Other Dental Considerations

Photo by: Timothy Vollmer

When it comes to preparedness, one thing that I like to take seriously is my health.  Not so much that I’m eating right and working out, all those things are important.  I mean more that everything is working and if it is not, getting it checked out!

In my adult life, I’ve always had a problem grinding my teeth at night.  Dentist have told me in the past that I’m going to have to do something about it…when I get older.  I guess lately has become “when I get older.”  I find myself clenching my teeth even when I’m driving or even just going about my day.  I wonder if it is a sign of stress, but nonetheless, it is not good for my teeth.

The other day I woke up and my jaw was very sore causing a headache.  I took some Ibuprofen and went about my day.  I was back on contract and getting ready for the new school year.  However, this happened a few more times until a morning that I woke up and my jaw was sore to the touch. When I wasn’t touching my jaw, it felt like I had eaten something sour and my mouth was responding to it.  The problem was this was a constant feeling.  At this point I was a little worried.  I knew it was because I was grinding or clenching my teeth at night.

Earlier in the year I had purchased a mouth guard at the local drugstore that you warmed up and formed in your mouth.  It was a piece of junk.  My aunt had a guard made for her and it cost over $800.  I couldn’t pay $800 for a piece of plastic!!!

The day of my sore jaw I decided to go to the chiropractor.  She has been working on getting me “aligned” but also working on my jaw when I visit.  This time I told her about my sore jaw and she suggested getting a specific guard at Target called Sleep Right.  With this guard, you don’t have to do any forming and it is adjustable to your size of mouth.

Well, I tried it and it worked.  The best thing is that it cost under $40.  Of course anything that you put in your mouth requires a little bit of getting used to, but it is worth it.

I’m not a doctor or dentist, but if you suffer from TMJ or wake up with headaches and you are not sure why, you might be grinding your teeth.  A little $40 plastic device might be your saving grace.  The great thing is that now that I know what to look for, I found Sleep Right on Amazon.  I think I’m going to buy a backup

SleepRight NO-BOIL Dental Guard Slim-Comfort

If you are interested in finding out more information on dental preparedness – you can check the PW Tag Cloud – Dental, Dentist, Teeth.

This article first appeared on Ed That Matters.

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