How can you stop teeth grinding? Teeth grinding, or Bruxism, is a disorder where unconsciously people grind away their teeth or clench their jaw too tightly. This can happen when you are awake or asleep. Most people are familiar with the practice of wearing mouthguards during sleep, this is to prevent sleep bruxism.
Bruxism occurs at night when your body initiates its’ Automatic Nervous System or ANS. You unconsciously wake up throughout the night, and if your ANS system is triggered your heart rate may rise, your breathing may quicken, and your jaw may clench or grind the teeth together. If this happens many times, over many nights, it will eventually cause degradation of your chewing teeth. Teeth grinding is in the same compulsory behavior pattern family as fingernail chewing, tongue tension, and pen chewing. Patients who experience sleep bruxism have a higher percentage chance of developing, or having, other sleep related disorders. If you suspect you have some symptoms of teeth grinding, you should see a Dentist for a consultation.
How to tell if you have bruxism
* Headaches- If you are experiencing pain around your temple frequently, or have chronic headache symptoms, bruxism could be the culprit. See a Dentist to confirm or remove this disorder as a potential cause.
* Temporomandibular Disorders- If you have TMJ pain, and if it is greatly worsened throughout the day or after awaking, it is likely you are grinding your teeth. This is the kind of thing which would activate and inflame an already painful situation.
* Noticeable growth or thinning of chewing muscles- If your jaw grows to the size of Sylvestor Stallone’s quickly, and you aren’t working out like Rambo, you should probably see your Dentist or a TMJ specialist.
* General Tooth or Dental pain- Especially if the onset is recent. It does not take much time to go see a Dentist and consult on what is irritating your mouth. Take the time before it gets worse.
* Earache- If there is pain along your jaw line, and pain that leads into your inner ear, it is possible that the ecosystem of your jaw and musculature is causing this pain.
How to combat Bruxism or Teeth grinding
* Wear a mouthguard- This can directly stop some of the immediate damage to your teeth, but may cause headaches or jaw pain.
* Stress reducing or coping strategies- Since bruxism does not have one single cause and effect, you have to combat it dialectically. One common underlying cause of bruxism, and other sleep disorders, is stress. Follow up with your medical team and ask about common stress reducing strategies. You can also use helpful resources online like Calm or Headspace.
* Changing eating habits and eating Healthy- Stress reducing techniques usually involve exercise and healthy eating. This can be very helpful for reducing stress, losing weight, and getting healthy. This is a great step to take towards treating the whole body, and it only helps. Drink plenty of water, eat whole foods and veggies, eat at routine hours.
* Exercise- Cardiovascular exercise has great effects on your heart, respiratory system, mental health, and your weight. Using any combination of light and heavy exercise as a weekly regimen can have tenfold effect on your entire body.
All of these steps will help to treat the infrastructure of your body, and it might reduce Bruxism or treat what is initiating it. However, the best way to address whether or not you have bruxism, and deduce the severity, will be by seeing your Dental health professional. Follow up with your primary care doctor afterward and be sure no medications are interacting with your ANS. Bruxism is a fairly common side effect to some drugs. Once you have isolated the effects and symptoms of your teeth grinding, use comprehensive techniques to try and reduce the long term results.