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Scott Nissen ~
281-536-2748 ~ Chronic Pain Relief ~ Massage Therapy ~ Body Worker-Myotherapy ~ Cranial/Sacral Therapy
My name is
Scott Nissen and I have been doing massage for over 20 years. I am state licensed and have
received extensive training in deep tissue massage, myotherapy and Cranial Sacral Therapy. I have experience working with all types of
doctors- Medical Doctors M.D., Osteopathic Doctors D.O. and Chiropractors, D.C. I have extensive experience working in both
clinics and spas. My specific skills are in
the area of acute and chronic pain for back neck and shoulders relating to TMJ pain and
disorder.
Lets begin
by tell you about each specific area of treatment of doctors and how they work. First is an M.D. or Medical Doctor. Medical Doctors work from the pathology of a
disease and work back. They first look for disease or pathology in the tissue, blood or
cells. So the first step is to diagnosis the problem.
Blood is drawn of tissue samples are taken to find problems or disease in
these areas. If no disease if found, which is
usual for muscle or soft tissue pain or dysfunction.
Soft tissue pain, dysfunctions will not show up on x-rays or MRI unless
there are obvious signs of trauma. So most
M.D. just treat the pain and inflammation. Or the doctor my prescribe physical therapy for
rehab and treatment. This is usually done with stretching or strengthens. Not much hands
on muscle therapy are done.
Next are
Osteopathic Doctors that take same test and licensed the same as an Medical Doctor, but
their philosophy is much different in that they believe the body can heal itself and is
designed into the body system and that most drugs are harmful to your body and to your
health. They use drugs if necessary, but
prefer to use different modalities to assist the body healing itself, like massage,
lymphatic drainage, myothereapy, cranial sacral therapy and manual manipulation. The basic belief is that muscles tension is the
cause of most pain in the body. My training comes from Osteopathic teachings and training
so this is what I use and these skills I use to treat muscle pain and tension, like TMJD. So let’s talk more about TMJD.
Temple Mandible Joint
As a massage therapist since 1987,
treating head, neck and shoulder pain, I came to realize that most of the pain and tension
associated with chronic neck and shoulder pain comes from the jaw.
The
approach and treatment of TMJ by a dentist, or what the cause and effect of TMJ pain is
from a dentist’s point of view is a question for your dentist. Let’s discuss where the pain is felt, what
causes the pain, and what you can do about it.
Symptoms
The pain is in the muscles, plain and simple. The TMJ joint is said to be the most complex joint
in the human body. Unlike fingers or vertebrae, which all have one joint, each TMJ
actually has two joints, which allow it to both rotate and translate or slide.
When you chew, the jaw goes up and down,
also side-to-side and back and forth. Twenty-six different muscles are used in the process
of chewing.
One good way to check to see if you have TMJ is
to place a finger in each ear channel and open and close the jaw as wide as you can and
listen for a clicking in the ear. Also feel for symmetry as the jaw opens, the movement in
the ear canal should be the same. Look in the
mirror to see if your jaw opens straight up and down.
When I begin working on my patients,
while having the patient lay face down, I feel the back of the neck for excessive muscle
tension, muscle imbalances, and the position of the cervical vertebrae.
Many people hold tension in the neck and
shoulders, but with TMJ the muscle tension is very distinct. If I hold pressure on the
muscles around the back of the neck and at the base of the skull for 30 to 45 seconds and
the muscles do not yield to pressure or relax, that is a good indicator that the person
has TMJ or is grinding or clinching their teeth while they sleep, also known as bruxism.
If I feel this, I always ask the patient if they have TMJ or if they clinch or grind their
teeth while they sleep.
Many people are aware of their problem. I
recommend that they talk to their dentist about a night guard or a splint and to use it.
There are many different types and your dentist would know what's best for you or I can
recommend a well-qualified dentist for you. It will save wear and tear in your teeth and
help to reduce the pressure.
Contributing factors
I find one of the biggest contributing factors
is chewing on one side of your mouth. Some people do this because of a dental problem, but
many of them do it out of habit. The muscles are so strong; chewing on one side creates
such a muscle imbalance in the jaw and neck it can cause the cervical vertebrae to rotate
out of position. This causes nerve
impingement in the cervical spine affecting the nerves in your head, neck and shoulders.
Most of the time people do not feel the pain in
the jaw unless the problem has existed for a long time and the imbalances are significant.
So it is very important to chew on both sides of the mouth. If you chew gum and get
headaches, stop chewing gum. If you wake up with headaches, then it is important to use a
night guard and realize you are clinching your teeth in your sleep.
Also sleeping on your stomach creates muscle
imbalances in the neck that refers back to the jaw. So how you sleep is important also.
Sleeping on your side tends to put more
pressure on the shoulder joints and nerve plexus and if you're waking up with your hands
numb you need to change how you sleep.
Sleeping flat on your back is best with good
pillows for support to your head and neck. Also when using your computer, having proper
monitor placement is important. Using a laptop all the time with your head bent down
causes excess strain on your head, neck and shoulders. If you're talking on the phone a
lot, use a headset. Many times it's a lot of little things that add up to a big thing.
Spending ten minutes working the neck is not
nearly enough time when treating TMJ. I find an hour and a half is most effective;
treating just shoulders, neck, head, and jaw. Also a very effective technique is working
inside the mouth to release the muscles on the inside of the TMJ joint.
I find working inside the mouth very effective
for releasing tension within this joint. Results are usually noticed in the first session
and with some patients it only takes one treatment. People that have had TMJ or bruxism
for a long time take longer.
I can usually reduce the pain and tension
significantly in several visits. There may be some soreness in the jaw and muscles after
treatment but the soreness is usually minimal.
Chronic pain is the strongest pain signal that
wins over all the other pain signals. You may have many things that are painful and not be
aware of it, so it is important to work all the muscles front and back, side to side. The front of the neck, around the collarbone, at
the base of the skull, outside the jaw and around the temporal muscles are all-important
areas to work. It is important not to work
too deep and cause more pain and cause the patient to tighten up and resist. It's best to
go into the pain, lighten up a little pressure and allow the patient to relax into the
pressure, while the patient is breathing deep and focusing on relaxing.
A key component is teaching the patient how to
feel the muscles relax and how it is important to breathe into the pain, helping the
muscles to relax. When a patient feels the muscles relax and the muscles stretch, the
patient realizes that they are in charge of the healing and relaxing process and that I
just facilitate it.
The relaxing effects of the massage will last
for several days and then muscle memory will cause the muscles to start tightening up
again, causing more pain and tension. This is why it is important to get massages on a
regular basis when treating this problem. This may sound expensive, but it's really much
cheaper and more effective than the medical route.
Massage treats the pain and tension in the
muscle; drugs just mask the pain and do not create any long-term relief. The first few
sessions will be intense but as the patient learns to relax into the pain and tension, the
pain and tension subsides, the treatment becomes more pleasurable and a patient feels a
lot less discomfort.
Very little is said about the positive effects of treating TMJ using massage therapy, but the fact is, it is very effective in treating chronic and acute TMJ disorder and bruxism.
TMJ Massage of Houston
ScottNissen.net