User Guide For Bruxism Mouth Guards
47Using Mouth Guards For Bruxism
Bruxism is a condition in which a person involuntarily clench down on their jaw and grind their teeth while they are sleeping. This condition can develop in men, women and even children. Most of the time a person will not even realize they are grinding their teeth in their sleep until they wake up with sore jaw muscles or have someone else tell them. If they sleep in a bed with someone else that person may notice them doing this while they are sleeping and let them know about it.
Although there is no known cause of bruxism doctors long ago made the correlation between the condition and stress and anxiety in one’s life. People who had high levels of stress and anxiety in their life were much more likely to develop a bruxism condition than others. Any person dealing with bruxism or even just thinks they may be, should get in to see their doctor right away. The first thing they are likely to suggest is the idea of using mouth guards for bruxism.
The reason that mouth guards for bruxism are used is because these help to protect the teeth over the course of the night. One of the main negative effects of the bruxism condition is that the teeth end up chipped and even broken and so the mouth guard will help to prevent this from happening. Mouth guards are often not used alone but instead in correlation with other treatments for bruxism. Muscle relaxants are often prescribed to patients suffering from this condition so they can take one or two before bed.
Then the muscles in their jaw will be much more relaxed and they will be less likely to grind their teeth over the course of the night. When a mouth guard is used alongside this, a patient has the best chances of keeping their teeth and gums from being damaged even if they do end up grinding their teeth. In some cases anti anxiety medications are prescribed. Some doctors prescribe anti anxiety medications to patients who have high levels of stress or who are dealing with an anxiety disorder.
This is often enough to treat a bruxism condition. Some people end up dealing with the condition their entire life, even after they have reduced their stress and anxiety levels. Every person is different and doctors want to ensure that patients suffer as few negative effects from their bruxism as possible. This is especially true considering that most people end up having to deal with this condition for the rest of their life.
