If you’ve been suffering from frequent headaches, you may want to get your teeth checked out – it could be a dental headache! Dental headaches are often caused by the muscular tension in your jaw and face muscles. Although, your muscles aren’t just tense for any reason – more often you have a misaligned bite. Could your headache be related to your teeth?
What Differentiates a Headache From a Dental Headache?
If you recently experienced any trauma to your jaw and are now noticing a “popping” when you move it, you could have TMJ. TMJ, or Temporomandibular Joint Disorder, is usually caused by some type of injury or trauma. However, TMJ is a very reasonable explanation as to why you’ve been experiencing horrible headaches because it frequently strains the muscles surrounding your jaw.
If you’re waking with a headache, the answer could be that you’re grinding your teeth throughout the night. Has your spouse ever said anything to you about how much you grind your teeth? Teeth grinding, also called Bruxism, also strains the muscles around the jaw and face which could refer pain to your head.
Lastly, sore jaw muscles are another sign that you should look for. Muscles aren’t made to be tightened all the time – in fact, they shouldn’t ever be tightened for extended periods of time. The soreness that you are feeling in your jaw, could actually be the factor causing your head pain. This is also known as referred pain, where you develop pain in your body but sense it in a different place (such as your head, in this case).
What Should You Do?
The answer is simple – schedule a check-up! You’ll want to get into the office as soon as you can just to ensure you are not experiencing something more serious.
