People who involuntarily grind their teeth when they are sleeping are suffering from a condition referred to as Bruxism. It does not play favorites; men, women and children can develop this condition. In most cases the person is not even aware that they are grinding their teeth until they start waking up with jaw pain or someone close to them notices and tells them. There are no specific causes to this condition, however some doctors have been able to see a connection between stress and anxiety levels and the onset of Bruxism.
A sore jaw upon waking is not the only symptom, sufferers also find that they have indentations on their tongue and their cheeks. This is yet another reason for people to take breaks from their stress or at least try to bring it down to a minimum. They should also meet with their doctor to discuss other treatment options that are available. The least invasive thing is also the easiest, they will most likely suggest you use a mouth guard for your Bruxism. Mouth guards for bruxism are available online from places like Night Guard Lab.
The mouth guard, such as those available from Nightguardlab, is worn at night to cover the teeth, protecting them from the harmful effects of grinding. While they will still grind their teeth, the damage will be prevented and they will not wake with sore jaws and injured cheeks. Mouth guards are not the only method of treatment for Bruxism, it is used in conjunction with other methods. Muscle relaxants can be prescribed to patients that suffer from this condition as well, taken only before they go to sleep.
The muscle relaxers work much as you would imagine. They diminish the tension in the jaw, causing it to slacken. The patient continues to wear the nighttime teeth grinding mouth guard as well, just in case any grinding occurs. Dental company Nightguardlab say that the mouth guard is the best form of protection and so it’s a good idea to continue using it, just in case the muscle relaxants do not work. For some more severe cases an anti-anxiety medication may be prescribed. Doctors will only prescribe anti-anxiety medications to those patients who are dealing with high stressful situations and/or have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.
These medications help to keep them calm and will also address the issue of relaxing their muscles. For some patients, despite an absence of stress and anxiety, they will continue to grind their teeth. We’re not sure what causes this. But for some patients, bruxism is a lifelong condition. We’re all unique. Physicians must investigate options to alleviate as many side effects of bruxism for their patients as humanly possible. Treating every patient as a unique individual proves especially helpful for those people who will never be completely cured of Bruxism.