Teeth grinding is medically termed bruxism. Bruxism occurs during sleep when a person clenches, gnashes, and grinds their teeth. However, this condition can also occur during the morning, especially in adults. Both adults and children experience bruxism; but children are commonly night bruxers. Teeth grinding is considered a sleep disorder that can potentially cause serious complications such as bleeding in the oral cavity and aspiration of blood.

Bruxism can be mild and not need any medical attention. However, in some cases, bruxism can occur frequently and could cause other conditions such as jaw deformities, teeth problems, and sometimes headaches. Stress is often associated with the occurrence of bruxism. People who are faced with stress are often anxious and tense. Usually, people who are tense and do not know how to face their stress tend to cope through physiological reactions and that includes bruxism.

Bruxism is common among children; however, there are adults who have bruxism but do not know of the condition unless major complications happen. Usually, bruxism is discovered after the occurrence of complications. That is also the time wherein necessary interventions are done to treat the problem of bruxism.

Experts have found out that people with bruxism are having difficulties in coping with stress. During sleep, the person is at a resting stage. This means that the mind enters the subconscious state and all of the conflicts in the conscious state are trying to be resolved. Often times, the resolution of conflicts would resort to physiological manifestations such as bruxism. Bruxism will not be known by the person suffering it unless by being informed by others.

For people who frequently use bruxism as their defense mechanism, this is not healthy and therefore should be treated accordingly. With frequent bruxism, it can pose a serious threat to one’s health. People who are chronic bruxers can have fractures in their maxillary bones. Aside from fractures, tooth loss can also occur. This will cause more problems because patients will need to wear dentures to replace loss teeth. Dentists are often able to detect if a person is suffering from long term bruxism due to tenderness of the jaw.

Usually a mouth gag, mouth block, or mouth guard is provided as a solution to prevent damage due to bruxism. Once you have consulted your dentist, you should then consult a physician to help you in treating your bruxism. Physicians often prescribe muscle relaxants to relieve tension during bruxism.

Since stress is a major contributory factor for bruxism, it is then advised that people who are having difficulties in overcoming stress should consult a medical professional. There are a lot of ways to unwind and relieve stress that people can do. Medical professionals can effectively help these people so that they will learn how manage things and cope with their anxiety. Usually, mind setting is taught to these patients.

Aside from undergoing treatment modalities, necessary lifestyle changes should also be done to avoid bruxism. People who are fond of drinking alcohol should lessen their consumption, especially before sleeping because it can greatly contribute to the occurrence of bruxism. Coffee and other caffeinated drinks should also be avoided because they are a big contributor to anxiety. Self control is also important to avoid teeth grinding.