jaw has become stiff or locked? And what can you do about it? You [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3292","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Stiff or Locked Jaw | Beck Dental Care of Columbia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Does your jaw sometimes get stuck when opening or closing? Your dentist can explain why this might happen and what you can do about it.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Stiff or Locked Jaw | Beck Dental Care of Columbia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Does your jaw sometimes get stuck when opening or closing? Your dentist can explain why this might happen and what you can do about it.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"drbeck\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/1634cfb25a27567d83d40b5036e351e9\"},\"headline\":\"What Does It Mean If Your Jaw is Stiff or Locked?\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-05-11T14:02:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-06-28T14:05:06+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":516,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/06\\\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/\",\"name\":\"Stiff or Locked Jaw | Beck Dental Care of Columbia\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/06\\\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-05-11T14:02:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-06-28T14:05:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/1634cfb25a27567d83d40b5036e351e9\"},\"description\":\"Does your jaw sometimes get stuck when opening or closing? Your dentist can explain why this might happen and what you can do about it.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/06\\\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/06\\\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg\",\"width\":300,\"height\":200},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"What Does It Mean If Your Jaw is Stiff or Locked?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Beck Dental Care Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.beckdentalcare.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/1634cfb25a27567d83d40b5036e351e9\",\"name\":\"drbeck\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Stiff or Locked Jaw | Beck Dental Care of Columbia","description":"Does your jaw sometimes get stuck when opening or closing? Your dentist can explain why this might happen and what you can do about it.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Stiff or Locked Jaw | Beck Dental Care of Columbia","twitter_description":"Does your jaw sometimes get stuck when opening or closing? Your dentist can explain why this might happen and what you can do about it.","twitter_image":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/"},"author":{"name":"drbeck","@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1634cfb25a27567d83d40b5036e351e9"},"headline":"What Does It Mean If Your Jaw is Stiff or Locked?","datePublished":"2023-05-11T14:02:37+00:00","dateModified":"2023-06-28T14:05:06+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/"},"wordCount":516,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/","name":"Stiff or Locked Jaw | Beck Dental Care of Columbia","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg","datePublished":"2023-05-11T14:02:37+00:00","dateModified":"2023-06-28T14:05:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1634cfb25a27567d83d40b5036e351e9"},"description":"Does your jaw sometimes get stuck when opening or closing? Your dentist can explain why this might happen and what you can do about it.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/AdobeStock_181522245-3-1.jpeg","width":300,"height":200},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/cause-of-stiff-or-locked-jaw\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"What Does It Mean If Your Jaw is Stiff or Locked?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/","name":"Beck Dental Care Blog","description":"","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/1634cfb25a27567d83d40b5036e351e9","name":"drbeck"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3292","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3292"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3292\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3294,"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3292\/revisions\/3294"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3292"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3292"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beckdentalcare.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}