Jaw Tension, Teeth Grinding (TMJ)
Teeth grinding and jaw clenching can cause chronic pain and widen the lower face. We use muscle relaxants to ease tension and create a more defined, contoured jawline.
Relief first, slimming second
People come to us about their jaw for one of two reasons: the pain, or the width of their lower face. Both usually trace back to the same muscle. The masseter does the work of chewing, and when it’s also clenching or grinding through the night it behaves like any muscle that’s constantly worked — it gets stronger, tighter, and visibly larger.
Relaxing it addresses both concerns, but on different timelines. Tension and the headaches that come with it usually ease within one to two weeks. The slimming takes longer, around four to six weeks, as the muscle gradually reduces in size. We dose conservatively because you still need to chew comfortably, and because in clients with existing skin laxity, reducing the muscle too quickly isn’t always the right call.
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The Link Between Stress and Jaw Shape
The Masseter muscle is one of the strongest muscles in the human body, responsible for chewing. However, stress and anxiety can lead to involuntary clenching or grinding of the teeth (bruxism), often during sleep. This overactivity causes two issues:
- TMJ Pain: Chronic tension in the jaw joint, leading to headaches, earaches, and damaged teeth.
- Masseter Hypertrophy: Like any muscle that is "worked out" constantly, the masseter grows larger. This creates a square, masculine width to the lower face that can imbalance female features.
Relaxation and Slimming
By injecting muscle relaxants (neurotoxins) directly into the masseter muscle, we can significantly reduce its strength and activity.
- Pain Relief: The primary benefit is relief. The grinding stops, preserving your teeth and reducing tension headaches.
- Facial Slimming: As the muscle activity decreases, it undergoes "disuse atrophy." Over 4–8 weeks, the muscle shrinks in size, slimming the lower face and creating a softer, more oval or heart-shaped contour.
Why it happens
The masseter is the muscle you chew with. When it’s also clenching or grinding through the night, it works overtime — like any muscle that’s constantly used, it gets tighter, stronger, and larger. This is what causes both the jaw pain and the widening of the lower face.
How we help
We use muscle relaxant injections to ease tension in the masseter. Pain and headaches usually improve within one to two weeks. The jawline contouring takes longer, around four to six weeks, as the muscle gradually reduces in size. We dose conservatively so you can still chew comfortably, and we’ll talk through whether this is the right option for you if you have existing skin laxity in the area.
A Dual-Benefit Treatment
This is one of our most popular treatments because it offers both medical relief and aesthetic refinement in a single procedure.
FAQs
Answers to common questions about our injectable treatments and aesthetic services
We inject the masseter muscles (the large chewing muscles at the back of the jaw) to relax them. This stops the involuntary, intense clenching and grinding that causes TMJ pain.
When performed correctly by an experienced injector, it will not affect your smile. The masseter is a chewing muscle, not a smiling muscle. We carefully map the injection points to avoid the risorius (smile) muscle.
Yes, it often will. When the masseter muscle works less, it shrinks (atrophies). This is a highly desired side effect that slims a square, wide lower face into a softer, more oval contour.
The injections take just a few minutes. We book a 30-minute consultation slot to palpate the muscle, assess your bite strength, and determine the exact dosage required.
The pain relief and muscle relaxation usually last around 4 to 6 months. Many clients find that after a few consecutive treatments, the habit of grinding is broken, and results last even longer.
In older clients with significant skin laxity, shrinking the masseter muscle rapidly could theoretically leave behind loose skin. We assess this risk during consultation and may recommend a lower dose or combined skin-tightening treatments.
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