Does anyone wear mouth guards for jaw clenching?

[CreatingHavoc]

My dentist has given me an upper and lower mouth guard but they are really making my teeth hurt and I can't get over quite how gross it is to only be able to wash them in cold water when I'm having to put them in my mouth every nigh 🤢 I feel I should be cleaning them more thoroughly somehow.
I'm not even sure they are helping with my jaw problems as the pain just appears to be in different places now. I guess my teeth are not being worn down and weakened but still, I'm in pain.

My mouth is generally not a good place at the moment as every time I eat crisps or similar I seem to get sore gums and need to do salt water rinses. I seem to have tooth/gum pain almost every day but the dentist says they can't see anything wrong with the teeth. I've got a hygiene appointment soon to try and help with the gum issues. Does anyone have any tips for what can only be described as 'loose gums'?!? I'm sticking to a soft diet for now.

I do
You can get mouthguard cleaner, I use luke warm water and washing up liquid, then the mouthguard cleanser
If you google mouthguard cleaning tablets you should see some

Just use the bottom one.

I had them to try and control involuntary grinding from wisdom tooth pushing on nerves. I found both was initially too much. Maybe just try wearing one if them for a while until you are used to it.

@Rebellious23 thank you. My dentists never mentioned these. I'll have a look.

@Awrite my dentist said to either only use the top one on it's own or both together. Not sure why.

I have a bottom guard.

I clean mine with toothpaste and my toothbrush in the morning.

it has made such a difference to my tension headaches/sleep.

I have one for jaw grinding as have damaged a lot of teeth.
Clean with toothpaste before you wear it. Soak in a denture tablet once a month or so. Just wear one.

I used to clean mine with toothpaste and toothbrush in the morning. Only ever wore one on top teeth.

I've now had Botox at the maxillo facial clinic which had made a HUGE difference and don't need to wear it any more.

Husband only uses the bottom one. He soaks the guard in a denture cleaning tablet, gives it a quick rub with a soft toothbrush and then leaves it to soak all day in cheap mouthwash! The guard has really made a difference but did take a while to get used to.

It will be to protect your bite.

I wear an extremely old mouth guard that covers the top four teeth only. I also have one that is like a retainer that covers all my top teeth. I really dislike this one and will only wear it when my old one breaks.

You do get used to it. I’ve trained myself to reach for my mouth guard half way through the night when I’m sleeping more fitfully. So I only wear it for about 5 hours a night.

I used to clench and grind my teeth at night- according to my husband. Dentist just gave me an upper guard only. I used to brush it with toothpaste/water in the mornings. I eventually moved to a far less stressful job and no longer need to wear it! Look at anything that might be causing you stress and try to mitigate it if you can. Take a walk at lunch, sit in a park to eat lunch, go to yoga, start a hobby etc.

Do you smoke or vape? My husband vapes and gets bleeding gums which the dentist thinks are linked. He also has receding gums which seem to be hereditary. The dentist said an endontist could do bone grafting to improve the issue- but its sounds painful and expensive. DH is yet to make the initial appointment though.

I used to wear one on the bottom. They do need cleaning. Reducing anxiety helped me with teeth grinding but I am not sure how to advise doing this! Ref gums, I go to the hygienist twice a year and use interdental brushes. I use Corsodyl if they start hurting.

I have a bottom guard.
I clean mine with toothpaste and my toothbrush in the morning.

^ This. I was told not to soak it in mouthwash. When i go to the dentist they put it in their cleaning machine too it still looks a bit gross though

I bought a cheap sonic cleaner the type you use for jewelry. It has been a god send. I pop in my kids sport mouth guards and I use my cleaner everyday. I literally press the button, make a coffee and have clean mouth guards without any effort! Only takes a few minutes for a perfect Sonic clean and its gentle too as it uses air bubbles. Always always floss teeth. Your gums will build resilience but only if they have a fighting chance and flossing helps considerably.

I'm on my second night guard after wearing through the first one in a year! The new one was horrible to wear for the first two weeks and my teeth hurt in the morning but now it's 'bedded in' a bit it's more flexible and doesn't hurt any more.

Tips for cleaning - give it a good brush in the morning, put it in to soak with a denture tablet in warm (not hot!) water for 3 minutes, brush it again, rinse and then make sure it is fully dry before you put it in the case. You can get special denture brushes from Boots/Superdrug which have a pointy bit for getting in the nooks and crannies easier as well!

And forgot to mention that I use my sonic cleaner for my overnight mouth guards as I also clench teeth. Habit I'm afraid.

It seems strange you've been given both top and bottom. One or the other is normally recommended if it's just for clenching/ grinding (it's only so that there's a barrier between the teeth so you don't really need two).

Definitely look up the steradent tablets (for denture cleaning but also fine for mouthguards) I soak mine for a few minutes then brush it with a toothbrush and rinse.

@Creating Havoc and other pp's. Can I ask you if your jaw tension/grinding caused an onset of sensitivity in your teeth/gums? I'm asking because I've developed this suddenly and the dentist has checked my teeth out including an xray and there's nothing untoward that she could see. It's not all my teeth but I know I carry all my tension in the upper part of my body an often realise my jaw feels like a vice! She prescribed a high fluoride toothpaste but it hasn't really helped.
Any thoughts greatly appreciated.

Mine has really helped, top teeth guard. Clean with hot water and toothbrush and paste but leaving it in the right cleaning solution as well will stop limescale buildup.

I have a bottom guard and I use a toothbrush to clean it every morning and then once a week I clean it in denture cleaning tablets for 1 hour. It brings it up sparkly.

Use denture tablets every day. Also, the cheap ones off Amazon are way better than the dentist ones. I chew through mine about twice a year so can’t afford the dentist ones

@Lcb123 is there a make you would recommend?

I've been without mine for months as I'm booked in to get a filling replaced and dentist is waiting till it's done to make my new mouth guard. My poor inside cheeks are shredded to hell.

I grind my teeth and have a bottom guard. I wash it with hot water and use a toothbrush and toothpaste to clean it. I can't imagine wearing both at the same time is remotely comfortable.

I don’t get on with mine. It fits fine but I can’t sleep with it in as after a couple of hours, I wake up feeling like I can’t breathe and I have to take it out straight away. I clean it with a toothbrush and toothpaste.

Thanks all. My dentist specifically said only to clean it with cold water and not to use toothpaste or toothbrush so I've been wondering what the hell I'm supposed to do! So I've just been rinsing it in the morning with the odd salt water soak once a week. I will buy some denture cleaning tablets asap.

Wearing 2 is uncomfortable but I'm not sure if 1 is cutting it tbh. I just end up scraping my bottom front teeth against the mouth guard :/ maybe just the bottom one would be better.

I have a bottom one and just wash in cold water and then dry with the towel immediately. It seems to keep it ok. I also had hypnotherapy to address the clenching and that helped enormously