NWR: Teeth Grinding/Clenching

I grind and clench my teeth when I'm sleeping. I have known this ever since I was young when my sister and I shared a room. My sis used to tell me that it was really loud and that I sounded like a dolphin. It didn't bother me at the time and I never mentioned it to my dentist.

Whenever FH and I go on vacation FH tells me that I grind my teeth almost every night. Even sometimes when I'm waking up I will feel that I have my teeth clenched together really tightly. Again, it never bothered me until recently. A couple of months ago my jaw began getting misaligned and hurts sometimes. I think I am developing TMJ.

I am going to go to the dentist and will tell her about this but I just wanted to see if anyone else is a teeth grinder/clencher. I am thinking that I will probably need a nightguard. Are nightguards covered by insurance? If not, are they expensive?? Also, are they comfortable??

TIA!!

I used to grind me teeth too and had nightguards until I got my teeth bonded and they didn't fit anymore....it wasn't uncomfortable to wear them but I'd always go to sleep with them in and then find them on my nighttable in the morning--- I never remembered taking them out!

I can't remember if they were definitely covered by dental insurance but I was pretty poor when I got them and I can't imagine paying much for them at the time.....

If they are covered by insurance, you might as well try them....

I definitely am a teeth grinder!!! I had to get two sets of night guards that my dentist had made for me. I had tried to make my own when I bought one in CVS but it did not fit properly. Your dentist will have to make a model of your upper jaw and then send it out so they can make your guard. My insurance company paid for mine. It as the best thing I did. At first I had to get used to them but then you wont feel them in your mouth after a while. I definitely would suggest that you get a guard since your teeth will become damaged if you continue to grind them at night. HTH.

My dentist actually told me to get an OTC one to try it. I was having gum issues from clenching at night.

I tried 3 different OTC brands and found that the ones that you self-mold to your teeth (you boil them to make the mold -- it's very simple to do) were TERRIBLE. They actually were MOVING MY TEETH!!!! I'm upset about it because I wore braces when I was in middle school (albeit 17 years ago) and now my teeth are misaligned. You can't really tell by looking, but I can tell when I floss.

The best OTC ones I got were the disposable individual pack ones that Doctor's (brand) makes. You don't mold them to your teeth -- they just slip on and have a thin band that keeps them in place. They seem to work fine and they don't move my teeth. You can also wear them on upper or bottom teeth, which I liked (all the packages say to wear them on top, but I wear them on the bottom and it works).

HTH -- if you have any questions, feel free to FM me. After a few months of wearing guards, I find that I don't wake up with headaches and pain in my jaw and neck anymore, to the point that I don't need to wear it right now.

Defintely try the mouthguard and see if it works for you. I wish I could use one, but I almost always took it out while I was asleep. So many times it would end up on the opposite side of the room when I woke up in the morning!

If an OTC mouthguard doesn't help, you may want to consult an oral surgeon to see if your bite isn't contributing to your teeth grinding.

Thanks for your help girls!

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