Grinding my Teeth while Lifting

[FastLane]

Recently (last 3 weeks) the right side of my jaw has progressivly gotten worse in its aching and soreness.

I also have begun grinding my teeth at night, and wake up with a very sore jaw. I can't even close my mouth shut and have my right molars seat.

I'm sceduled to see the dentist on Monday.

Has anyone else ever experienced this?

Thanks.

 

[Goldfish]

I've never had tooth-grinding become a problem as a result of weightlifting, but I've had problems with grinding my teeth in my sleep. Sitting in front of a computer before bed is bad for this, because the light coming out of the screen has an excitory effect, causing toothgrinding at night.

 

[aliCOOPER]

i've heard people who has been tooth-grinding as a result of weightlifting but i never thought it could be that serious. i think you should see a dentist immediately for an advice.

 

[illiniphase4]

Recently (last 3 weeks) the right side of my jaw has progressivly gotten worse in its aching and soreness.

I also have begun grinding my teeth at night, and wake up with a very sore jaw. I can't even close my mouth shut and have my right molars seat.

I'm sceduled to see the dentist on Monday.

Has anyone else ever experienced this?

Thanks.

Not to this extent. The grinding while lifting is consciously controllable, and that's going to be up to you to continue breathing properly and not doing it during a rep.

You dentist will likely prescribe a night-time mouth guard so that when you grind in your sleep you don't continue to do damage.

But as for the pain in your jaw, it might be a good idea if you went to see a physical therapist that specializes in TMJ (temporo-mandibular joint) dysfunction. Basically, because the jaw is used so often throughout the normal course of the day (and now at night with your grinding) you are providing it very little time to recover, so a targeted therapy program to correct any imbalances in the jaw and facial muscles may be necessary.

 

[Habib]

I have a bad habit of clenching my teeth on heavy lifts as well. Chew gum just be careful not to choke on it.

 

[illiniphase4]

I wouldn't suggest going to a physical therapist or any of that. You know why? We're a bunch of people on an internet forum and we're not appropriate to guide you here, unfortunately.

Go to your doctor, then do what he says. If you have a long wait, go buy a dollar mouth guard and wear it at night until you get to the doctor.

I just saw you said you have a dentist appointment, if he doesn't help go to the doctor, it can be an actual medical reason you're doing this, and the teeth are just the symptom.

Why not? You're making the suggestion of seeing a doc, but in many states, you don't necessarily need a script anymore to see a PT. I think about 45 now have direct access to physical therapy. And PTs with a DPT are adequately trained to perform a proper evaluation of the medical issues surrounding the problem.

 

[illiniphase4]

PT's are not doctors. Period. They are invaluable to the health process, no doubt, but they are not trained to "evaluate medical issues". Teeth grinding can be a sign of A LOT of things, and it's not appropriate to go straight to fixing the problem without having the proper person diagnose the problem.

Teeth grinding can be a lot of things, and joint pain is joint pain. Either way, PTs with a DPT have typically had extensive training regarding diagnostic medicine. I'm not saying that they can be cut completely out of the process... but they don't necessarily always need to be included in it either.

And really my recommendation about seeing the PT is in regards to the TMJ pain, not the reasoning behind the grinding teeth. That can range from medical to psychological.