I have been grinding my teeth for 7 years.

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I have this great nightguard that's sooo thin, it's just a little strip of hard plastic that snaps onto the top of the bottom row of teeth. Several years ago, I had one that I couldn't wear because it was too bulky (I kept feeling like I was gonna swallow it and start choking in my sleep), and plus you had to keep it soaking in water when not in use. But this one's great.

― morris pavilion (samjeff), Friday, 7 May 2004 21:53 (9 years ago) Permalink

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Friday, 7 May 2004 22:46 (9 years ago) Permalink

does your jaw click or pop when you open/close it naturally? if so it's out of alignment and a chiropractor can pop it back in. I doubt this would solve your problem but it might help.

― teeny (teeny), Saturday, 8 May 2004 02:25 (9 years ago) Permalink

Please dont see a chiropractor. They may temporarily realign your jaw, but they wont address any of the issues as to why it's busted up, so in a day or a week or a month you're back to where you started. Look up a myofascial therapist, who will address the cause and not the effect. It may cost a little more, but you'll only ever need a couple o treatments, rather than getting hooked in for the rest of your life.

― Bulk Bogan, Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:14 (9 years ago) Permalink

Really quite frankly I just need to get a job where I'm allowed to kill people and put myself in great danger on a regular basis and maybe it'll stop.

Yeah, that's the ticket.

― TOMBOT, Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:17 (9 years ago) Permalink

not to freak you out or anything but if you don't think it's always stress, you may want to get tested for parasites. Teeth grinding is a fairly common symptom.

― Will (will), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:26 (9 years ago) Permalink

I already had scabies

― TOMBOT, Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:29 (9 years ago) Permalink

I have this too - my dentist told me its something known as TMJ and I was fitted with this mouthguard thing - not so much to stop me grinding my teeth (I dont think I do that, but I do constantly clench my jaw), but to force my jaw into a better alignment at night. Problem was the mouthguard was so bulky I dribbled copiously in my sleep and hated it.

Its funny - why do we all manifest stress in our jaws? Why that in particular? Ive developed a habit of chewing my tounge to make me more aware I'm clenching my teeth - sometimes it works, but one of these days I'll probably bite my damn tounge off.

Also not classic: unclencing your fists and noticing there are crescent-shaped red indentations in yer palms.

― Trayce (trayce), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:47 (9 years ago) Permalink

too many joints?

― the 'surface' 'noise' (electricsound), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:48 (9 years ago) Permalink

(I am so riddled with mental stress manifested physically that my neck back and jaw are all totally FUBARed. My jaw clicks, my neck aches, and I'm hooked on painkillers. Hurray.)

― Trayce (trayce), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:49 (9 years ago) Permalink

xpost haaarr Jim ;)

― Trayce (trayce), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:49 (9 years ago) Permalink

Chewing gum might be good in the short term. If all tooth grinders chew it won't look imbecilic. It will be the fashion.

I think its partially stress but also heriditary, my Mum and two siblings all do this.

I found that some breath control and general relaxation excercises supposed to minimise stress helped with this and I slept better. I did get slack and stop doing in and need to start again. I think maybe some long term counselling might be better to address the root cause but I baulk at the expense.

― isadora (isadora), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 01:54 (9 years ago) Permalink

my body responds really poorly to stress and anxiety -- teeth grinding, migraines, insomnia, backaches, hormonal weirdness. a lot of these go hand in hand obviously. i wish i could just wipe out the anxiety full-stop because it would eliminate so much of this. but i haven't been able to so far.

― stockholm cindy (Jody Beth Rosen), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 02:30 (9 years ago) Permalink

did i mention nausea? yeah, nausea too.

― stockholm cindy (Jody Beth Rosen), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 02:33 (9 years ago) Permalink

This thread hurts me in my heart with its OTMness :(

― Trayce (trayce), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 02:35 (9 years ago) Permalink

Depression's wracked me senseless. Neck pain, back pain, incredibly weird blisters popping up all over my fingers [which apparently are directly caused by stress/depression], and just recently I've noticed my teeth grinding.

― Autumn Almanac (Autumn Almanac), Tuesday, 11 May 2004 02:38 (9 years ago) Permalink

2 years pass...

So I grind my teeth in my sleep. (My jaw is tight during most of the day, too, and my bite never feels entirely comfortable -- often I can't tell which is the "natural" position for my teeth to close in.) I'm beginning to get a little concerned about it. My canines are no longer pointy -- the bottoms have been ground into little mesas, almost to the point of exposing pulp. I've been wearing a mouth guard lately, but it's rare that I make it all the way till morning with the thing still in my mouth.

Did any of the teeth-grinders here ever sort themselves out?

― nabisco (nabisco), Wednesday, 31 May 2006 21:36 (6 years ago) Permalink

I havent seen a dentist in 12 years :/

But someone up thread mentioned myofacial, I might look into that. My jaw locks up sometimes now, its got so bad.

― Trayce (trayce), Thursday, 1 June 2006 00:06 (6 years ago) Permalink

i used to think i just ground my teeth, since my jaw ached pretty often. so I went to the dentist, and he suggested grinding off the uneven bits (which seemed kinda extreme to me, but seemed to help). but now I'm told that I actually snap my teeth together in my sleep, sort of like an alligator. apparently it's alarming. I did get a mouth guard, but I hate it, and haven't worn it in months. Parasites, you say? well, it'd be nice to have someone else to blame it on...

― pauls00 (pauls00), Thursday, 1 June 2006 00:12 (6 years ago) Permalink

my advice is to grind the shit out of your teeth, because 2 ibuprofen tablets always seem to erase the pain immediately, and wearing a nightguard is so uncomfortable and ineffective. this from a constant day & night grinder.

― killy ii (baby lenin pin), Thursday, 1 June 2006 00:46 (6 years ago) Permalink

i don't know if this will help anyone, but,

i've been seeing a physiatrist for my jaw/tmj/neck pain thing that i've had forevvvver and receiving "trigger point injections." this basically involves the doctor sticking acupuncture needles deep into spasmed muscles (into my jaw, in my case) to release them. i was...a bit skeptical, it's been a month of this once a week and i already have noticed a lot less pain and a decreased tendency to clench my jaw. but the doctor also prescribed a muscle relaxer called soma that i take when i can't sleep, so i suppose that could also have a lot to do with it.

anyways, sympathies to everyone on this thread...

― bell labs (bell_labs), Thursday, 1 June 2006 03:16 (6 years ago) Permalink

I remain, as I said upthread a while back, amazed how many people suffer from this so specifically, and still wonder why stress manifests itself in the teeth/jaw specifically. So annoying *acheface*.

― Trayce (trayce), Thursday, 1 June 2006 06:03 (6 years ago) Permalink

4 years pass...

I don't know how long I've been doing this but it's quite a while and seems to be quite bad - I often wake up with an achy jaw. I have a mouthguard which I used, then stopped, then started again, then stopped. Now I'm back using it and the reason is this:

I've been having problems with my left ear which ENT has suggested could be related to the grinding. This makes sense, as any jaw clocking is always on that side. Have any of you other grinders found that it has led to hearing problems? In my case, it's slightly dulled hearing, increased tinnitus (I've had that for a few years too), a frequent need to 'pop' my ear and occasional low-level earache.

― Chris in Belfast, Wednesday, 2 June 2010 19:41 (2 years ago) Permalink

1 year passes...

Ugh I just started doing this for the first time in my life. I'm literally sort of fearing going back to sleep at this point, I woke after 2 hrs with significant jaw pain. Will a generic sports guard be good enough, or should I go get a prescription?

― Simon H., Wednesday, 9 May 2012 06:26 (1 year ago) Permalink

(And yes, it's obviously stress - I just quit my job and am about to move.)

― Simon H., Wednesday, 9 May 2012 06:27 (1 year ago) Permalink

generic should suffice as long as it's situational

― ┗|∵|┓ (sic), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 11:49 (1 year ago) Permalink

It's weird - it's when I feel certain emotions - not just anger or frustration, it's almost worse if I see something incredibly cute like my cat(!)

woah i didn't know if i would lol or awwcry (or maybe just grind my teeth as well)

― Ludo, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 13:12 (1 year ago) Permalink

generic should suffice as long as it's situational

would not recommend this. go to the dentist, they will take a mould of your teeth and make you a proper one. I wear one every night now since one of my front teeth fell out due to compulsive grinding

― my father will guide me up the stairs to bed (anagram), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 13:24 (1 year ago) Permalink

he prob doesn't want to spend a couple of hundred on something for only a week or three's use though

― ┗|∵|┓ (sic), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 13:34 (1 year ago) Permalink

well who's to say whether his need for it will cease after a week or three

― my father will guide me up the stairs to bed (anagram), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 13:50 (1 year ago) Permalink

one of my front teeth fell out due to compulsive grinding

OMG WHAT?!

I grind mine horribly. I do it so loudly I've woken people up! I need to get one of these. In America insurance rarely covers them and they can run about $400 - $500 which is a total crock. I can't really keep things in my mouth while I sleep either. I HS I had a retained and though I'd fall asleep with it in every night I'd wake up to find I'd removed it and thrown it clear across the room in my sleep. I was planning on just getting one from the drugstore eventually.

― wolf kabob (ENBB), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 13:53 (1 year ago) Permalink

E, I got a nightguard this year because I clench my jaw and my dentist thought I was getting close to cracking one of my teeth. The guard cost $275 plus about 50 more for the procedure of taking the mold. I never wore a retainer, but I'd be surprised if you could remove this thing without using your fingers. Paying that much felt like a burn since I couldn't really remember how long I'd been doing it. However, I haven't woken up with jaw pain since and I'm pretty much used to wearing the thing. So I think it was worth it. Simon, I might worry about a sport guard damaging your teeth in other ways?

― rob, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 14:32 (1 year ago) Permalink

First guard I had cost around $600 but I wore it for over ten years until I had a rotten tooth replaced by an implant meaning the gurad didn't fit so well anymore. It seemed costly at the time but considering I'm gonna wear one of these for the rest of my life it's worth paying. Second guard cost less ($300-400) but seems flimsier and I'm concerned about its longevity.

― fit and working again, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 15:48 (1 year ago) Permalink

xxp I don't know how secure a retainer holds but the guard I have now has to be yanked out in the morning.

― fit and working again, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 15:50 (1 year ago) Permalink

also, now I have a cool mold of my teeth, which I'm sure will come in handy

― rob, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 16:28 (1 year ago) Permalink

For committing crimes involving bite marks and framing...er...yourself.

― how did I get here? why am I in the whiskey aisle? this is all so (Laurel), Wednesday, 9 May 2012 16:29 (1 year ago) Permalink

it will all make sense, you'll see

― rob, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 16:30 (1 year ago) Permalink

did anybody have luck w/ fixing headaches by getting a mouth guard?

i keep waking up w/ headaches and i hate it, don't sleep well. i looked up an article on it and it said the most common causes are sleep apnea, bruxism (grinding teeth), depression and susceptibility to migraine. great! i have all four!

so obviously i'd rather go w/ the mouthguard because its cheaper than treating sleep apnea and less annoying too

― the late great, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:18 (1 year ago) Permalink

I have a friend who found getting a mouthguard cured the headaches she was getting.

― fit and working again, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:30 (1 year ago) Permalink

She is using these disposable guards which may be a good cheap solution worth trying.

― fit and working again, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:37 (1 year ago) Permalink

hmm well walgreens customers rate it at 4 1/2 stars whereas on amazon it only gets 3 1/2, not sure what to think but i definitely like the name of the product and the plackers branding

― the late great, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:55 (1 year ago) Permalink

haha people who write reviews on websites are such whiny b's

Grind No More is not safe., September 9, 2011

By Tom - See all my reviews

This is a very dangerous product. I just used it for a few nights. I have Bruxism, tooth grinding. It covers only the back teeth. One of my teeth, tooth number 12 cracked at the root. A tooth that is cracked at the root cannot be saved and had to be extracted. It will now cost $5,000.00 for a dental implant to replace the extracted tooth. A night guard that covers all of the upper or lower teeth is a much better investment than this product. Beware.

sounds like you bought the wrong shit, tom!

― the late great, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:57 (1 year ago) Permalink

"people who yelp are scumbags" pt 2, i guess

― the late great, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:58 (1 year ago) Permalink

thx for the tip though, i will try this grind no more and see if i grind more or grind no more

― the late great, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 17:58 (1 year ago) Permalink

Caveat: She gave me one of these to try out but I thought it didn't fit so well for me and I couldn't imagine it would stay in place overnight. But she loved them.

― fit and working again, Wednesday, 9 May 2012 18:34 (1 year ago) Permalink

So the weird thing about my teeth grinding is that I don't have any headaches or jaw pain. In fact, I didn't even know I did it until the people I woke told me about it. I think that's one reason I've been putting off the guard. It's easy to do when I don't have any symptoms . . . yet.

― wolf kabob (ENBB), Thursday, 10 May 2012 18:02 (1 year ago) Permalink

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