Expert Bruxism & Teeth Grinding Treatment in Beverly Hills, CA
Medically reviewed by Dr. Kayla Lebeau, DDS
Your jaw is stronger asleep than awake
Awake, your jaw muscles are limited by feedback from the teeth and the joint. You stop before you damage anything. Asleep, that feedback is largely switched off. People clench and grind with forces well beyond anything they would ever apply consciously, for minutes at a time, night after night.
The result is not usually dramatic. It is gradual: flattened edges, hairline cracks, chipped enamel, teeth that ache in the morning, and crowns and veneers that keep failing for no obvious reason.
- Most grinding happensDuring sleep, unnoticed
- Main protectionA custom hard night guard
- Not caused byParasites
- Linked toStress, sleep quality, and airway problems
Signs you grind or clench
- Jaw that is tight or sore when you wake, easing through the morning
- Headaches at the temples, particularly on waking
- Teeth that are flattening, chipping, or have shortened over the years
- Sensitivity at the necks of the teeth where enamel has notched away
- A jaw that clicks, locks, or is tender in front of the ear
- Restorations that keep coming loose or fracturing
- A ridge of hard tissue along the inside of your cheek, or scalloped edges on your tongue
Finding out why, not just covering it up
A night guard protects teeth. It does not treat the cause, and the causes are worth investigating because some of them are treatable.
- Stress and anxiety. The most common driver, and grinding reliably worsens during difficult periods.
- Airway problems. Grinding is strongly associated with sleep apnea. One theory is that jaw movement is part of how the body reopens a collapsing airway. If you grind and you snore, the apnea is the thing to investigate first.
- Medications. Some antidepressants and stimulants are recognized causes.
- Alcohol, caffeine and nicotine. All increase grinding activity during sleep.
- Reflux. Nighttime acid reflux is associated with grinding, and it damages enamel directly as well.
- Examining the evidenceWear facets and how they match when your jaw moves, cracks under bright light, muscle tenderness, and the jaw joint through its full range.
- Recording the baselinePhotographs and scans, so that in two years we can tell whether it is progressing or has stopped. Without a baseline this is guesswork.
- Screening for airway problemsBecause if apnea is driving it, a guard alone leaves the real problem untreated.
- A custom hard night guardMade from your own scans, adjusted so contact is even across every tooth. Even contact is what makes it protective; uneven contact moves teeth.
- Repairing the damage, in the right orderWorn or cracked teeth are restored after the guard is protecting them, not before, or the new work simply meets the same forces.
What actually reduces it
- Treat the airway if it is involved. This is the one that can genuinely reduce grinding rather than only manage its effects.
- No caffeine after mid-afternoon, and less alcohol in the evening. Both measurably increase grinding activity.
- A wind-down routine and consistent sleep timing. Grinding tracks sleep quality closely.
- Notice daytime clenching. Many people hold their teeth together while concentrating or driving. Teeth should only touch when swallowing, the rest of the time, lips together, teeth slightly apart.
- Warmth and gentle jaw stretches in the morning for muscle soreness.
- Botulinum injections into the masseter can reduce the force in severe cases. It is a real option, not a first one, and we would discuss it only when a guard and the other measures have not been enough.
Will a night guard stop me grinding?
No, and be wary of anyone who says otherwise. It absorbs the force so your teeth do not. That is the whole and sufficient purpose.
Can I use a drugstore boil-and-bite guard?
For grinding, it is a poor idea. Soft material invites you to chew it, which can increase muscle activity, and an imprecise fit loads some teeth more than others and can move them. See mouth guards for the difference.
Why do my teeth hurt in the morning but feel fine later?
Because the force was applied overnight and the muscles and ligaments recover through the day. It is one of the most reliable indicators of sleep grinding.
Can grinding damage be repaired?
Yes. Bonding, onlays or crowns depending on how much has been lost. But protection comes first, or the new restorations wear and fracture in the same way.
Does stress management help?
For many people, yes, noticeably. It is not a complete answer, and it is not a reason to skip the guard.
My child grinds. Should I worry?
Grinding is common in children and most grow out of it without lasting harm. It is worth mentioning at their check-up, particularly if they also snore.
Get the damage measured before more is done
- (310) 860-6969Someone here answers.
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Why a night guard does not stop grinding
Worth being direct, because it is frequently sold the other way. A guard is armor, not a cure. Grinding is generated in the brain during sleep, and a piece of acrylic in your mouth does not reach that.
What a guard does, and this is genuinely valuable, is give the grinding something to destroy other than your teeth. It also spreads the load, which often reduces morning jaw and headache pain.
What it does not do is reduce how much you grind. Some people grind slightly more with one in at first.
So the guard protects while the causes get addressed: sleep-disordered breathing, stress, certain medications, alcohol, caffeine and nicotine. Treating the cause is where actual reduction comes from. See mouth guards for the appliance itself.