Your Teeth Shouldn’t Be Touching Right Now

Seriously. Check.

If you’re not eating, swallowing, or speaking, your teeth generally shouldn’t be pressed together. Your jaw should be resting, with a little space between your upper and lower teeth.

If reading that made you immediately unclench your jaw, pay attention to what happened in the rest of your body, too.

Did your shoulders drop? Did you take a deeper breath? Did your stomach soften?

What about your pelvic floor?

You might be clenching more than your jaw

Jaw clenching is easy to notice once you start looking for it. Pelvic floor clenching? Not so much.

Some people unconsciously hold tension through their pelvic floor throughout the day, especially while concentrating, working at a computer, driving, exercising, or dealing with stress.

And just like your jaw, you may have been doing it for so long that it feels completely normal.

That doesn't mean jaw clenching causes pelvic floor tension. But if your body tends to brace, it's worth noticing where that tension shows up.

Do a quick body check

The next time you catch your teeth touching, don't immediately try to “fix” anything.

Let your teeth separate.

Allow your tongue and jaw to soften.

Take an easy breath without pulling your stomach in.

Then notice what's happening lower down.

Are you squeezing your glutes? Holding your stomach tight? Does your pelvic floor feel lifted or gripped?

You don't need to push your pelvic floor down or force it to relax. You're simply looking for a pattern.

Why does this matter?

A pelvic floor that has trouble relaxing can sometimes contribute to symptoms that don't immediately make you think “muscle tension.”

Constipation. Urinary urgency. Pelvic pain. Discomfort with penetration. Difficulty fully emptying your bladder or bowels.

And if you're experiencing one of those symptoms, doing more Kegels isn't automatically the answer.

Your pelvic floor needs to be able to relax just as much as it needs to contract.

Catch yourself clenching again?

Good. That's information.

Start noticing what you're doing when it happens. Maybe it's always during your workday. Maybe you brace when you're concentrating. Maybe you realize your entire body tightens every time you're stuck in traffic.

Those little observations can tell us a lot.

Because pelvic floor therapy isn't just about finding a weak muscle and making it stronger. Sometimes it's about noticing what your body has been doing automatically for years—and teaching it another option.

At Webb Pelvic Health in Lawrence, Kansas, that's exactly the kind of thing we're interested in.