Teeth Grinding Waking You Up at Night? We Have a Solution

Do you wake in the middle of the night with a sore jaw and a headache? Or is your bed partner waking you throughout the night to stop your teeth grinding? 

In either case, no one is getting solid, uninterrupted sleep thanks to your teeth grinding. And teeth grinding, which also includes clenching, can do no small amount of damage to your oral health.

It might surprise you to learn just how common teeth grinding is — about 29% of people in North America have bruxism, which is the medical term for teeth grinding.

As dental experts, our team at Goodman Dental Center, which is led by Dr. Tanner Goodman and Dr. Brian Goodman, understands the surprisingly wide impact teeth grinding can have on your health. 

More importantly, we’re armed with some effective solutions that will not only preserve your teeth, but help you, and anyone within earshot of you, to get more sleep at night.

Bruxism at a glance

As we mentioned, teeth grinding is very common and is part of a larger group of issues called TMJ (temporomandibular joint) disorders. Your TMJs are small joints on either side of your jaw, and as you might imagine, they’re very much involved in teeth grinding.

For example, if you’re experiencing ongoing pain and soreness in these joints, you’re part of a large group of 11-12 million American adults who report TMJ pain, with women outpacing men by 2 to 1.

While TMJ pain is certainly a leading side effect of bruxism, it can also lead to:

• Headaches
• Premature wearing of the protective enamel on your teeth 
• Chipping and breaking teeth
• Tooth pain
• Destabilizing teeth
• Headaches and facial pain
• Lost sleep and daytime fatigue

From where we stand as dental professionals, we can attest that teeth grinding can be very damaging to teeth, so it’s a very good idea to seek treatment.

Effective solutions for teeth grinding

Now let’s look at teeth grinding from a more proactive angle and discuss solutions, which include:

Mouthguards

One of the best ways to protect your teeth and jaw from the wear of teeth grinding is wearing a custom nightguard that will protect your teeth from the grinding. A mouthguard also provides more gentle cushioning for teeth clenching, diffusing the pressure on your teeth and TMJs.

Botox® in your TMJs

While Botox may have made a name for itself in the cosmetic world, it’s been a go-to tool in many other fields, including TMJ disorders and teeth grinding. All we need to do is strategically inject Botox into your TMJs to relax the muscles around the joints, which can go a long way toward stopping your teeth grinding.

Stress reduction

There are many drivers of teeth grinding, but stress and anxiety are significant ones. The reality is that nearly half of Americans (49%) report feeling more stress, and teeth clenching is often a physical manifestation of stress.

We suggest that you add some stress reduction to your overall teeth grinding plan. Some suggestions that work well for reducing stress include meditation, exercise, and spending time with friends. 

You can also start with some deep-breathing exercises, which can act as a quick fix for stress — breathe in deeply and slowly for 4-6 seconds, hold for a second or two, and then breathe out slowly for 6-8 seconds.

Sleeping better while protecting your dental health

With the right treatment, we feel confident that we can stop your teeth grinding so you (and others) can get the sleep you need while protecting your teeth at the same time. 

To figure out which approach is best for your teeth grinding, we invite you to contact us at our office in Queen Creek, Arizona, today to schedule an appointment. 

Please note that our office is moving to Gilbert in March, so keep this in mind when you schedule your appointment.