When I was in massage therapy school and heard about intraoral massage, which is a modality in which you are able to work inside the mouth, I didn't think that is something I would ever want it to do and even found the idea to be weird. Looking back is it any more weird that working on any other muscle; especially ones we use thousands of times per day while speaking, yawning, breathing, or eating.
I graduated and started working at a massage franchise location and noticed I started getting more clients looking for anterior neck and jaw relief. I could work on these clients from the outside layer for almost an hour straight and it would never be deep enough and as a treatment therapist I felt discouraged. As a gamer/geek it felt like there was an unexplored section of a map hiding new possibilities and I wanted to see what they were.
In 2018 I found an intraoral massage course and it was one of the best classes I have ever taken for both my clients and myself. I still use intraoral massage on my own jaw literally every single day to help manage any tension I feel and I am happy to teach clients these same techniques for homework.
Soon after the class I started practicing this work on friends and began using it at work the following week. Some people found it weird, but all were amazed by the results and would always come back for more.I finally felt like I was able to explore the jaw and give people the results and pain relief they were looking for.
Symptoms that could benefit from this modality?
Clenching
Grinding
Jaw and jaw muscle pain
Poor jaw movement patterns
Why you need a 16hr continuing education course to do this work?
In Washington state it is required to have a 16hr hands on course to perform this work on your clientele. After the course you will be able to submit some paperwork to the DOH to get an endorsement for intraoral massage on your license.
What you can expect from the intraoral course?
Learn the benefits and contraindications of this modality.
Palpate and treat important muscles such as: masseter, medial/lateral pterygoid, infrahyoids, suprahyoids, temporalis, suboccipitals and much more.
Discover how to assess dysfunctional movement patterns in the jaw.
Receive help applying with the Department of Health for your endorsement.
When to expect this amazing course
The course creation is beginning in February of 2023 and I hope to release a course for healthcare practitioners to take in the fall of 2023.
Keep an eye out on social media or email me for updates. You can also check out my website here to view all upcoming courses:
Thanks for the support and I look foward to helping everyone have a more interesting and prosperous career.
-Tayler
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