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Grinding teeth
7 Answers
I sometimes grind my teeth at night and clench my jaw, my dr said ages ago that it was my subconcious trying to deal with stress that I hadn't dealt with during the day. I'm still doing it and today I have a shooting pain in my jaw, other days I have headaches. I don't want a gum shield as I don't think it will solve the jaw ache as I will still be clenching down. How can I stop doing this?
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Yes you would still be clenching down however you would also be doing one of the following:
- if you are wearing a soft occlusal splint in the mandible then there will be an element of 'shock absorbance' which will relax the muscles of mastication on the ligaments around your temporomandibular joint, it would also reduce the stresses induced around the periodontal ligament fibres of your teeth and reduce the risk of tooth/cusp fracture
- you may also subconscioulsy become aware of the grinding (or at least the lack of intercuspastion) and actually stop grinding
- there are many other types of splints available in soft and hard materials which do more sophisticated things such as repositioning the condyles in your mandible and physically preventing you from grinding
- your best bet would be one of the following:
- visit your dentist who may be able to diagnose and provide you with appropriatre treatment if not they would be able to refer you to:
- oral surgery/maxillofacial surgery unit
- academic/dental tecahing hospital
- or ask your GP to refer you to a maxillofacial unit
- ideally you would deal with the underlying cause of your stress however this is not usually easily achievable and besides bruxism ('grinding at night') is often multi factorial
- splint therapy can be a very effective, relatively non invasive way to deal with the problem and you don't necessarily need to wear them all the time
- if you are wearing a soft occlusal splint in the mandible then there will be an element of 'shock absorbance' which will relax the muscles of mastication on the ligaments around your temporomandibular joint, it would also reduce the stresses induced around the periodontal ligament fibres of your teeth and reduce the risk of tooth/cusp fracture
- you may also subconscioulsy become aware of the grinding (or at least the lack of intercuspastion) and actually stop grinding
- there are many other types of splints available in soft and hard materials which do more sophisticated things such as repositioning the condyles in your mandible and physically preventing you from grinding
- your best bet would be one of the following:
- visit your dentist who may be able to diagnose and provide you with appropriatre treatment if not they would be able to refer you to:
- oral surgery/maxillofacial surgery unit
- academic/dental tecahing hospital
- or ask your GP to refer you to a maxillofacial unit
- ideally you would deal with the underlying cause of your stress however this is not usually easily achievable and besides bruxism ('grinding at night') is often multi factorial
- splint therapy can be a very effective, relatively non invasive way to deal with the problem and you don't necessarily need to wear them all the time
I would highly recommend a gum shield, I have one as I am a bad grinder and it's the best money I've ever spent!
My teeth have tiny cracks in them, and my gums are misshapen and "bowed" due to my grinding, and most annoyingly, the grinding has caused my first ever filling at the age of 28.
I used to have headaches all day every day but the gumshield has minimised this (I still get the odd one but it's soooo much better than it was)
The dentist also told me that my other option was being referred to the hospital to listen to "whale music"!
My teeth have tiny cracks in them, and my gums are misshapen and "bowed" due to my grinding, and most annoyingly, the grinding has caused my first ever filling at the age of 28.
I used to have headaches all day every day but the gumshield has minimised this (I still get the odd one but it's soooo much better than it was)
The dentist also told me that my other option was being referred to the hospital to listen to "whale music"!
As MrXLA said in his earlier post, your best option is to see a dentist who can confirm the diagnosis and advise you on the best treatment. I would agree totally with what MrXLA has posted.
In terms of not being registered, you have a couple of options:
1) Contact your local PCT who should advise you as to where you can seek NHS treatment
2) See a dentist on a private basis. Unless you are exempt from NHS charges, this may well be a LESS expensive option. Having any type of dental appliance under the new NHS contract falls into the 'Band 3' treatment category and will cost you around �195. Having a soft occlusal cover constructed (if this is what is needed) privately would normally cost mcuh less than this.
The 'over the counter' shop bought mouthguards are not normally recommended as they are not custom made to fit your teeth and will not normally fit snugly and stay in place.
Hope this helps
In terms of not being registered, you have a couple of options:
1) Contact your local PCT who should advise you as to where you can seek NHS treatment
2) See a dentist on a private basis. Unless you are exempt from NHS charges, this may well be a LESS expensive option. Having any type of dental appliance under the new NHS contract falls into the 'Band 3' treatment category and will cost you around �195. Having a soft occlusal cover constructed (if this is what is needed) privately would normally cost mcuh less than this.
The 'over the counter' shop bought mouthguards are not normally recommended as they are not custom made to fit your teeth and will not normally fit snugly and stay in place.
Hope this helps
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