USE YOUR TONGUE TO RELIEVE BACK PAIN
Sep 30, 2020๐ HEAD, NECK, JAW, TONGUE ๐
Five years ago I taught a workshop that included head, neck, jaw and tongue positioning for optimal spine health.
โ๏ธ Minds were blown โ๏ธ
After the workshop I felt I had “over-reached” and I vowed to mute that schpiel until “later” because it seemed to have landed way over their heads.
๐ค Most of my back-pained clients aren't thinking about their breathing, the mechanical dynamics of it nor how it relates to back pain. N
They're definitely not aware of the importance of tongue positioning!
๐ These days I am beyond thrilled that nose-breathing is gaining traction and awareness about tongue positioning is becoming a commonly-discussed thing๐๐ป YES!
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Here’s how it relates to your back:
๐ญ Your head is like a lollipop on a stick: If you hold your head forward (“text neck”) it’s going to distort and strain your neck and back.
๐ Your tongue and palate are the uppermost regulators of visceral and deep neck and spinal tone.
๐ How your tongue rests affects the broadening of your soft palette, it helps you breathe through your nose, helps you swallow, reduces snoring and it reduces bacteria producing oxygenation in and around your mouth and teeth, which means less bad breath and less plaque build up and tooth decay.
It also helps you to stand up straight...your neck and tongue together act like a marionette puppeteer, guiding you long and tall from above.
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๐ ๐๐ญLETS DO IT
1๏ธโฃ Elongate through the top of your head
2๏ธโฃ Retract your skull as if pressing back in to a headrest
3๏ธโฃ Close your mouth
4๏ธโฃ Rest your tongue softly across your upper palate
5๏ธโฃ Touch the tip of your tongue gently to the gum line behind your top front teeth
6๏ธโฃ Relax your face and jaw muscles
7๏ธโฃ Breathe normally
8๏ธโฃ Let me know how it goes!
๐~Dinneen
