The temporalis stretch is a gentle jaw stretch done sitting. You rest a small, clean block between your side teeth, near one corner of your mouth, so your mouth stays slightly open, and hold. It aims at the fan-shaped chewing muscle over your temple (temporalis), which helps close the jaw. Physios sometimes add it to home programs for jaw pain and tight chewing muscles (temporomandibular disorder, or TMD). Keep the opening small and the stretch mild.

How to do the temporalis stretch

Sit on the edge of a bed or a firm bench with your back tall, feet flat and hands resting near your knees.
Open your mouth slowly and place a small, clean block between your side teeth, near one corner of your mouth. In the video it goes on the right side, with one end showing between the lips. It only needs to keep your teeth slightly apart.
Let your teeth rest on the block without biting down. Keep your lips, cheeks and forehead soft.
Keep your head facing forward and let your jaw hang softly on the block. You should feel a mild stretch along the side of your face or jaw.
Hold for about 5 to 10 seconds while you breathe easily through your nose.
Take the block out and close your mouth slowly.

What you should feel

A mild pull along the side of your face, around the temple or jaw. Your jaw may feel a little tired afterward, but the stretch itself should never hurt.

Common mistakes

Biting down on the block. Your teeth only rest on it.
Using a block that is too thick, so the jaw is forced wide open.
Pushing the block further back into your mouth. Keep it at the front, with one end at or outside your lips.
Snapping the mouth shut at the end instead of closing it slowly.

How often

Many programs hold a gentle jaw stretch for 5 to 10 seconds, 3 to 5 times, once or twice a day. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Pain in your jaw, face or ear that builds with each hold, or your jaw starts to catch, click painfully or lock so it will not open fully. Stop. If it stays stuck, or the pain stops you eating or drinking, get medical advice the same day from your doctor or dentist.
Your mouth gets stuck open and will not close, or your jaw feels out of place and your teeth no longer meet as they did. Go to an emergency department straight away, supporting your jaw gently with your hand, and do not drive yourself. Call emergency services if you also find it hard to breathe.
Things look double, your vision suddenly blurs or goes, your speech slurs or becomes muddled, swallowing becomes hard, your face or lips go numb, one side of your face droops or one side of your body goes weak or numb, you suddenly become so dizzy or unsteady that you fall or cannot stand or walk, your legs suddenly give way but you do not black out (a drop attack), or you get a sudden severe headache. Stop and call emergency services, even if it goes away.
Jaw, neck, shoulder or arm pain that comes with chest pain or tightness, sweating, feeling sick, feeling light-headed or being short of breath, or that comes on when you exert yourself, feel stressed or go out in the cold and does not ease within a few minutes of rest. Call emergency services straight away, as this can be a heart attack. If it eases quickly with rest and none of these happen, get medical advice the same day, and do not exercise again until you have been checked.

From the clinic

The block in the video is small and sits right at the front of the mouth, with its end level with the lips. At home, use something clean and firm that is long enough for one end to stay outside your lips, so it cannot slip to the back of your mouth. A few flat wooden tongue depressors stacked together are one option. Do not use food, candy, a coin or anything that could break, crumble or be swallowed, and keep it away from children.

Always do this sitting upright, never lying down or when you feel drowsy. If swallowing is hard for you, skip the block and ask your physio for another way to do the stretch. If you have loose teeth, fresh dental work or a crown on that side, ask your dentist before you rest your teeth on anything.

The block should keep your teeth only slightly apart, as in the video. Forcing the jaw wide open is not needed and can flare a sore jaw. Between holds, let your teeth stay apart and your tongue rest loosely.

If your jaw has ever got stuck open, check with your dentist or physio before you do any jaw stretch. After jaw surgery or a broken jaw, check with your surgeon before you start, and follow their plan. Jaw pain that comes with effort and goes with rest can be a sign of angina, a heart problem, rather than TMD. New, frequent headaches with pain or tenderness at your temples or on your scalp, or, if you are 50 or over, new jaw aching that comes on as you chew or talk and eases when you stop, need medical advice the same day, as they can be signs of inflamed arteries in the head (giant cell arteritis). If your vision changes, call emergency services.

Want a jaw exercise with no stretch in it? Try jaw opening with the tongue on the roof of the mouth. Facial muscle relaxation, done with your teeth slightly apart, teaches you what a relaxed face feels like.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Temporalis stretch