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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Todd Sepulveda
I'm the owner/editor of Prepper Website, a DAILY preparedness aggregator that links to the best preparedness articles on the internet. I'm also a public school administrator and a pastor. My personal blog is Ed That Matters, where I write about preparedness and from time to time, education. Connect with me on one of my social media outlets below.
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