Have you ever woken up and had a headache or intense jaw pain? I noticed my symptoms when I kept waking up with terrible jaw pain and stiffness. I talked to my mom about the pain and she told me that I was probably grinding my teeth while I slept. I know this pain and these symptoms couldn’t be a good thing so I needed to know, is this a health hazard?
In a few articles I found Bruxism often referred to as teeth grinding and clenching of the jaw has many symptoms. Headaches, facial muscle pain, earache, pain and stiffness in the jaw joint, sleep disruption, sinus pains, pain in the neck and shoulders, worn teeth, and teeth that are painful or loose. Dentist Matthew Messina says this, “…teeth-grinding occurs as a response to the teeth not fitting quite right…for some reason, their teeth don’t fit smoothly, or the place where their teeth fit the best isn’t where the muscles are the most relaxed. So what’s happening is the body is trying to remove the interference by wearing them [the teeth] out.” Grinding of the teeth usually occurs subconsciously at night and can be triggered by stress or anxiety. Everyone handles stress differently and for some people the body can find clenching and grinding is a relief. Bruxism also affects people when they aren’t sleeping but mostly in the form of clenching the jaw when in stressful situations or while concentrating.
Grinding of the teeth on a regular basis can cause teeth to be worn down and short. In the articles it talks about many possible ways to treat Bruxism but only a few that have actually worked. You can get a mouth guard that places your teeth in a position to wear your jaw muscles are relaxed. You can do relaxation exercises before you go to sleep so that your muscles are relaxed. In conclusion grinding your teeth may not be a severe health hazard but the symptoms can be painful. Treating Bruxism is just finding out what works for you.
Sources: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/teeth-grinding/Pages/Symptoms.aspx
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/teeth-grinding/Pages/Introduction.aspx
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/18/night-teeth-grinding-nocturnal-bruxism_n_5235620.html
http://www.migrainetrust.org/factsheet-jaw-tension-in-migraine-and-headaches-10889
http://www.mouthhealthy.org/en/az-topics/t/teeth-grinding
Wow! Teeth grinding? I’ve never heard of that before. I didn’t know that our body was capable of performing things as unique as that in our sleep. I too wake up with jaw pains and I would consider myself a stressed out person. Maybe my pain really can be attributed to teeth grinding. This is a very interesting post and I will be sure to inform people about this topic!