I've experienced several periods of depression throughout my adult life, and while prescription drugs have proved helpful, I've been keen to explore drug-free ways to manage and treat my depression. I started this blog to share my personal experience battling this illness and the alternative treatment options I've tried, including dietary supplements, talking therapies, meditation, relaxation exercises, massage and acupuncture. I also post about current research on the effectiveness of holistic therapies at treating depression, and the blog contains guest posts written by others with depression who have tried drug-free treatments. I hope you find the information on this blog useful.
Bruxism — more simply known as grinding the teeth — can become a serious problem for your dental health. Teeth aren't invincible, and when they're frequently grinding together, the enamel can start to wear away and cause significant damage over time. There are ways the problem can be stopped, whether it's through training or dental treatments, but that assumes you actually know about it. Because teeth grinding sometimes only happens during sleep, there are a lot of people around who don't even know they do it.
Treatment for night-time teeth grinders is straightforward: A mouth guard worn during sleep stops the damage from occurring. Here's how you can tell if you might need one.
Morning headaches, jaw pain or earache
Clenching the jaw muscles and grinding teeth during the night will often leave you with a sore, stiff jaw in the mornings. Sometimes, however, although the problem originates in the jaw, the symptoms can manifest elsewhere. Because of how the muscles and bones in the face are arranged, you might find that you have pain elsewhere when you wake up. Regular headaches or an earache without any clear cause may point to bruxism.
Sensitive teeth
Teeth become sensitive when the enamel is damaged and hot or cold foods can get to the sensitive layer beneath. While this may be caused by excessive acidic food or poor dental hygiene, it can also be because of grinding, particularly if none of the other causes seem to apply to you.
Sleep partner concerns
If you share a bed with someone, there's a good chance they will have noticed any teeth grinding, even if they didn't know what it was. Ask if they've heard or seen anything that suggests you might be grinding your teeth in your sleep.
Family members with bruxism
Although it's not a clear sign in itself, teeth grinding often runs in families. If you have a parent, sibling or another close family member who grinds their teeth, pay extra attention to signs in yourself as there's a higher chance of you also having bruxism.
Loose teeth
Over time, grinding your teeth may loosen them significantly, which is something you'll definitely notice if it happens. If it reaches this point, you should seek help immediately, and getting a mouth guard made as soon as possible could just save your teeth. Of course, if you find your teeth becoming loose as an adult for any reason, you should seek urgent dental help anyway, as it could become more serious very quickly.
Share27 July 2017
