Can TMJ disorder or teeth grinding cause headaches?

Yes, they can. The temporalis muscle, which moves the jaw, extends up to the temple area, so when this muscle becomes tense from grinding or clenching, it can cause headaches in the temples and even stiffness in the neck and shoulders. Some chronic headaches of unknown cause turn out to be related to the TMJ or teeth grinding. If you wake up with both a headache and jaw stiffness, we recommend a TMJ examination. However, for a sudden, severe headache, an examination in another department such as neurology should come first.