Hypnosis for Bruxism

Bruxism is the repeated clenching or grinding of the teeth. It can happen while awake or during sleep and many people are unaware that they are doing it. Bruxism can cause jaw pain, headaches, facial tension, worn or fractured teeth and disturbed sleep. It may be associated with stress, emotional conflict, internalised anger, sleep problems, medication, dental factors or other health conditions.

Can hypnotherapy help with bruxism?

The Bill Frost: Changing States practice offers bruxism online hypnotherapy via Zoom and in-person hypnotherapy in High Wycombe. Sessions seek to reduce jaw tension, interrupt clenching patterns and support calmer responses to stress. Do speak to your GP first if symptoms could have a physical cause.

Clinical hypnotherapy is particularly effective at dealing with bruxism because it is mainly an unconscious activity.

One should note that **underlying causes may very well be present and these should also be addressed. The bruxism may not fully abate until underlying issues have been addressed.

** Underlying causes can result from periods of stress / anxiety / anger that were not fully processed at the time. Often the situation is such that little / no external expression of the e.g. anger / fury was possible at the time.

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Note: Self-help recordings are not a substitute for an individual assessment or tailored therapy.

More about bruxism

The word bruxism is derived from the Greek word brychein which means gnashing of teeth. Bruxism is the medical term that generally describes problematic teeth clenching or grinding.

Bruxism is the involuntary, unconscious, and excessive grinding, tapping, or clenching of teeth. There are several sub categories.

When clenching or grinding occurs during sleep the term nocturnal or sleep bruxism is used. Less frequently when clenching or grinding takes place during the day the term used is diurnal or wakeful bruxism is used.

In all cases of considerable force is applied between the upper and lower teeth. In the case of grinding or tapping this may cause audible sounds that can be a problem for other people eg a partner may be kept awake by the high pitched sound of grinding. In the case of clenching no sound is produced - the jaw often remains in the same position.

Bruxism is a continuum - we all clench or grind our teeth to some extent at some stage or other. It is a question of the degree of clenching or grinding and the impact that this has on the teeth, the jaw and the jaw muscles. It is entirely possible for someone to brux for their whole life without causing damage. The same level of bruxism is another person may cause very debilitating physical damage that may not be reversible.

The possible consequences of problematic bruxism include damage to the teeth due to wearing and or compression, damage to the joint in-between the jaw and the skull and exhaustion of the jaw muscles.

Testimonials

• "I have seen extensive improvement following my therapy session with Bill Frost. I have seen a massive drop in my daily stress levels and a vastly increased capacity for coping with stressful situations. My sleepwalking has stopped completely, as has my bruxism during the day, and I am grinding much less in my sleep. Highly recommended." {Bruxism / Sleepwalking}*

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• "Thank you, Bill, for helping me to feel much calmer through a stressful period. I am no longer waking myself up in the night, grinding my teeth. I appreciated your flexibility and willingness to work with what was most important for me each week. Also your ability to draw on different psychotherapeutic tools, as needed. I find your delivery of hypnosis incredibly relaxing and am grateful to have the two recordings, so I can listen from time to time." {Anxiety / Bruxism}*

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• "I initially started seeing Bill due to bruxism caused by anxiety, a couple of sessions into treatment I experienced a massive traumatic event.
  
  Through EMDR and Hypnotherapy Bill was able to prevent the symptoms I was experiencing from developing into full PTSD and was able to help me navigate this hard time.
  
  Bill is very friendly and professional and makes you feel at ease. His approach to therapy is not only the hypnotherapy / EMDR / talking therapy but to equip you to make changes and implement routines to continue with daily.
  
  Whilst I've been through the toughest life experience I hope I'll ever endure, the changes I've put in place since my sessions with Bill I'm sure have me feeling more grounded, and a deep calm that I don't recall feeling in my adult life. I'd go as far to say as genuinely life changing." {Anxiety / Bruxism / Trauma}*

*Disclaimer required by Google: We provide testimonials to help you gain confidence about how we work and results we achieve. However, please be aware that we whilst we bring 100% of our effort and skill to the process, as with all hypnotherapy / psychotherapy practices, results may vary between individuals.

Bruxism Hypnotherapy Research

Bruxism Research: Journal of the California Dental Association

Dentist Henry Clarke, at the Oregon Health Sciences University, used hypnosis to help relax anxious patients. Knowing that stress is believed to be a major cause of tooth grinding, (Bruxism), the researchers tried the technique on eight volunteers who were moderate bruxers. He hypnotized the patients weekly for up to two months, using such phrases as "lips together, teeth apart" and relaxing images such as hot towels on the face. Patients were instructed to play a tape of a session while falling asleep each night. Clarke found that nightly jaw muscle activity had decreased an average of nearly 40%, and facial pain was reported to be much diminished. (Changing States - more rapid results can be obtained when the seeding event is resolved / processed, in combination with self hypnosis).

Bruxism Research: Understanding change: Five-year follow-up of brief hypnotic treatment of chronic bruxism

LaCrosse, M. (1994) Understanding change: Five-year follow-up of brief hypnotic treatment of chronic bruxism. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis. Vol 36(4)

Describes the treatment of a 63-yr-old woman with a 60-yr history of nocturnal bruxism. Treatment included assessment, 2 psychotherapy sessions, including a paradoxical behavior prescription to reduce daytime worrying, hypnotic suggestions for control of nocturnal grinding, and reinforcement of the patient's expectations for success. Follow-up assessments at 2, 3, and 5 yrs revealed that she continued to be symptom-free with her self-reports corroborated by her spouse and family dentist.

Additional bruxism research sources