College was a great time for you. It was just at the right point in your life where you had enough responsibility to feel in control, but were young enough to have a safety net of adults looking after you. You learned so much and met people that you still keep in touch with today. You can trace pretty much every good thing that’s happened to you back to college. You miss those times. The one thing you don’t miss, however, are the mornings. The pounding headaches from nights of partying can stay in the past, as far as you’re concerned. Unfortunately, you’re waking up with headaches more and more these days, and you aren’t even staying up late like you used to. You’re getting plenty of sleep and eating relatively healthy, so what could be causing this? One culprit might be nighttime teeth grinding, or bruxism. What could be a tricky condition can now be easily treated by your dentist at Mt. Holly Family Dentistry.

Bruxism and You

You do a lot of things unconsciously when you sleep…in fact, you probably do everything unconsciously! You breathe, you move, and some people even talk in their sleep. Others, however, grind their teeth. Bruxism, or nighttime teeth grinding, is caused by an involuntary clenching of the jaw. This can lead to a variety of symptoms:

• Morning headaches
• Worn down or broken teeth
• A tired or sore jaw
• Sore ears (due to the jaw joint)

This can affect both your sleeping and waking hours. Over time it can wear down your teeth to the point that they start cracking and breaking. A sore jaw can make it painful to do simple things like talking and eating, and constant headaches can detract from pretty much every experience. However, there is a simple way to treat it.

Bruxism Therapy

Bruxism is often found in people who are anxious or stressed. The stress manifests itself through this nighttime tension. One way to try and treat bruxism is through reducing the stress in your life. This can be very difficult, because some sources may be things as big as work and family. Another solution is a custom fitted oral appliance from Mt. Holly Family Dentistry. It is a custom made mouth guard that you would wear every night to bed. It helps by first putting your jaw in a natural, relaxed position, and also prevents you from clenching and grinding your teeth at night. Every oral appliance is made especially for each individual patient with light but durable materials. The oral appliances are flexible enough that patients will be able to talk and drink with them in, so there will be no to alter nighttime habits. Patients who use their oral appliance consistently have been shown to have a drastic reduction in pain associated with teeth grinding.

Any Questions?

If you think that you or your partner may be suffering from bruxism, please give us a call today. An oral appliance could easily address your problem so you can sleep easy and go about your day pain free.