Seraphim Faces

Clenching or grinding teeth in sleep is deeply linked to maxillary maldevelopment and airway obstruction.

When the upper airway gets blocked, the brain triggers clenching & grinding muscles, pulling the lower jaw and tongue forward to reopen it. Misaligned teeth or jaws can trigger spasms as muscles struggle for stable positions. Continued pressure causes teeth to flatten, or loosen. Chronic tension may cause facial, neck, and shoulder pain, and "temple" headaches.

Proximity of the TMJ to the ear canal means chronic bruxism can feel like earaches or tinnitus (ringing).

Bruxism is also linked to prolonged "fight or flight" activation, resulting in anxiety, depression, and poor sleep.

The maxilla forms about 70% of the floor of the eye socket (orbit), so it affects the structure and position of the eye. 

A recessed maxilla is associated with a "short orbital floor" for the size of the eye, which can lead to changes that cause myopia (near-sightedness), hyperopia (far-sightedness), and astigmatism.

When the jaws are underdeveloped, the tongue crowds the throat. Forward Head Posture (FHP) is a compensatory response to open the airway.The head reflexively tilts forward and up, straining posture. Shoulders round and the upper back curves. The skull-base muscles tighten while deep neck flexors and mid-back muscles weaken.FHP
places passive tension on facial tissues, lengthening the chin-to-sternum distance and stretching the hyoid muscles, pulling the mandible back and down, contributing to a long face or weak chin. Chronic pulling impacts cervical joints, accelerating degenerative changes like spinal arthritis and disc herniation. As posture collapses, the chest cavity compresses, reducing lung capacity by limiting diaphragm movement.

A constricted maxilla often means a narrow airway, mouth breathing and a weak diaphragm. Think of the diaphragm as a physical lid on the stomach. Mouth breathing causes shallow, chest-only breathing that weakens this lid. This creates a vacuum-like suction in the chest that pulls stomach acid upward into the throat, especially as the "seal" isn't being held down properly by the muscles. 

Gastric acid and pepsin (a protein-digesting enzyme) from the stomach cause tissue damage and chronic swelling in the nasal passages and sinuses. This inflammation leads to further nasal obstruction, which reinforces mouth breathing.

A constricted maxilla has been strongly linked to Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), as a narrowed palate reduces airway space in the nose and pharynx. The resulting mouth breathing leads to the collapse of softer tongue muscles and a floppy airway, causing snoring. The long-term vibratory trauma from snoring often leads to OSA. 

OSA causes white matter damage, memory and learning deficits (smaller hippocampus), decrease in cognitive function, accumulation of beta-amyloid (a protein linked to Alzheimer's). Appetite-regulating hormones balance is disrupted. OSA is linked to insulin resistance, glucose intolerance and spikes of cortisol, which is specifically associated with increased abdominal fat deposits. 

When the upper jaw is narrow or recessed, it leaves too little space for the lower jaw to move naturally, forcing it into a compressed, backward position. The result is excess tension on the jaw joint and muscles, often showing up as TMD (Temporo-mandibular Disorder).