Face, mouth and jaw conditions support

Many face, mouth and jaw conditions are linked with persistent pain, or other sensations (such as a burning or numb feelings). Some conditions also involve changes to the face that may be visible to others.

We work with specialists in oral medicine and oral surgery.

We will support you to look after your physical, emotional and social needs. This is called a holistic approach.

You may worry that the person who referred you to our team does not think your pain or symptoms are real. This is not true. The health professional wants to help as they know how difficult your condition can be to live with.

Face, mouth and jaw conditions can affect people in many ways, not just physically. You may worry about moving your jaw in case it makes the pain or other sensations feel worse.

This can lead to frustration, low mood, low self-confidence and worry about the future. Some people find their sensations feel worse when they are more upset or stressed.

Our psychological therapists work with you to help you reduce the impact of your face, mouth or jaw condition on your life. This can help you feel less distressed and better about the future.

We do not aim to take away your pain or unpleasant sensations, but to help you respond to them differently and do more of the things that matter to you.

This approach to living with a health condition is not what everyone is looking for. If you are not sure, you can talk about this more with one of the psychology team before you decide to go ahead. You might decide that now is not the right time for you to visit the psychology team. You can ask for a re-referral from someone in the dental team at Guy's Hospital, if you change your mind.

'More than a mouth' group programme

After their first appointment with a psychological therapist, many people choose to do our 'more than a mouth' group programme.

It is for people with conditions that affect their face, mouth or jaw.

We will discuss if the programme is suitable for you at your first appointment. If the programme is not suitable, we may be able to offer 1:1 follow-up sessions or suggest other services that might be able to help you. 

Before the sessions

The programme consists of 4 sessions. Each session lasts for 2 hours. There is 1 session per week. 

We run most of these programmes face-to-face. Occasionally, we run an online programme for people unable to attend face-to-face sessions. We'll let you know all the information about where to go or how to join before your first session.

During the sessions

There are usually between 5 and 8 people in the group.

At each session you can learn to develop skills for:

• being more at peace with persistent unpleasant sensations
• reducing the impact of thoughts on your mood and behaviour
• staying in the present moment
• making more helpful choices
• having self-compassion
• doing activities that are important to you

Each session will include time for discussion and practising skills.

You can say as much or as little about yourself as you like. We will ask everyone not to share any information they learn about each other. This is so that everyone in the group can feel comfortable to talk freely.

After the sessions

It's important that you attend all the sessions to get the most benefit from the programme. You'll need to practise what you learn between each session.

We'll invite you to a group follow-up session a few weeks after you've finished the programme.

Burning mouth syndrome information session

After their first appointment with a psychological therapist, people with burning mouth syndrome (BMS) may wish to come to our information session.

It includes:

• a pre-recorded presentation about BMS from a doctor in oral medicine
• an introduction to psychological skills for living well alongside the condition

As well as finding out more about BMS and how to cope with it, you have the opportunity to meet other people with the condition. 

We will discuss if the BMS information session is suitable for you at your first psychology appointment. If the session is not suitable for you, we may be able to offer 1:1 follow-up sessions or suggest other services that might be able to help you.