Mewing Teeth Position – How to Do it Correctly (Complete Guide)
Should My Teeth Be Touching? Or Slightly Apart?
Here's the Position Your Teeth Should Be in When You're Mewing (and at all others times too!)
🔎 Revealed on this page...
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🐟 Teeth like Gollum: how thousands of mewing beginners are grinding their teeth down to stubs.
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🤷 NOT Like That! – I'll show you the exact mewing teeth position with clear descriptions and photos.
All the mewing gurus make it sound so simple: put your tongue on the roof of your mouth.
And breathe through your nose. "It's that easy!".
I'm actually one of those gurus... haha.
But I've never claimed that mewing is easy.
I haven't even said that it's simple.
Most beginners struggle with the tongue posture part.
I see the same questions pop up in my YouTube comments everyday:
- Should my tongue touch my teeth?
- How can I breathe with my tongue blocking my throat?
- I get a double chin when I do this, is that normal?
- How long should I hold this position every day?
BUT, before you even think about the position of your tongue... you need to think about the position of your teeth!
This is the very first step in any mewing tutorial.
The "Ideal" Teeth Position
Everyone's tongue, mouth and teeth are different.
So there's not one answer that applies to everyone.
This is why mewing in general is so misunderstood and hard to do- it's different for everybody.
Let me start by explaining the ideal teeth position.
This may or may not apply to you.
It definitely doesn't apply to me - I have a retainer that gets in the way.
After that, we'll look at some different teeth positions for anyone that can't do the ideal position.
The best teeth position is what suits your face and mouth.
So don't worry if you weren't born to do the "ideal" position.
How to Do the Ideal Mewing Teeth Position
1. Seal Your Lips Lightly
There should not be a gap between your upper and lower lip.
You shouldn't be breathe in or out through your mouth.
2. Your Upper Teeth Lightly Touching Your Lower Teeth
Don't bite down hard or tense your jaw.
Your mouth should be loose and relaxed.
3. The Lower Teeth Should Be Resting Behind Your Upper Teeth
Upper and lower teeth should not open and close directly onto each other.
It's more like the lower teeth "slide in" behind your upper teeth.
I'm talking specifically about the incisor teeth at the front of your mouth.
4. You Upper & Lower Molar Teeth (at the back) Should Be Resting in Slight Contact With Each Other
All of your upper teeth should be resting lightly against all of your lower teeth.
5. You're Doing it? Now You Can Think About Tongue Posture!
Nail the first 4 steps and then you can start the next phase – learn the mewing tongue posture.
Can't Do it? Here's What You Should Do...
Different Teeth Positions for Different People
Ok, so you found out your mouth and teeth aren't "ideal".
It's not a problem.
As I said before, most people's aren't.
There's a bunch of workarounds depending on the particular issue you have.
You need to diagnose yourself (I'll help!) and then use the solution that I outline.
😬 You Have Braces
Ooh, this is a tough one.
It's basically impossible to have your lower teeth slide in behind your upper teeth.
Because you have these big chunks of metal in the way! I know what it's like- I had braces for 2 years.
My advice is: try to do the ideal mewing teeth position as well as you can.
Your teeth won't sit together smoothly.
But you can still make sure your teeth are touching lightly and you can adjust your jaw so your teeth are better aligned.
Another thing to consider is... maybe you shouldn't even be mewing with braces?
Having braces is stressful enough to your mouth as it is.
Why add the extra difficulty.
Here's what I'd do if I had braces again: I'd focus on having my teeth positioned as closely as possible to the ideal position.
I'd make sure I breathe primarily through my nose- apart from when exercising.
And I wouldn't be too strict about tongue posture until I got my braces off.
When you're ready, you'll have the foundation set and the tongue posture will be much easier.
⚔️ You Have a Metal Retainer
Me too!
Mine's actually broken and I need to get it taken out.
So it's in the way, cutting my gums, but not actually holding my teeth together.
If you only have a metal retainer on your bottom teeth- it shouldn't be a problem or get in your way.
It's the ones on the top teeth that are in the way.
Your bottom teeth can't comfortably slide behind your top teeth.
Instead, they're sitting up against some metal that could scratch them.
Here's what I do: try to do the ideal mewing teeth position described above.
Obviously your bottom teeth will hit the retainer on your upper teeth.
You won't be able to close your mouth any more than you have.
That's the position I hold.
It doesn't matter too much that your teeth don't fully fit in and close together.
It's more important that your jaw is aligned properly and you don't have an overbite or underbite.
💤 You Have a Sleep Retainer
If you're like me: you wear a plastic retainer over your teeth when you sleep.
It makes it hard to slide your lower teeth behind your upper teeth, because the plastic covering your teeth takes up a lot of space.
Try to hold the ideal position described above.
Close your mouth as much as you can, but don't move your jaw forward or back just to make it fit.
It doesn't matter too much that your teeth don't fully fit in and close together.
It's more important that your jaw is aligned properly and you don't move your jaw back into an overbite.
Mewing beginners should basically just forget about mewing when they're sleeping.
At least for the first few weeks.
Mewing can be hard enough during the day, you don't need to ruin your sleep as well.
Just focus on nose-breathing during the nights 😉.
🦷 Your Front Teeth Touch. But Your Back Ones Don't
That's ok!
Your molars just sit a little lower than other people's do.
There's nothing you can do about this.
Just try to do the ideal teeth position and focus on what the teeth at the front of your mouth are doing.
↪️ You Have an Overbite
Luckily for you, mewing is great at fixing an overbite.
Try to push your jaw forward so your teeth line up as I talked about earlier.
This won't happen overnight.
But gradually your jaw will come forward and the teeth position will get easier and easier until it feels natural.
Before you get to this point, start doing the mewing tongue posture to accelerate your changes.
↩️ You Have an Underbite
I have less experiences or anecdotes of people mewing with an underbite.
Overbites are far more common.
Here's what I think you should do:
Try to pull your chin back so your teeth line up as I talked about earlier.
This won't happen overnight.
But gradually your jaw and chin will move backward and the teeth position will get easier and easier until it feels natural.
Before you get to this point, start doing the mewing tongue posture to accelerate your changes.
🥴 You Have Crooked Teeth That Don't Fit Together
If your teeth are really crooked, the best thing you can do it get braces.
If they're only slightly crooked, mewing can fix that.
Try to hold the ideal teeth position described above, as best as you can.
Close your mouth as much as you can, but don't move your jaw forward or back just to make it fit.
Stop when you can close it anymore because your teeth as clashing.
It doesn't matter too much that your teeth don't fully fit in and close together.
It's more important that your jaw is aligned properly and you don't have an overbite or underbite.
🏁 SUMMARY 🏁
Still can't do it?? Then you're making it too hard for yourself.
Remember: mewing isn't an advanced technique.
It's just the correct and healthy way to rest your face and breathe.
It might be uncomfortable for a while if you've just started mewing.
But you should be able to understand how to do it.
Don't overcomplicate it! If you're still struggling, watch my mewing tutorial on YouTube.
🍀 GOOD LUCK 🍀
Matt Phelps
P.S if you're interested in mewing to improve your face and jawline... then you need to know about mastic gum👇