The LeAnn Rimes Jaw Release:
Real, But Should It Be That Painful?
Steven Murdoch
Video: LeAnn Rimes — Releasing Trauma With Fascial Manoeuvres. Human Garage TV, YouTube.
The LeAnn Rimes jaw release video had already caught my attention when a journalist called to ask my opinion on the technique and the apparent emotional release that LeAnn experienced.
I wasn’t surprised. I’d already watched the video several times and you can’t help but be affected by it.
In the video we are looking down over LeAnn’s face. We can see three hands. Two are gloved and belong to the TMJ therapist. The third is ungloved and appears to be assisting by holding the singer’s head.
The therapist has a finger of one hand deep inside LeAnn’s mouth. Simultaneously, he has the thumb of his other hand pushing into the joint of the jaw. It looks like a lot of pressure is being applied, both inside and outside the mouth.
You can see that, both by looking at the therapist’s hands and by the expression on LeAnn’s face. Then something changes — a release? LeAnn begins to sob and the therapist withdraws.
It feels like LeAnn has let us witness something deeply personal. It moved me and it has clearly moved a lot of people.
Soon, LeAnn’s tears turn to laughter as she is asked to repeat the words “That part of my life is over.”
I watch the video again ahead of my call with the journalist.
What I do know is that I need to express my concern as to why it looks so forceful and painful — because that is not what I do, and not what I believe the body wants or needs when the jaw is in tension.
So the interview happens. The journalist explains that she will not be having a treatment with me — she is booked into a luxury skin and body care clinic instead. However, she would still appreciate my opinion.
I make the points I feel I need to make, and the article is written. I am quoted, and my comments about emotional release are included — but my concerns about the apparent pain and force are not picked up.
For me, the article is quite a sad read. The journalist tells us early on that when she gets massages she wants them to be “borderline torturous.” She describes how a masseur used to regularly punch her stepfather’s backside hard enough to leave bruises — and calls that therapist her “holy grail.”
When her TMJ therapist begins with a gentle face massage she is disappointed, describing the touch as “nowhere near the levels of pressure I assume are required.” It is only when the therapist goes deeper and it becomes painful that she feels reassured — her words — that “something quite serious is happening.”
I find this genuinely sad. Not as a criticism of the journalist, who is clearly just reflecting what many people feel. But because this belief — that pain means progress — is one of the most common and most unhelpful ideas I encounter in my work. And when it comes to jaw tension and the nervous system, it is not just unhelpful. It can actively make things worse.
In this article I want to share with you what I shared with the journalist. My aim is to answer the questions I think you may be asking. We’ll start with the real reason to have a TMJ massage, because I think there is some mixed messaging around this.
Then I’ll cover what to expect:
Does it need to be painful?
Are you likely to have the same emotional response as LeAnn Rimes?
I’ll also share how to find a good TMJ massage therapist and what you can do at home to ease jaw tension.
Why have a TMJ jaw release massage?
I think it’s possible to watch the LeAnn Rimes video and think — “Wow, there is a treatment, where someone digs their finger into my jaw, and all my traumas are released in a matter of moments!”
But you know what I am going to say. It is rarely like that.
It is worth being clear about what jaw release massage is actually for, because I think the video has created some confusion.
A TMJ massage that includes deep jaw release is a clinical treatment — not a wellness experience or an emotional release therapy. You would typically seek it out because you are experiencing jaw related symptoms — and those symptoms might include:
- Tension or pain in the jaw
- A restricted mouth opening
- Clicking or locking of the jaw joint
- Tinnitus
- Difficulty eating or chewing
- Teeth grinding or clenching
The emotional release that LeAnn experiences in the video can happen. But it is a byproduct of the treatment, not its purpose. I’ll say more on the potential emotional response in a bit. But the key point is this — seek out a treatment because your jaw is tight, painful or restricted, not because you want to experience an emotional release or expel emotional trauma.
What happens in a TMJ jaw release session?
Before any hands-on work begins, a good therapist will want to understand your symptoms, how long you have had them, what you have previously explored and what you are hoping to achieve. This is not a formality — it shapes everything that follows.
The treatment itself will typically include work both outside and inside the mouth. The internal work — known as intra-oral massage — is what you see in the LeAnn Rimes video, and it is an important part of accessing the deeper jaw muscles. But it is only one part of the session.
Equally important is work on other areas of the body. Jaw tension does not exist in isolation. Tension in the neck, shoulders, hips and even the feet can all play a role — and a good session will address the whole picture, not just the jaw itself.
If tension is released in the body, the jaw can often let go too.
Does jaw release massage have to be painful?
No. In fact, it needs to be anything but. It needs to feel therapeutic and reassuring.
And this is why I am writing this — because I think the LeAnn Rimes video, and the article that I was quoted in, may have left people with the impression that pain is part of the process.
It is not.
To understand why, it helps to know a little about what is actually holding jaw tension in place. The jaw muscles are wrapped in fascia — a connective tissue that runs continuously throughout the entire body. Fascia is not just structural. It is richly supplied with nerve endings and responds directly to the state of the nervous system.
When the nervous system feels safe, fascia softens. When it senses threat — whether that is stress, emotion, or physical pain — it tightens. This is a protective response, and it is extraordinarily powerful. No amount of force will override it.
This is the fundamental problem with painful jaw treatment. When pressure becomes painful, the nervous system interprets that as a threat and instructs the tissue to guard. The very thing you are trying to release becomes harder and more resistant. You are working against the body, not with it.
What the body needs instead is a sense of safety. When the nervous system feels supported rather than threatened, the fascia receives permission to soften — and the jaw can genuinely let go.
This is why I watch the LeAnn Rimes video with concern. The release she experiences is real. But in my view it happens despite the pain, not because of it. And I find myself wondering how much more easily — and how much more completely — that release might have come with a kinder approach.
If you’d like to understand more about the nervous system and jaw tension, I’ve written about this in detail at tmjpaincare.com.
Why is LeAnn Rimes sobbing after the release? Are emotions stored in the jaw?
This is the question that I think has captivated so many people — and it is the part of the interview where I am quoted accurately.
When asked about LeAnn’s response, I explained that when working with the deep fascia, an emotional release can follow. It might be floods of tears, or it might simply be feeling deeply vulnerable. And it is not just the jaw — the same can happen when working around the sacrum, the abdominal area, the back, or the neck and shoulders.
So why does this happen?
The jaw is not just a mechanical structure. It is deeply connected to how we hold ourselves in the world — how we speak, how we stay silent, how we brace, how we cope. Tension in the jaw can reflect years of stress, emotional load, or experiences that the body has never fully been given permission to process. Research into temporomandibular disorders increasingly confirms this — identifying changes in brain networks involved in pain processing that go well beyond the jaw itself.
Part of the reason lies in the vagus nerve — the primary nerve governing whether we feel safe or threatened — is the same nerve that feeds the muscles in the jaw. When we feel supported, the vagus nerve shifts us toward a state of rest. Muscles soften, breathing deepens, and the body finally gets permission to let go. This is why the quality of touch matters so much. A calm, considered approach activates that sense of safety. Pain does the opposite.
I explore this in more depth at tmjpaincare.com. You’ll see that the fascia that holds jaw tension is the same fascia that responds to the state of the nervous system and our emotional experience. When that tissue finally softens — when the body feels safe enough to let go — what has been held there can surface. That might feel like relief, vulnerability, or yes, even tears.
That’s why LeAnn had that visceral experience. But remember, it doesn’t always happen during the session, it can be the next day. It doesn’t happen with force, and it sometimes doesn’t happen at all.
What should I expect during and after a session?
During the session itself, you should feel safe and supported throughout. There may be moments of intensity — particularly during the intra-oral work — but these should always feel therapeutic and within your comfort. You are always in control, and a good therapist will check in with you throughout.
What you notice immediately after can vary. Many people feel lighter. There is often a sense of spaciousness — as though something that has been held tightly for a long time has finally been given permission to ease. You may notice more movement in the jaw, a sense of letting go, and a feeling of release that extends beyond the jaw into the body as a whole.
It is also very common to feel tired afterwards. Drink plenty of water. Some people notice a mild headachy feeling the following day — this is normal and tends to pass quickly.
In the days that follow, that sense of spaciousness often continues. Things feel lighter. There can be a sense of realignment — not just in the jaw, but in how the whole body feels.
And as I mentioned earlier, for some people a sense of vulnerability or an emotional release surfaces not during the session but in the hours or days afterwards. This is entirely normal and rather than be concerning, can be a good indicator that tension is releasing.
What makes a good TMJ massage therapist and how do you find one?
The LeAnn Rimes video will inevitably send people searching for jaw release therapy, and I am sorry to say, that there are many charlatans and poorly trained therapists offering treatments. So it is important you know what to look for.
A good TMJ massage therapist is not simply someone who offers buccal massage or knows how to work inside the mouth. The intra-oral work is one part of a much wider picture. What matters is whether they understand the relationship between the jaw and the rest of the body — the neck, shoulders, hips, breathing, and nervous system — and whether they approach the work with that understanding.
Avoid anyone offering a quick fix. Do not believe “more pain is more gain.”
A good therapist will:
- Take time to understand your symptoms, history and aims before any hands-on work begins
- Work at a pace your nervous system can tolerate — never pushing through resistance
- Check in with you throughout and adjust their approach accordingly
- Never make the session feel forceful or overwhelming
- Address the whole body, not just the jaw in isolation
In the UK, I would recommend looking for a therapist qualified through Jing Advanced Massage Training, or with Helen Baker at TMJ Massage Therapies — both take an approach that considers the nervous system and the whole body. I have trained with both schools. They are professional and accredited by leading bodywork organisations.
The last time I checked, the Jing therapist directory was not functioning correctly. So I recommend an internet search for “Jing TMJ massage therapist.”
Helen Baker does have a graduate directory, although it is a bit hidden on her site.
If you are looking for TMJ massage in London, you can find more about my approach and what to expect here.
What can I do at home to ease jaw tension?
If you can’t get to a therapist or you’d rather explore self-care yourself, there is a great deal you can do at home to calm jaw tension.
Gentle self-massage, nervous system regulation, breathwork, and understanding what drives jaw tension in the first place can all make a meaningful difference.
I have put together a free library of self-care guides at TMJ Pain Care covering everything from how to unclench your jaw, to vagus nerve massage, to the connection between the jaw and the rest of the body.