Why Grinding Your Teeth While Sleeping Does More Damage Than You Think

When you think about the worst things you could do for your teeth, a few activities probably come to mind: smoking, not brushing and flossing, skipping a mouthguard when you play sports, and eating lots of sugar. 

We have another item to add to the list, and it might surprise you: teeth grinding. 

Rubbing your teeth together while you’re asleep might seem fairly harmless — other than being an annoying sound that your bed partner has to listen to. The truth is — the overnight habit can have a serious impact on your oral and overall health. 

Fortunately, we can help. Here at Sokoly Dental in Washington, DC, Thomas D. Sokoly, DDS, makes custom-fitted oral appliances to help patients with snoring. But these tailored mouthguards can also help with nighttime teeth grinding. 

Let’s take a closer look at why you should take steps to put a stop to this overnight activity.

The many harms of teeth-grinding

Teeth grinding — or bruxism — has some pretty wide-ranging negative effects. 

Most obviously, it affects your teeth, causing:

• Weakening enamel
• Chipping or cracking
• Damage to fillings or crowns
• Tooth sensitivity
• Tooth pain

The problems caused by teeth grinding might not stay in your mouth, either. This habit can contribute to:

• Facial pain
• Jaw muscle enlargement
• Jaw muscle fatigue
• Jaw pain
• Noise sensitivity
• Pain that feels like an earache
• Pain when you eat
• Persistent headaches
• Sleep problems
• Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders
• Tinnitus

If your grinding is extreme, it can even wear down the cartilage in your jaw. Some people need a total jaw joint replacement if they let their teeth grinding go unchecked. 

How to stop bruxism

If these symptoms sound familiar, it’s time to do something about your teeth grinding. That means coming to see Dr. Sokoly. 

Here at our office, he can fit you with a customized oral appliance. Also called a mouthguard or night guard, you put the device in your mouth right before getting into bed. It cushions your teeth and maintains space in your jaw so you can’t grind your teeth.

With consistent use, the night guard helps defend against tooth problems and the additional negative impacts of bruxism. You might notice that you wake up with less head or face pain, for example. 

Dr. Sokoly might recommend additional treatment to pair with your night guard. Stress relief techniques help people who grind their teeth at night, for example. Dr. Sokoly can offer a treatment plan that helps you stop grinding while you sleep. 

A customized mouthguard gives you a good place to start. To explore getting fitted for an oral appliance to defend against the damages of teeth grinding, call our Washington, DC, office or book an appointment online today.