The Pelvic Floor & Jaw Connection
Who knew? There is a relationship between your pelvis, pelvic muscles, and your jaw!
The pelvic floor muscles sit in the “bowl” of your pelvis like a hammock, and play an important role in keeping our bladder and bowels well controlled. These muscles also aid sexual function, circulation, and offer support to local organs. When pelvic floor muscles aren’t functioning well it can result in symptoms including urinary urgency, urinary frequency, pelvic pain, painful intercourse, constipation, and back pain. Many people assume all changes to the pelvic floor muscles are a result of pregnancy or childbirth. However, everyone with a pelvis has these muscles and problems can crop up even without a pregnancy or childbirth. We think it is really interesting that the pelvic floor muscles have a lot in common with the jaw. The function of both areas influences our nervous system and our posture!Let’s dive into the nervous system impact next
A stressful trigger - like being stuck in traffic -- can trigger a “flight or fight'' nervous system state. This often leads to clenching the jaw muscles, or holding our shoulders higher up toward our ears. In this case, you might think, “wow I just can’t relax today,” or have to consciously remind yourself to relax those muscles. There might even be obvious tightness or even pain in your upper back, neck, and jaw around this time. As you may have guessed, our pelvic floor muscles respond the same way to stress and tighten in a similar fashion, typically at the same time.
Healthy posture is critical to improving both TMJ dysfunction and pelvic floor issues! In a slumped and rounded posture, the pelvis is tilted backwards and there is increased tension in the pelvic floor muscles. It is more challenging to achieve optimal breathing patterns and function, and further decreases the pelvic floor’s ability to move and function well. Similarly, rounded posture leads to a forward head position putting more strain on the muscles and joints of the neck and jaw. By becoming more mindful of your posture, you can improve your jaw and pelvic health!
If you experience TMJ and or pelvic floor dysfunction, here are 3 tips that can help provide some relief:
Tune into your sitting posture: take a few moments each day and notice your “go to” posture. Are you slumped forward with your pelvis tucked-under while on a laptop or phone? Instead, ground your feet on the floor and find a “neutral pelvis” by allowing for a small curve of your lower back and bring your ribs over your pelvis. Next, align your ears over your shoulders.
Tune into your breath: breathwork can help improve stress and anxiety as well as mobility and function. Keep it simple. A few times per day, pause and take 3-5 slow deep calming breaths.
Add some gentle stretching: try yoga postures such as child’s pose or a hip opening stretch you love. Finding time each day to stretch helps address tension in both your pelvic floor and jaw muscles as well as promote relaxation.Plus, stretching pairs easily with breathwork.
Improving our posture and decreasing tension can take a lot of time and practice, especially if they are patterns that have been with you a long time, but it’s the consistent small changes that make all the difference!
If you experience jaw tension, urinary urgency, urinary frequency, pelvic pain, painful intercourse, constipation, or back pain, it may be an indicator to reach out to a pelvic floor physical therapist to help create a personalized care plan.
At Root to Rise Physical Therapy & Pelvic Health, we believe in a holistic approach to physical therapy. Our Doctors of Physical Therapy are specialized in treating both orthopedic and pelvic health conditions. Our practice also integrates acupuncture and yoga and we are always excited to be a resource for the community we practice in. We are located in Scarborough, Saco, and Bath, and are here to support you!