MOJO Tips

General

• To help tolerance - soften MOJO in a cup of warm water before use- clean with toothpaste or soak in mouthwash to give a minty flavour
• The MOJO doesn't need to fit snugly (unlike most mouthguard type bite appliances); its doing its job if it brings your lower jaw forward.  This position opens the TM Joint, puts the main jaw closing muscles in stretch (Masseters are in each cheek and Temporalis are on the sides of the head by your ears).  
• An open TM Joint allows pressure to be reduced on the disc in the joint, increased blood flow to the joint for healing and reducing inflammation and better neural impulses through the joint if it has been compressed.
• Stretching the muscles helps change the clench habit and reminds the body that the natural resting length of the jaw muscles is longer than the clench habit usually keeps the muscles tightly bound into.
• Releasing pressure on these structures has a more global effect, reducing pressure all through the structures of the head and neck.  For some it even effects generalised body tension by lowering the tonus of the nervous system.
• Feedback from clients is that effective change is gained by only as little as 5-30 minutes use 3 x per week.  More is better, but that amount should still offer relief and healing opportunity.
• Wearing your MOJO in the evenings at home when you're doing other things is a good time - on computer, watching tv, preparing dinner ... walking around with MOJO in place is particularly helpful in resetting the neural pathways from a clench habit to a more released resting posture.

Tolerance

• This can be a challenge for some people.  Take it slowly and just hold the appliance in the mouth for as long as is tolerable/comfortable.  At first a gagging response is quite common but most often this can be overcome with gentle perseverance.  1-2 weeks is usually enough to determine whether the MOJO will help you.
• If your jaw muscles are very tight it can be helpful to apply warmth to the cheeks first by wringing a face cloth in hot water and pressing onto the cheeks for a few minutes.  You can carefully apply a little antinflammatory cream to your TMJ (just in front of your ears - care not close to eyes as the warmth of your skin will make the cream 'creep' and you dont want it in your eyes) also apply to back of neck before, during or after MOJO use.
• The key things to remember- is it working? if your jaw is brought forward whilst wearing the MOJO and if you feel a sense of space in your TMJ after removing it - then the MOJO is working.
• After a few weeks of use some people have found their concept of where their lower jaw should rest becomes confused - this indicates that the entrenched 'normalised position' of the clench habit is being released and the body is re-establishing a more rested bite position.
• There are exercises on the MOJO brochure - these may or may not be added to your MOJO use, but feedback from clients indicates its helpful to get used to the MOJO for a while before adding the exercises.
• Combining MOJO use with a few sessions of Osteopathy and/or massage therapy over a 3 week period has proven to speed up results especially for long-term or very acute TMJ / neck tension / head pain problems.

Please do discuss any questions with your practitioner and let us have any feedback - we are really interested to hear how its working for people and what their challenges are.

Long term value
Usually the MOJO will be used for 3-4 weeks initially and often its put in the bathroom cupboard after not feeling needed any more.  Then brought out again for 1-3 weeks use each time a stress patch occurs in the personal environment and you notice you're clenching again.  The habit should resolve quite quickly after the initial experience.

Support
You're welcome to phone me on the number below to discuss your experience, questions or problems you may have as I have found sometimes a few 'tweaks' are all that is needed to get helpful results.

The MOJO doesn't suit everyone - but it does seem to offer benefits to a majority of people.  If you've given it a try and its clearly not for you, contact me to discuss return and refund of $60 as I offer a partial money-back guarantee.