How Your Dentist Can Help You With Teeth Grinding
If you wake up each morning with a sore jaw or headache, it might be due to grinding your teeth while you sleep. Teeth grinding can become a habit that you do during the day, or you might do it only at night when you're asleep so you may not realize you have a problem. Grinding can damage your teeth and lead to jaw problems, so you should seek medical help. Your dentist can treat the condition and prevent damage to your teeth. Here are some things your dentist can try.
Correcting Dental Problems That Cause Grinding
Sometimes grinding is caused by stress and other times it is caused by teeth that are out of alignment. Your dentist will check your bite to see if that could be the cause of your teeth grinding. If it is, you may need to have dental work such as reshaping some teeth or even wearing braces. It's possible you grind your teeth for another reason, such as a side effect of medication, anxiety, or just habit. In those cases, you may not need corrective dental work, but you should still have frequent dental visits to be monitored for tooth damage, so it can be repaired before you get a cavity or abscess.
Making A Custom Mouth Splint Or Guard
If your condition is caused by stress or anxiety, you may need to undergo counseling to get the grinding under control. Your dentist may want you to wear an oral device until you stop grinding your teeth. A mouth guard is just like the guard your kids wear when playing sports. It is flexible and comfortable to wear. It doesn't stop
Monitoring The Health Of Your Teeth
Besides giving you jaw pain and a headache, grinding your teeth can wear down the enamel on your teeth, cause cracking, and damage crowns. One important thing you dentist will do is monitor your oral health until you get the grinding under control. You may not have any idea you grind your teeth since you're sleeping, but your dentist can tell by looking at your teeth. By following the changes in your teeth, your dentist can tell if
If you have a severe case of teeth grinding, you may need to work with your doctor, dentist, and therapist as a team to put an end to the grinding and prevent serious damage to your teeth and jaw. Breaking a habit is never easy, and it is even harder if you do it when you're asleep and have no idea when you're grinding. If it takes you a long time to stop, or even if you never stop, you can still protect your teeth with the help and support from your dentist. To find out more, visit a website like http://www.davidjacksondds.com.