Teeth grinding and botox

[OakLeaf]

In hotels, I just take a towel, fold it in thirds (or half if it's an expensive hotel with thick towels ), roll it up tightly, and put it under my neck.

[badger]

I figured that my excessive teeth grinding isn't just one thing but part of a slew of other things (btw, I'm onto my 3rd grinding guard, the other two I basically wore them out). One of my friends is a dentist and he long ago suggested I see a counselor regarding my grinding. I never did... Anxiety's my middle name, I've had panic/anxiety disorder since my teens.

I have chronic neck/shoulder problems which gives me frequent headaches along with the occasional migraines. My C1 (first vertebra just under the skull) is twisted 7degrees. The chiropractor thinks I was a foreceps delivery (my mother doesn't remember!!)

I think a lightbulb just went off, where I think all these things are actually *because* of the twisting of my C1. The alignment of everything from my head down is basically off (I also have scoliosis). Hell, I'll even throw in my panic/anxiety as a result of this.

Hmm.... unfortunately there's nothing that can bring my C1 back into its normal position as all the ligaments around it have stretched.

Valerian's pretty good, I picked up these nice little Kalms pills in England, and turns out we get them here in Canada, too. They have Velerian, Gentian and Hops.

I'll check out this neuromuscular massage therapist. I found my cranial-sacral massage therapist does wonders, too, but she's hella expensive (even with 80% coverage it's still a big chunk).

[badger]

I've also recently purchased a new natural latex mattress (lovely). My chiorpractor told me that most people make the mistake of sleeping on too-thin pillows which puts a lot of stress on your shoulder if you're a side sleeper, such as myself. An inch above neutral position is better than an inch below.

[Ana]

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.

[shootingstar]

My chiorpractor told me that most people make the mistake of sleeping on too-thin pillows which puts a lot of stress on your shoulder if you're a side sleeper, such as myself. An inch above neutral position is better than an inch below.

My favourite pillow is thankfully about 1 inch above neutral. Thx for this info. We also sleep on a very firm mattress which thank goodness what we both like.

I don't have teeth grinding problems. Hope yours get solved over time.

I do know that I need to do stretching exercises regularily or my neck and other parts of me will feel sore. Just biking is not good enough for overall flexibility for my body.