Teeth grinding ??

[andrewsmom]

Hi everyone!!

I read a post in the health/medical about someone grinding their teeth. Didn't want to "hijack" so I thought I'd post here.

Andrew also grinds his teeth....the sound goes right through me!! It's kind of like nails on a chaulkboard to me. But...he grinds his teeth right before he falls asleep and I have never heard him do it after he was sleeping. It's kind of like he does it to relax enough to sleep...kwim?

I'm wondering if this is something more common in kids with DS...or if any of you have kids that do this and what I could do to try to break this habit. In the other post it was suggested that her teeth were worn down from grinding and may even be painful. If Andrew has started grinding his teeth this young, I can only imagine what is going to happen when his "adult" teeth come in....ouch!

Any suggestions? Thanks!

-Trisha

[Chris]

Trisha ~ We have the same problem. I'm afraid that Sarah's teeth will be ground down to the gums. I have noticed that she grinds more when she has fluid in her ears or an ear infection. We touch her mouth and tell her no grinding. It drives me crazy.

Chris

[kellyd]

Hi Trisha, I too have a serious grinder . I posted something back on September 29 and I received a lot of advice that you may be of help to you. Unfortunately, I am still working on the grinding issue which drives us nuts as well. Everyone tells us just to ignore it but there is no way that we can.

If you go to page 41 of this general forum the posts are there. I hope it helps you because I feel your pain.....lol.

Kelly

[andrewsmom]

Well at least I'm not the only one!! LOL! I'm going to go look up your old post now Kelly, THANKS!!

-Trisha

[CC]

OMG Chris was a grinder like no grinder I ever saw before Funny thing i got so use to it, and didn't even hear it any more LOL BUT people would say, "What is that noise" and I was like "what noise" LOL

He is 14 now and rarely does it any longer but when he did we massage his gums, tell him "No grinding" and give him an ice pop to suck on.

With him he would grind only during the day, never at night and I myself being a grinder do it the exact opposite of him, I am a night time grinder

CC~

[Tammy]

It seems that tooth/teeth grinding is a very popular pastime...
I know that I often read about kids with DS that grind...
But...Look at my most recent post about Lewis and see what grinding does to teeth.
I never hear or see Lewis grind... he must do it in his sleep...but his front top teeth are worn down to stumps...to the point that we cant understand why it isnt causing him pain!!!
The Dentist recommends that while thay seem to nat cause discomfort, leave them alone...
Baby teeth are costly to repair and will only fall out anyway...
Might add here, that Lewis has had dental Xrays and they are confident that he has teeth to replace his baby teeth...know some people do not develop "adult" teeth and retain baby teeth for life...
It has been suggested that he may need a mouthguard or maybe even some kind of "brace" to stop him grinding his adult teeth.
To us at this stage it is " we will cross that bridge when we get there"...but it wont be too far away.
The only real advice I can give is Hang in there Trisha.

[Cbean]

OMG I live with this all day. In fact, what is that sound behind me??? UGH! I have chosen to ignore it till the adult teeth come in. Then if we haven't grown out of it I will do the mouth gaurd.

You are soooo not alone Trisha!!!