Jaw × Acupuncture — Moto-Azabu / With an Ebisu dental clinic
The jaw you’ve been clenching,
finally allowed to let go.
Your dentist guards the bite. We release what tightened underneath it. A jaw practice in Moto-Azabu that an Ebisu dental clinic is prepared to refer you to with confidence.
Some places add
something to you.
kuukan takes something away.
Some places add something to you — another scan, another device, another protocol. kuukan takes something away. We don’t stack treatment onto a jaw that is already overloaded. We subtract the tension you’ve been holding, and let the jaw return to its natural range.
A mouthguard protects the bite. It rarely reaches the deep masseter and temporalis muscles that have hardened over years of clenching. A hair-fine needle does — reaching the layer that hands and guards cannot, and letting the held tension quietly unwind.
Not the jaw alone. Across 17 years and more than 20,000 people, Yuta Ichiki reads posture, neck, shoulders and breath, because the jaw is the body in miniature. When the jaw lets go, the whole face softens with it.
Restoration,
not optimization.
You arrive holding more than your jaw.
You leave with less — and feel like more.
The mouth opens, meals return, mornings come lighter.
Division of Roles
The guard protects. The needle releases.
Dentist
Dentistry
- —Diagnosis of jaw disorders
- —Adjustment of the bite
- —Fitting a mouthguard
Acupuncture
The needle
- —The deep, hardened masseter and temporalis
- —Tightness in the neck and shoulders
- —Tension rooted in posture and breath
Not competing — completing each other.
The cause is muscle overload
Most jaw disorders involve tightness in the masseter and temporalis — the muscles that move the jaw. Clenching and posture habits harden them, causing pain and clicking when you open.
A mouthguard rarely reaches it
A dental mouthguard is important care that protects the bite. But the muscle that has already hardened often does not soften on its own.
The needle reaches the depth
A needle can reach the deep layers of muscle that pressing by hand cannot. It releases the tightened masseter and temporalis, and returns the jaw to its natural range.
From Our Partner Dentist
Why a dentist refers, with confidence.
We begin from the words of Dr. Takashi Hasegawa, Director of La Ebs clinique dental in Ebisu.
La Ebs clinique dental
Dr. Takashi Hasegawa, Director · 3 min from Ebisu Garden Place
“Concerns such as jaw disorders, clenching and grinding can involve not only the teeth and jaw joint, but also tension in the neck and shoulders, postural imbalance, and how the body is used.
In dentistry, we check the bite and the state of the jaw joint and provide the necessary treatment. But for the muscle tension and bodily imbalance that arise in daily life, support from a different perspective can be effective in some cases.
The reason I recommend kuukan is that Mr. Ichiki evaluates the whole body comprehensively, combining the knowledge and skills of training, structural bodywork and acupuncture.
Rather than looking only at the place that hurts, he takes an approach that reviews the load on the body while checking how you stand, walk, hold your posture, breathe and use your muscles.
For jaw disorders and clenching, dental treatment is the foundation; but by tuning the condition of the whole body, it is possible to aim for a more comfortable state.
For those who wish to care for the body alongside dental treatment, it is one of the facilities I can refer with confidence.
Recommended by Dr. Takashi Hasegawa
- —Visiting Lecturer, Dept. of Implant Dentistry, Indiana University School of Dentistry
- —ISOI (International Society of Oral Implantology) — Mentor & Board Director
- —DGZI (German Society of Oral Implantology) — Certified Expert in Implantology
- —Member, Japanese Society of Oral Implantology
Faithful English translation of the original Japanese recommendation.
Self Check
When did the strain become normal?
If two or more sound familiar, an overloaded masseter or temporalis may be involved. A mouthguard, yet the strain remains — the needle fills that gap.
- 1Your jaw hurts or catches when you open wide
- 2A click or pop when you open and close
- 3You wake with a tired jaw or temples
- 4A dental mouthguard, yet the strain remains
- 5You've been told you clench or grind
- 6Headaches or stiff shoulders rooted in the jaw
Approach
Counselling
Symptoms, your dental care, and daily habits
Whole-body reading
Posture, neck and shoulders — the root of the tension
Acupuncture
Releasing the deep masseter, temporalis, neck and shoulders
Self-care guidance
Simple habits to keep the jaw from clenching
Voices
What changed, alongside dental care.
When the jaw lets go, the face softens with it. The mouth opens, meals become a pleasure, mornings come lighter.
“The mouth opens, and meals are easy again”
Opening wide used to hurt. After a few sessions it stopped bothering me. I can chew firmer food again.
“Mornings come lighter”
The tired temples on waking eased. I've also become aware of my own clenching habit.
“Easier, alongside the mouthguard”
I come while seeing my dentist. The roles are different, so doing both has clearly reduced the strain.
Individual experiences vary.
FAQ
Menu
Jaw acupuncture (first visit)
Counselling + whole-body reading + needling
¥6,000
60 min
Jaw acupuncture (return visits)
Continued care, matched to your condition
¥7,000
50 min
Acupuncture is not a medical treatment; diagnosis and treatment of jaw disorders are carried out by dentistry and medicine. For any concern, please see a medical provider first.
The practitioner
Yuta Ichiki 一木 勇太
Licensed acupuncturist and judo therapist. Seventeen years of practice; more than twenty thousand bodies.
Begin
A day without clenching, from here.
60 min · ¥6,000
Tell us how your jaw is now. You can come while under dental care — we work gently, after hearing about your current treatment. Yuta Ichiki answers directly on LINE (@kuukan). 9:00–23:00, closed Wednesdays.
Talk to us on LINE about your jaw (first visit ¥6,000 / 60 min)Once the jaw settles, keep the whole body there → Shugyo, a seasonPrefer training, bodywork and warmth combined?