I grind my teeth sometimes--usually during times of extreme stress in my life. The pain the day following a night of jaw clenching and teeth grinding is just unbearable for me. It hurts to eat, to turn your head (if your neck also hurts, which was a common symptom accompanying my jaw soreness).

I do have a mouth-guard type appliance that was designed to move one of my teeth but also serves to ease my grinding. It was made from a mold of my teeth and it clamps onto my teeth so I cannot dislodge it without using my hands. I only have one for the bottom row of teeth, though. I just talked with my dentist during my regular cleaning appointment and he said that it would be more effective if the top of my existing appliance was flat, instead of grooved, so that my top teeth could slide across it freely.

I do not grind my teeth very often any more but I did discover the following things that exacerbate the problem:

  1. Stressful events
  2. Chewing gum--I cannot chew it, ever
  3. Clenching my jaw during my active day--I believe this just trains your body to respond to stress


I think seeing a therapist about your anxiety could help reduce your stress. Since you say you have anxiety problems, you might want to consider some personal adjustments that may help ease the stress of your anxiety (good things to talk about with your therapist).

Do you do any kind of yoga or pilates? I know many of my friends enjoy those kinds of classes. I have begun taking martial arts and it helps focus my energy

I have to say, botox seems a bit extreme... I stay away from endocrine disruptors (e.g. bisphenol-a) which are milder than an injected toxin...

I hope this helps.