How would I know if I grind my teeth in my sleep?

Most people do not hear themselves, so it is usually identified by what it leaves behind. Common signs are jaw soreness or tiredness on waking, headaches around the temples in the morning, flattened or chipped tooth edges, teeth that have become sensitive, ridging along the inside of the cheeks, and a partner mentioning the noise. Your dentist can often see the wear pattern before you notice any symptom.

What causes teeth grinding?

There is rarely a single cause. Contributing factors include stress and anxiety, sleep-disordered breathing including obstructive sleep apnoea, some medications including certain antidepressants, alcohol, caffeine and smoking, and how the teeth meet. Because the causes vary, treatment usually addresses both protection of the teeth and whichever contributing factors can be identified.

Does a splint stop me grinding?

No, and that distinction matters. A splint does not stop the muscle activity. It puts a replaceable acrylic surface between the upper and lower teeth so the force is absorbed by the splint rather than the enamel, and it can reduce load on the jaw joint and muscles. The grinding continues; what changes is what takes the damage.

Can I use a chemist mouthguard instead?

A boil-and-bite guard is not designed for this. It is generally bulkier, fits less precisely, and because it does not control how the teeth meet, it can sometimes change the bite in unhelpful ways or encourage more clenching. Sports mouthguards are made for impact protection and are a different appliance again.

Why does grinding cause headaches?

The muscles that close the jaw include the temporalis, which runs across the side of the head above the ear. Sustained overnight activity leaves it fatigued, which is often felt as a headache around the temples on waking rather than as jaw pain.

Is there a link between grinding and sleep apnoea?

The two are associated, and grinding is sometimes noticed during investigation of disrupted sleep. If you snore heavily, wake unrefreshed, or a partner has noticed pauses in your breathing, that is worth raising, because treating the sleep issue may be the more important part. Diagnosis of sleep apnoea sits with a medical practitioner and a sleep study rather than with a dentist.

What happens if it is left alone?

Enamel wears down and does not grow back. Over years this can shorten teeth, expose the softer dentine underneath which then wears faster, increase sensitivity, and contribute to cracked teeth or failing restorations. Rebuilding worn teeth later is more involved than protecting them earlier, which is the practical argument for acting once wear is identified.

How long does a splint last?

It varies with how heavily someone grinds. A splint is a wearing surface by design, so it is expected to show marks and is replaced periodically. Bringing it to check-ups lets your dentist see how much force is going through it, which is useful information in itself.

Signs You Grind Your Teeth at Night | Divine Dental Care Croydon

Last updated: August 2026

Grinding happens while you are asleep, so you do not experience it directly. Most people find out one of two ways: a partner mentions the noise, or a dentist points out wear on the teeth that has been developing for years.

By the time it is obvious on the teeth, some enamel has already gone, and enamel does not come back. That is the reason this is worth identifying early rather than treating as a curiosity.

What It Leaves Behind

Signs you might notice yourself:

Jaw feeling tired or sore on waking, easing through the morning
Headaches around the temples first thing
Teeth that have become sensitive without an obvious cause
Front teeth looking shorter or flatter than they used to
Chipping along the edges of front teeth
Aching in front of the ear, or clicking when opening wide
A partner hearing it

Signs a dentist looks for:

Flattened wear facets that match up between upper and lower teeth when the jaw moves sideways
A horizontal ridge along the inside of the cheeks where they press against the teeth
Scalloped indentations along the edges of the tongue
Restorations that keep chipping or debonding in one person
Enamel worn through to the yellower dentine underneath, often on the biting edges
Bony ridges along the inside of the lower jaw

Wear facets are the giveaway. Ordinary chewing does not produce broad flat matching surfaces, and their pattern shows the path the jaw is travelling at night.

Why It Happens

There is seldom one cause. What contributes:

Stress and anxiety. The best known factor, though far from the only one.
Sleep-disordered breathing. Grinding is associated with obstructive sleep apnoea, and this is the possibility most often missed.
Medications. Some antidepressants among others list bruxism as a side effect.
Alcohol, caffeine and smoking. All associated with increased night-time activity.
How the teeth meet. A contributing factor in some cases rather than the usual explanation it was once treated as.

The sleep connection deserves attention. If you snore heavily, wake unrefreshed despite enough hours, or a partner has noticed you stop breathing briefly, mention it. In that situation the grinding may be a symptom of something with wider health consequences, and treating the airway matters more than protecting the enamel. Diagnosis there belongs with a doctor and a sleep study. Our article on snoring and sleep apnoea and the condition page cover the dental side.

What a Splint Does, and What It Does Not

A splint is a custom-made acrylic appliance worn over the teeth at night.

What it does not do is stop you grinding. The muscle activity continues. What changes is where the force lands: on a replaceable acrylic surface rather than on enamel, which is not replaceable. Many people also find the jaw muscles and joint feel more comfortable, since a splint alters how the teeth meet and can reduce the load the system carries.

It is protective rather than curative, and it is honest to be clear about that. A splint bought into as a cure disappoints; understood as armour, it does its job well.

Custom fit matters here. A splint is made to your teeth so it seats accurately and controls how the jaw closes against it. A boil-and-bite guard from a chemist is bulkier, fits less precisely, and because it does not control the bite it can sometimes encourage more clenching. Sports mouthguards are a different appliance built for impact rather than sustained load, covered on our sports mouthguard page.

If Wear Has Already Happened

Where teeth have shortened noticeably, the conversation widens. Once enamel is lost, the softer dentine underneath is exposed and wears faster, so the process tends to accelerate rather than plateau.

Protecting what remains comes first. Rebuilding worn edges is a separate decision, and doing it without addressing the grinding usually means the new work meets the same fate. Our building up worn teeth page covers the restorative side, and the teeth grinding page covers the condition.

Things That Sometimes Help Alongside

These are not substitutes for protecting the teeth, but they are reasonable to try:

Reducing caffeine and alcohol in the evening
A consistent wind-down before bed
Noticing daytime clenching, which many night grinders also do while concentrating or driving
Warmth on the jaw muscles in the morning where they ache
Raising it with your GP if a new medication coincided with the onset

How the Splint Gets Made

A splint has to fit precisely, which historically meant a tray of impression material and a few uncomfortable minutes. We take the impression with an intraoral scanner instead: a small handheld wand, a couple of minutes, no material and no gagging. For anyone with a sensitive gag reflex, which overlaps considerably with the group already tense enough to be grinding, that is the difference between having the appliance made and putting it off.

Who We See This In

Around 8,246 Croydon residents are aged between 25 and 44, and that is where the wear is usually spotted, nearly always at a routine check-up rather than because someone booked about it. The commuter pattern is part of it. Croydon sits toward the outer end of the Lilydale line, and a long daily run into the city is not a restful arrangement for anyone's jaw.

It is also common in children, where it usually resolves on its own and needs monitoring rather than treatment. Parents who hear it through the wall are generally more alarmed than the situation warrants. Raise it at your child's next check-up rather than making a separate appointment for it.

Getting It Looked At

A check-up will pick up wear facets and the associated signs, usually before you have noticed anything. If a splint is appropriate, it is made from a scan or impression of your teeth and fitted at a following appointment.

Call (03) 9725 8040 or book online. We are on Wicklow Ave, a short walk from Croydon station if you are coming off the Lilydale line after work. More on our teeth grinding splints page.

This article is general information, not personal dental or medical advice. Suspected sleep apnoea should be assessed by a medical practitioner. Do not change any prescribed medication without speaking to the doctor who prescribed it.

Signs You Grind Your Teeth at Night, and What a Splint Actually Does