I keep biting my tongue in the middle of the night...

[GoddessOfGuinness]

My molars crunch down on the back of my tongue. It's a helluva way to wake up.

Any suggestions?

(hoping for some serious ones to go with the inevitable laughs) :hi:

[halobeam]

1. Well, sorry to hear this

I can't give you the serious advice you need, I don't know much about what you are going through. I do however wonder if it's related to my punching myself in the nose during sleep? :rofl:No kidding, I've been hit, but don't know how else it happened. No I wasn't drunk or sleep walking. I'm in serious discomfort though, got to tell ya, maybe it's all due to stress.. (all this punching and biting)!! Life is very strange.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

4. Ouch!

Did you wake up after hitting yourself?

[halobeam]

9. No, Thats the weird part.

First I thought maybe an insect bite or something, but there's nothing there except a very sore bone and soreness just like if you got "socked". I would think I'd wake from it too.. but I've been really stressed and so when I can actually sleep, I'm out cold. LOL (maybe I've been knocking myself out cold?)

[supernova]

2. Ouch

Have you tried a mouth guard like teethgrinders use?

[GoddessOfGuinness]

5. I never have...

Are they like the ones kids use for sports?

[supernova]

6. Sorta

but I think they're a little less bulky.

There is one model at the drug store that is moldable. It's soft enough to fit to your teeth the first time you wear it.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

8. That sounds good...

Thanks!

[Connonym]

3. a mouth guard? You probably have bruxism

Tons of different kinds out there. The sport kind that you can get at the drugstore may be enough to keep you from biting your tongue. http://www.dentalconcepts.com/html/nightguard.html There are also more expensive ones or your dentist can make a custom one. I have a custom one from my dentist (I have an awesome dentist -- he sold it to me for cost so it wasn't very expensive) because I clench my teeth in my sleep. The guard does help.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

7. Thanks for the info!

I'll see if a cheapo one will do the job. I think I have been grinding my teeth for some time now...ever since 2000...

[rateyes]

10. Hypnic Jerk...

not you, the twitch that causes you to bite your tongue. It's happened to me recently. After about the third time, I started noticing that, laying on my side, with my mouth open, my tongue relaxes to rest between my teeth. Then, when the sleep stages change...a hypnic jerk causes my whole body to twitch one time (as opposed to a myoclonic twitch, which happens about every 30 seconds), and I end up biting my tongue.

I had to make myself pull my tongue in and close my mouth a little, or fall asleep on my back. Hasn't happened in a while.

[idgiehkt]

21. I do this

but i know the reason, because I had braces 25 years ago when they pulled a bunch of your top teeth and pulled your teeth *in*, so I have a very narrow palate and TMJ which is jaw arthritis that apparently alot of people have gotten from the way they used to do braces for overbite back then.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

24. I wasn't sure whether I jerked before or after I bit myself.

[halobeam]

11. I just told my kid about this,

he asked if either one of us has taken Ambien lately! LMAO!!!:rofl: He said, they list for half the commercial, the possible side effects.

He's 12 btw.. really cracked me up on that one.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

14. Haha!

Is one of the side effects the sudden urge to amputate one's tongue?

[halobeam]

25. I bet! but I'm sure they didn't have to list everyone of them.

[fudge stripe cookays]

12. I did this too...

Up until just recently. I started noticing it more often just before I left Texas. Think it's cause I'm stressed about the move, selling the house, etc.

I was going to go get one of those mouth guards, but haven't needed it as much since I moved up here.

Doesn't it suck to wake up and your freaking tongue hurts cause you've been gnawing on it for an hour or so and you can't taste anything? I hate that!

[GoddessOfGuinness]

15. Yes!

It still hurts, in spite of ibuprofin and Listerine. I hope I don't bite it tonight. I'm going to pick up a mouth guard tomorrow.

[Adsos Letter]

13. Oh...if only I could learn to bite my tongue...

...life would get less "complicated"...and I might not be sleeping on the couch as much...

[GoddessOfGuinness]

16. Maybe; but your SO might not appreciate being awakened

by your pained howls! :D

[Beausoir]

17. My husband has the same thing. It drives him crazy and it hurts like hell.

He takes big chunks out of his tongue.

You can get a mouth guard....but they are hard to sleep with.

Something you might want to try is a BreathRight nasal strip. They are comfortable they may just disrupt that tongue biting pattern enough to get by. I'd give that a try.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

18. I hope they don't make me snore

any more than I already do!

[Beausoir]

19. No, they are really slick. They are comfy and they make it easier to breathe through your nose.

It's worth a shot.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

22. Sounds like it!

Thanks!

[Skittles]

20. get your dentist to fit you with a night guard

yes INDEED

[GoddessOfGuinness]

23. I think I'll try one of the OTC varieties first...

to see if I'm on the right track. Thanks! :hi: