04. Tongue Depressor for Occlusion

This technique may seem small but it has a big impact on your cranial bone and jaw alignment which then affects your posture below. This technique uses a tongue depressor to provide a neutral and flat surface for a new sense of contact or support through your teeth, jaw and head. 

This new bite pattern allows you to more easily feel stabilized in your postural system, appropriately activates your muscles and enables you to experience a new felt sense inside your body. A new way of feeling, being and expressing yourself may arise when simply sensing a different feeling in your bite. 

Instructions:

1. Without anything in your mouth, perform a few Physical Resonance Tests to get a baseline of how you feel and your current range of motion. Specifically check the neck and shoulder tests.
2. Place the tongue depressor in any of these options. Recheck your range of motion with each condition to determine if it improves, stays the same or gets worse.
   1. Left molars (the most common location)
   2. Both molars (use a tongue depressor on each side or orient a single tongue depressor across both molars). You may also use the Full Coverage Bite Wafer for Occlusion option for this type of occlusion condition.  
   3. Right molars (least common location)
3. Place the tongue depressor gently in between the molars that give you the best/most comfortable range of motion or felt sense in your neck/body. With the tongue depressor in, you may choose to perform a few different techniques.
   • Use one or more of these 3 options or use your testing technique to select the best option for you. 
     1. Hold the depressor between your specified molars for ~2 minutes or more.
     2. Hold it while performing certain postural repositioning exercises such as Standing Alternating Reciprocal Cranial Expansion or Standing Cervical-Cranial Repositioning
     3. Tap on the tongue depressor with your specified molars ~20-30 taps, then remove. Complete 1-2 rounds of these taps.

Perform your option of using the tongue depressor 1-2x/day for the next 1-2 weeks. *Unless otherwise directed.

• Optionally, use your testing technique to determine your optimal frequency and duration to perform.
• If you find using a bilateral tongue depressor significantly helps reduce any symptoms in your body, you likely would benefit from a custom made lower/mandibular oral appliance or splint (sometimes also called a mouthguard) balanced and equilibrated by a dentist.
• If you find using a unilateral bite wafer significantly helps reduce any symptoms in your body, you may benefit from a custom made lower jaw/mandibular oral appliance called a POD or a Homeoblock from a dentist specifically trained in these appliances.