by Beks
My husband grinds his teeth in his sleep. If you’ve ever had the ‘joy’ of sharing a bed with a grinder, you know the noise can keep you up just as easily as snoring.
We purchased a $5 mouth guard from Walmart… which worked for about 2 days before it fell apart.
We purchased a custom mouth guard from the dentist at a whopping $350… which works a little, but still keeps me awake since it the sound he makes while wearing it resembles a dog chewing an annoying squeaky toy.
Since my husband is an aggressive teeth grinder, his mouth guard needs replacement every six months. I’m not looking forward to squeezing another $700 annually out of my budget.
I was watching Dr. Oz while getting ready for work a few mornings ago and he was discussing the dangers of teeth grinding and cheap solutions to fix it.
All he had to do was say ‘cheap’ and he had my attention. Since a few of my family members and friends are also teeth grinders, I figured maybe some of you might save a few bucks with his tips.
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/1-habit-destroying-your-health
One of the tips is to relax your jaw by using a wine cork to stretch the muscles. Jazzed about the idea of preventing painful head and tooth aches, my husband carries a wine cork everywhere now.
This is what I found in the shower this morning…
I may have trouble convincing folks he doesn’t have a drinking problem when there are wine corks on the patio set, on his bedside table, near the television, in his truck, in his office, and in the shower. But hey, it has helped a little so I’ll just have to deal with the questions about my husband’s apparent ‘alcoholism’.
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Beks is a full-time government employee who enjoys blogging late into the night after her four kids have gone to sleep. She’s been married to Chris, her college sweetheart, for 15 years. In 2017, after 3 long years working the Dave Ramsey Baby Steps, they paid off more than $70K and became debt free. When she’s not working or blogging, she’s exploring the great outdoors.
Funny 🙂
My Dad is a teeth grinder too. He wore down the front teeth until he needed false ones…and I think those are grinding away too. Wonder if I could get him to try this?! Probably not, he’s a little stubborn 😉
I’m an aggressive grinder, too. To the point of breaking multiple filling before getting a mouth guard. Mine was also in the $300+ range, but I’ve never had to have it replaced. I’ve had it at least 4 years now. Can you ask your dentist if there are other materials available?
oh my gosh this is great. i am lucky to have dental insurance and my mouthguard was only $100. however, it doesn’t seem to be working so much. i will try this out!
ooof, what a pain! I also grind my teeth. I had a mouth guard made to the tune of $350.- by a dentist in the States and it lasted about 18 months. I was living overseas when it broke in my mouth, in my sleep, and while I couldn’t get in to a dental clinic for regular appointments, I was able to get in to see one to have a new mouth guard made. 180euros later, I am still using that same mouth guard eight and a half years later.
I would investigate custom mouth guards again with your husband, but really look into materials. I find it makes such a difference in my sleep quality as well as frequency of headaches.
Good luck!
Amazing. I came online to look for some cheap teeth grinding cures.
I love you.
ROFL. Love it.
Your posts make me laugh so much! I’ll have to try the cork, since I too am a grinder.
I’ve heard acupuncture can help…you might want to look into that.
I grind my teeth, too. It’s bad. I try hard to wear a mouth guard every night. I purchased one of the more expensive ones from Target; it fell apart within days. Then I tried one of the cheaper ones – the kind that you have to soften in hot water and that makes you look like you’re prepping for a hockey tournament. It’s not pretty, but it actually works really well for me.