OW! My teeth!!!!

[ironhands]

Did my second night with my Wisp last night, only done 4 nights so far, 1 and 4 with a wisp and 2-3 with a mirage. I like the Wisp, but I'm waking up around 5am and my front teeth are killing me! The straps aren't tight or anything, but it feels like I've been clenching my jaw and pushing my front teeth forward. I've got an overbite, and my upper fronts completely cover my lower fronts in a closed/resting position.

Has anyone experienced something like this? Any solutions? I've seen some nasal pillows that use a mouthguard, wondering if I should go that route.

Ideally I'd talk to my dentist about it - he's also on a CPAP, but he closed up shop last month and I've no way to contact him (not sure where his other office is).

[Julie]

Get a new dentist? That clenching and/or grinding is called bruxism.

[ironhands]

none was detected during my two PSGs, nor on the MSLT. It's only happening with the Wisp. Was wondering if anyone had experienced anything similar with nasal vs full face masks

[jencat824]

I experienced this when I began CPAP 14 years ago. I am now having major dental work done ($4,800) to move my teeth back into alignment. 13 years of CPAP moved my teeth significantly, along with the grinding (bruxism). Someone here suggested a retainer, my dentist confirmed if I had gotten a nightly retainer when this all started, my teeth would not have moved, and with the correct type of retainer, made to combat grinding, I would not have ground off much of my enamel, leading to cavities. I had my first cavity at the age of 48 (I'm 54 now), and my mouth is full of metal.

My advice is see a dentist right away and address the issue of moving teeth and nighttime grinding. You, your teeth and your wallet will be glad you did. If you don't want to just take my work for it, search 'teeth moving' and you will see lots of posts on this subject.

Good luck,
Jen

[ironhands]

going to have to use a hockey mouthguard for a while. I'm not insured, and I already need about 2k$ in dental work (not counting 2 implants I need). Considering it's a stretch to buy a mask, I don't see much alternative. Thanks!

[tempest]

I have bruxism and tmj, so much so, that I have cracked two teeth because of it. I wear an occlusal guard that was custom made by my dentist for me to wear at night. It kind of looks like a fancy orthodontal retainer that forces by mouth to be slightly ajar at night. Because of that, however, I wear a full face mask, because I can not close my mouth with that in. I can not wear it, because of my teeth at night. I have broken two teeth so far, and I have to admit, even with dental insurance, it can be quite expensive to fix them and dentures are not an option for me right now. I want my au-naturals for now.

Because of the type of occlusal guard that I have, it ran me about umm, $350 to get it made. They took a mold, top and bottom and full mouth to ensure proper fit, and this thing literally locks in place at night. There are some cheaper alternatives that kind of look like football mouthpieces that you can get as well from any drugstore or big box store.

Of course, your mileage will vary.

[ironhands]

$350 I can handle, might be different up here. I gotta see if I can track down my dentist, since he has first-hand experience with CPAP. How long has yours lasted? Should I expect like, 6 months, or two years? Have you noticed any difference between masks without the retainer? Wondering if an actual retainer might be dual purpose, since I do have a credit card sized gap...maybe it can also be corrected. Ugh, too much month at the end of the money right now lol

[tempest]

Mine has lasted two years now. It is hard plastic, and like a snap in kinda thing. Dentist did say that I will be needing a new one since I have a small crack in it, but not enough to split it in half. So far, fit is still good. This really does keep my teeth in check.

[sleeplessinaz]

I use a mouth guard made by the dentist to relieve TMJ symptoms and help with jaw clenching. It helps a lot!

[Kitatonic]

I'm still using the same night guard that the dentist custom-fit for me back in 2004, after paying thousands for chipped teeth from the nocturnal grinding. Over the years, the guard has been adjusted, just by filing down for no charge. One night, I didn't wear it because now with PAP, I figured that I might not still grind, only to awaken with a sore jaw.

[ironhands]

Thanks for your help. I picked up a 20$ boil-it one last night for my upper teeth, still feels a little sore but I think I can manage until I can see a dentist. Think ultimately I need one that'll lock my jaw completely, upper to lower, since my upper front cover my lower front, there could still be some forward pressure going on, but it should prevent grinding. Hit 0.64 AHI last night