Sore Mouth

lindas88 · Post by **lindas88** » Mon Aug 29, 2005 8:26 am

When I wake in the morning I find it hard to even press my teeth together...it hurts. I must be pressing my teeth together all night now and it makes for a sore mouth in the morning. I never did this before starting cpap. So what's going on.....anyone else have this problem?

ehusen · Post by **ehusen** » Mon Aug 29, 2005 9:26 am

I had somewhat the similar problem, but it passed after a short time. It could be you are a mouth breather and now when you open your mouth all the air goes whooshing out. You react by clamping your mouth shut. Repeat all night and you've got a sore jaw...

You could wait a few days and see what happens. Your body might learn how to keep a seal but not clamp down so tight. Maybe practice using your tongue to seal the throat without too much gritting of teeth.

Other options are: a full face mask (I would hate this but many people can only use it due to mouth breathing), dental device (see other threads for DIY, Dr. Sue, etc) to lock your mouth in place, and chin strap (so maybe your jaw don't clamp as much).

Personally, I hate all those options. I was lucky enough to manage to learn how to keep my mouth shut (at least a night anyway. ). It still took some time, I was a perenial snorer and mouth breather before CPAP.

For me, if I had too, I would try the dental appliance first. I don't want any more stuff strapped to my head than I got already.

Also, can you determine what your leak rate is?

That's all I got, hope it helps. Others here are much smarter than me.

lindas88 · Post by **lindas88** » Mon Aug 29, 2005 10:20 am

Hi ehusen....when I first started cpap I did have a problem keeping my mouth closed and used to wake up all the time. Lately though, I hardly wake up with my mouth open. I guess that is why my jaw is sore...trying hard to keep the mouth closed. I will give it some more time and see if it improves and if not maybe try a dental device. I tried a full face mask and it leaked terrible. A chin strap...no thanks. My leak rate for last night was 0.14 so I don't think that is to bad. Thanks for the reply.

yawn · Post by **yawn** » Mon Aug 29, 2005 5:09 pm

Linda,
Maybe you're grinding your teeth at night. I've been wearing a mouth guard at night for years because I've been grinding my teeth forever. Now I'm grinding them in the daytime too...sigh.... Your dentist should be able to tell you if you're grinding your teeth.
Good luck,
Amy

qrlylox · Post by **qrlylox** » Mon Aug 29, 2005 9:07 pm

Hi Linda,
I had this problem too. My teeth hurt so much (reminded me of when I had braces as a kid, when they would tighten them), and my bite would be off somedays, my jaw hurt, and strangely, I also was biting the sides of my tongue. I had somedays I could hardly talk I was so sore.
Someone suggested that I was "fighting" my pressure level (13).
I tried a cheap mouthguard, but it didnt work (too bulky and made me gag), so ordered a Sleep Right mouth guard http://splintek.com/index.html.
A bit expensive but much less intrusive than normal sports type.
It worked for me - no more sore jaw, teeth or tongue.
If you are interested, google "Sleep Right mouth guard" as there are some sites w/ better prices than others.

lindas88 · Post by **lindas88** » Mon Aug 29, 2005 10:17 pm

Thanks yawn and qrlylox...I might just have to go to the dentist if this keeps up. yawn...I'm sure I am now grinding my teeth at night, but I wonder why....I never did that before. Maybe it is what qrlylox says. My pressure is only 10 and I never feel like it is to much. qrlylox...Tomorrow I will google search that mouthguard and see about it. Thanks to both of you.