What Is Bruxism?
Bruxism Symptoms and Treatment Options
Bruxism is an activity involving clenching of the jaws and /or grinding of the teeth. The forces involved can be many times those used for chewing food and are quite destructive. Bruxism can occur without any conscious awareness during both day and nighttime. Sleep-related bruxism is usually a bigger problem because it is harder to control.
Teeth grinding can cause may problems including worn, sensitive or broken teeth, TMJ (temporo mandibular joint) degradation and pain, headaches, earaches and facial pain.Clenching the teeth can put excessive pressure on the muscles, tissues, teeth, and other structures around the jaw.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF BRUXISM MAY INCLUDE:
• Teeth grinding or clenching, which may be loud enough to awaken your sleep partner
• Teeth that are worn down, flattened, fractured or chipped
• Crazes or cracks in the teeth
• Worn tooth enamel, exposing deeper layers of your tooth
• Increased tooth sensitivity
• Jaw pain or tightness in your jaw and /or facial muscles
• Earache — because of severe jaw muscle contractions, not a problem with your ear
• Headache
• Chronic facial pain
• Damage from chewing on the inside of your cheek
• Indentations or scalloped borders of your tongue
TREATING TMJ and BRUXISM
Traditional treatments for habit- related TMJ include expensive night guards or splints, anti-inflammatory drugs, physical therapy, and even surgery.. For many patients, the condition persists or even becomes worse. In fact, many people still suffer muscle-related problems because they clench and grind into their night guards.
When traditional treatments fail to stop bruxism, those suffering from habit related TMJ seek alternative treatments such as massage therapy, acupuncture and even Botox injections. Now there is an inexpensive, non-invasive, alternative to stop TMJ pain caused by clenching and grinding of the teeth. A new treatment, developed by
Dr. Robert Esdale, a practicing dentist for more than 35 years, relieves the symptoms by stopping these unconscious habits. Having suffered for years from his own habit related TMJ, Dr. Esdale worked tirelessly to develop a method that to keep their teeth apart on a full time basis…even while they sleep!
Tongue Chi: TMJ Relief is an iphone and Droid app that effectively trains users to stop grinding and clenching their teeth. Tongue Chi is a simple and effective recording that eliminates your teeth grinding and jaw clenching habits and their painful symptoms. It trains you to re-position your tongue to balance and relax the muscles that are used during clenching and grinding.
iphone and ipad users can download Tongue Chi at
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/tongue-chi-tmj-relief/id494978194?mt=8.
Droid users can download at:
Visit www.tonguechi.com for more information.
