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If you often wake up with a sore jaw, have a constant headache, or find unusual abrasions on your teeth, you may be suffering from bruxism - a sleep disorder involving the grinding or clenching of the teeth during sleep. The pressures placed upon the teeth through bruxism can be as much as three times as stressful as those exerted from chewing (1). Without control over your jaw, you can also wind up biting the inside of your mouth. While it is painful enough to bite your tongue or cheek while chewing, it can become far worse when it is done unconsciously and with far greater force.

There are a series of other symptoms that are commonly found with bruxism including headaches, sensitive teeth, damage to the cheeks and tongue, and damage to tooth enamel. Many sufferers are not even aware of their actions (2). A constant headache, a tender jaw, and unexplainable abrasions in the mouth are often symptoms felt by bruxism sufferers (3). If you find yourself experiencing multiple symptoms, you will want to tell your dentist. Your dentist may find that the tops of your teeth are unusually flat - this is a result of grinding (2).

Stress can be a major precursor to bruxism; dealing with major life events or high levels of anxiety can manifest itself latently in physical forms. Certain personality types are more prone than others to bruxism. People with aggressive, competitive, hyperactive, and highly energetic personality types have higher risk factors than people with calm and relaxed personalities (4).

The odds of suffering from bruxism increase if you have misaligned or missing teeth; this cause is found with greater prevalence in children and is believed to be the main reason for child bruxism. Because children are still developing physically, we see higher rates of occurrence among children as high as 30 percent. Occasionally, bruxism will be caused by other health problems like Parkinson's disease or it may be a side-effect of some antidepressant medications (4).

There are no cures for bruxism, but there are a several treatments. The treatment that best suits you will correspond with the cause of your bruxism. If stress is the cause of your problems, you will want to avoid dental solutions and focus on reducing your levels of stress and anxiety. If your dentist believes that your problem is caused by crooked teeth, a misaligned jaw, or an abnormal bite, there are some potential dental options. In some cases, you may be advised to be fitted with braces. In other cases, a fitted mouth guard can be prescribed to curb the symptoms (4).

References:
(1) http://www.is.wayne.edu/mnissa ni/bruxnet/Effects.htm
(2) http://www.healthsystem.virgin ia.edu/uvahealth/adult_oralhlt h/bruxism.cfm
(3) http://www.webmd.com/oral-heal th/guide/teeth-grinding-bruxis m
(4) http://www.mayoclinic.com/heal th/bruxism/DS00337/DSECTION=3

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