We all get stressed out once in a while. When we do, often times our mental stress causes physical symptoms. A common example is when we grind our teeth. This often occurs when we feel anxious or tense. When grinding or clenching your teeth becomes a problem, it’s called bruxism.

Bruxism Behavior

Clenching, gnashing or grinding your teeth constantly means you have bruxism. This is the process of tightly holding the top and bottom teeth together, especially the back teeth. The most common form of this condition is Sleep Bruxism.

Grinding puts pressure on the muscles, tissues and the jaw. Grinding that occurs over a long period of time can do serious damage to your mouth. It can wear down your teeth and create serious problems for you.

Warning Signs

If you wake up with a super sensitive jaw or if it hurts to eat, you might suffer from nighttime bruxism. Here are some red flags:

- Grinding -- can be loud enough to awaken your sleeping partner
- Sore/painful jaw
- Headache
- Earache
- Anxiety/stress
- Insomnia, depression and/or eating disorders

The Treatment Grind

The most common treatment for bruxism is to fit the patient with a mouthguard or appliance, called a splint. This is a custom-made piece of hard plastic that will fit over your top or bottom teeth. These are often called an NTI appliance. The splint is designed to reduce the act of grinding, thereby saving your smile from the unconscious act of grinding your teeth.

Progression of the Condition

If a splint doesn’t work or only works for a time then loses its effectiveness, treatment must be escalated. Orthodontics are an option. Aligning your teeth to their straightest can help with this problem. Surgery, however, is the very last resort and is done with less and less frequency.

Bruxism in Children

Stress is the largest contributing factor to teeth grinding. Sometimes children will suffer from bruxism as a response to an illness such as an earache or cold. Even more typical is bruxism due to allergies. The good news is that children, more often than not, will grow out of childhood bruxism before any serious damage is done.

If you are experiencing these symptoms and you don’t think you have a problem with bruxism that might mean you have Sleep Bruxism. If you wake up with an unusual amount of pain in your mouth -- try relaxing. Make an effort to relax your facial muscles and even try some relaxation techniques. If the pain persists, go to your regular dentist for an evaluation. He or she will determine if you are experiencing bruxism and how to proceed.

---

Footnote