I have been grinding my teeth for 7 years.

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(!) Sometimes I get a head or jaw ache but my teeth are in pretty good condition all things considered.

I don't grind my teeth, but I think I must keep my jaw unconsciously tense as it gets sore fairly often.

I am not sure what 'triggered' it or even if 7 years is an accurate figure at this point. For me right now the crazy thing is noticing when I'm NOT doing it and what triggers that.

I've only woken up with an aching jaw once.

I'm thinking of going in for long-term therapy.

xpost

(And I'd think the clenching actually contributes to the stress, too, but that's just a guess.)

Only problem is, I've been afraid to go to the dentist since, because the last one was so negative.

Ambien and muscle relaxers are both so dud for me I won't even get into it.

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xpost yeah I never chew gum either hardly, I've just borrowed some from this girl I work with and it is GREAT however I feel that I must look the imbecile.

Yeah, this used to be the case with me -- for like years, maybe a decade if you count when I was a teenager. I think that it isn't stress in the "I am reacting to things happening which I don't like" sense so much as a general feeling/attitude/viewpoint you carry around with you -- like people with anxiety disorder who feel anxious even when there's nothing to be anxious about.

I'm not sure any of my solution would be useful to you, unfortunately, but there's bound to be a fix.

i can't afford the real kind of mouthguard so I bought a football mouthgard. I usually spit it out at some point in the night.

(but having said that, get one that does fit - it really sounds like you need one)

Yeah, that's the ticket.

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.

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.

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

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

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...

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.

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?

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

generic should suffice as long as it's situational

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)

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

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

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

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.

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?

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.

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

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

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

it will all make sense, you'll see

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

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

http://cdn.hunt4freebies.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Grind-No-More-Mouthguard.png

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

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

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!

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

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

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.

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.