Holly Thompson Can't Shut Her Mouth After Yawning in Class

... Holly Thompson, 17, of Kingsthorpe, Northampton, was in the middle of a particularly enthralling class on politics when she reacted to the subject matter like many other students would -- she yawned.

But what happened next wasn't so typical. Her trap wouldn't shut, making her look like an anime character in a state of shock.

... Adding insult to injury was the reaction from teachers and classmates. "All my classmates and teachers thought it was really funny, everyone burst out laughing. It was awful," she said.

Although the school nurse tried everything..., including putting a hot water bottle under her chin and using ice packs, MSNBC reported that Thompson eventually was sent.... to the hospital for additional treatment.

The doctor on duty, Ejiro Obakponovwe, didn't think Thompson's injury was a laughing matter.

"It can be quite serious, because she can't eat, can't really drink, and you get really dehydrated," Obakponovwe told the BBC show "Bizarre E.R." "But again, it's quite painful as well."

The good doctor tried an unusual ... technique: She placed 26 tongue depressors in Thompson's mouth.

"The tongue depressors allowed the jaw to get tired, relax, so the jaw can click back into place," Obakponovwe said.

The treatment worked, but it still pains Thompson to talk about it.

"It was really bad at the hospital," she said. "I had to sit in the waiting room with a scarf over my mouth so nobody could see what had happened. It was really difficult to communicate with doctors as well. ....

via Holly Thompson Can't Shut Her Mouth After Yawning in Class.

She should have tried the Ellerbeck Maneuver. It has helped several people recover from a mouth stuck open according to the comments on michael's blog:

Some people don’t recommend putting your hands in your mouth because the force of the jaw closing could injure your fingers……but

This works for me: right after you notice the pop feeling that your jaw has locked, relax…it will come undone! Take your two pointer fingers and stick them in your mouth and grab your farthest back teeth (your molars or whatever), one side with each hand. Wrap your thumbs around your jawbone. Press down firmly with your pointer fingers sort of down and back while relaxing your jaw. Hopefully it will reset itself. The quicker you set it the better.

Also see your dentist about it. More Info

I’m not a medical person of any sorts, this just works for me. Once my mouth got stuck open for a half hour. That really sucks. If you hit this page I hope it helps a little.

Feel free to call this the Ellerbeck Maneuver if you so desire Not as life saving as the Heimlich but we all do our best!

- link