mouth guards

I'm wondering if a hack I heard about makes sense. The guy said use a boil and bite mouth guard to stop tooth pain from nasal masks. But my N20 presses on my gums, not my teeth.

People use those guards to keep from grinding their teeth in their sleep.

They can also help train you to keep your mouth shut while sleeping.

Yeah, but he said to just use one for the upper teeth to keep the nasal mask from pressing on the teeth. Doesn't seem like it would work, to me. I've flushed so much money down the toilet trying to fix my sleep apnea. I don't dare even buy a mouthguard unless I know it could actually help.

onward60 wrote: ↑

Sun Oct 03, 2021 8:34 pm

Yeah, but he said to just use one for the upper teeth to keep the nasal mask from pressing on the teeth. Doesn't seem like it would work, to me. I've flushed so much money down the toilet trying to fix my sleep apnea. I don't dare even buy a mouthguard unless I know it could actually help.

You only need one side. get one of those teeth guards from the sporting goods section of your fav store - under $10. keep that in your mouth while sleeping. It takes time and effort to retrain the brain.

I have bruxism and I use a nighttime occlusal device, a dental guard. It was custom made by my dentist. I'm still cracking my teeth though! In fact I have a temp crown (waiting on the permanent crown to be delivered) in my mouth because of my tooth grinding. I also have 4 implants because of cracked teeth. My dentist says that I my jaw muscles are too powerful and she recommends that I get Botox injected into my jaw muscles, I'll take a pass on this...

Anyway.

In my opinion the occlusal device does help me keep my mouth closed while I sleep and since I use a Swift FX I need my mouth to stay shut at night.

"Yeah, but he said to just use one for the upper teeth to keep the nasal mask from pressing on the teeth. Doesn't seem like it would work, to me. I've flushed so much money down the toilet trying to fix my sleep apnea. I don't dare even buy a mouthguard unless I know it could actually help."

A custom device isn't cheap but those boil and bite guards are very inexpensive. I had to buy one when I forgot to take my occlusal device on a camping trip. I think that it was less then $10 at Wally's. It's worth a try no?

Thanks for the ideas. I've been reading and reading about mouth guards. Some say you must not use the cheap ones. Some say the cheap ones are fine. What I still don't understand is how does a mouth guard actually help?

I tried my nasal mask yesterday for an hour and my right teeth on top still hurt. Not sure why it's the right, but that spot has always gotten irritated more easily than the left. And now it hates the nasal mask.

If your teeth hurt from a nasal mask losen the straps its too tight.

babydinosnoreless wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 04, 2021 12:19 pm

If your teeth hurt from a nasal mask losen the straps its too tight.

Actually, the straps are so loose the thing barely stays on my face.

Couple of thoughts/suggestions to try:

IIRC, the correct mouth position is lips together, teeth apart.

Also, from my experience, a dental appliance doesn't stop grinding, just inserts a layer between the teeth to protect the surfaces from the grinding.

The cheap off-the-shelf appliances might work for someone who doesn't grind. I flattened one the first night so wouldn't recommend it to a grinder or clencher.

I read somewhere that the tongue can push against the teeth or gums with enough force to cause pain. So think about where your tongue is when you wake up. It should be at the roof of your mouth, a little back from the ridge.

The other option might be the placement of your nasal mask. It might be sitting on the gum area at a sensitive spot. Try raising or lowering it a bit. Also, maybe a mask liner might help. A cut piece of t-shirt, larger than the cushion with a small hole for the nostrils should be sufficient.

Cpapian wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 05, 2021 1:23 pm

Couple of thoughts/suggestions to try:

IIRC, the correct mouth position is lips together, teeth apart.

Also, from my experience, a dental appliance doesn't stop grinding, just inserts a layer between the teeth to protect the surfaces from the grinding.

The cheap off-the-shelf appliances might work for someone who doesn't grind. I flattened one the first night so wouldn't recommend it to a grinder or clencher.

I read somewhere that the tongue can push against the teeth or gums with enough force to cause pain. So think about where your tongue is when you wake up. It should be at the roof of your mouth, a little back from the ridge.

The other option might be the placement of your nasal mask. It might be sitting on the gum area at a sensitive spot. Try raising or lowering it a bit. Also, maybe a mask liner might help. A cut piece of t-shirt, larger than the cushion with a small hole for the nostrils should be sufficient.

Yes, you're right. My teeth grinding has not stopped it's just that now I grind on my dental appliance instead of my teeth.