Went to the dentist today... (vent)

C&S1030

  I'm doing major damage to my teeth.  I'm a grinder.  My bottom teeth are shifting and my molars are starting to wear down.  I go back next month to get fitted for a night guard and a bottom retainer.  I knew I was grinding at night because sometimes FI wakes me up but I didn't think it was that bad.

Any other grinders out there?  How do I stop?  On the bright side... I think I found the source of my chronic headaches. 

C&S1030

Don't you eventually grind though the guard?  And then have to get another and another....  I want to stop grinding all together. 

hmonkey

get your jaw wired shut, then.

it won't be instantaneous, but it will help.

LnR70707

I was a horrible grinder, eventually I developed TMJ, needed braces and a tooth extraction...as well as sleeping with a cut down mouth guard every night for almost two years.  Now I sleep with my mouth open.

MinM

I am a grinder. Have completely shifted my entire bite because of it. I can't eat artichokes the way I used to, which is a BFD for me.

Yes, you grind throught your guard. However, I have had the same one since about 2000 or so. You can just see an indentation where my teeth are grinding through. Dentist said it would make me stop grinding eventually, but he is, apparently, a big fat liar.

Your headaches might not stop either if you are grinding up your guard. But, at least you won't  have meth nubbins for teeth in a few years.

GBCK

for me, mouthguard =  useless.
I take it out in my sleep.

THe biofeedback stuff to keep me from clenching during the day helps some...less habitual clenching = less grinding.
Other than that...I've given up.

(and it's not just stress--sure stress contributes but I can also say when I was 8, I'd wake up w/ pools of blood on y pillow from grinding.  THat wasn't stress...I was a relaxed 8 YO...I just grind.
So work on relaxation/stress but it's not a fix, IMO)

[Deleted User]

I'm a major grinder and ended up wearing down my molars to the point that the nerves were almost exposed, something like that. Now I have bad TMJ, headaches, and ear pain. But when I got my nightguard it helped a lot.

At first, I somehow took it out in the middle of the night, but eventually I got used to it. Now I can't sleep without it because it feels weird. Just make sure you have a hard guard, instead of something soft (like what athletes use). Soft/rubbery guards will make you grind more because it's chewy.

I've had mine for 4 years now. It has some grooves and pits where I've ground into the plastic, but overall it's still in good shape. The only thing is that if you have major work done you might have to get a new one unless your dentist can reshape it.

nannewmur

I saw you post and wanted to reply.  I am a practice manager for an orthodontist.

Your teeth want to fit together, kind of like a pair of pinking sheers.  If your mouth is too narrow, there is a lot of crowing or missing teeth, the teeth can't fit together so you grind to try to force them to fit together.  You don't mean to, it just happens.   Getting a mouth guard is not fixing the problem.  As a pp said, it will wear out and you have to have it replaced  and it is not taking care of the problem. 

Please go see an orthodontist and have an evaluation.  This is often at no charge.  Tell them you are grinding and ask what they can do for you.   Make sure you see before and after pictures of THEIR patients to see what their work looks like.   Adult orthodontic treatment is often looked at as expensive, but so is replacing your teeth with crowns/bridges or implants and replacing mouth guards!    Also, if you do decide to have ortho treatment, utilize a flex spending or health care saving account to pay for this so you utilize pre-tax dollars.  Orthodontics is usually to correct a problem with the bite and not for cosmetics!!