Dentists often recommend night guards to patients with bruxism, which includes teeth clenching and teeth grinding. While you sleep, you’ll wear the mouthguard on either your top or bottom teeth to protect your teeth from bruxism. Two common places where you can get a mouthguard are pharmacies and your dentist’s office. However, for a balance between affordability and quality, night guard dental labs are the way to go.
How to Get a Dental Night Guard?
Option 1: Order a Night Guard From Your Dentist
Here is what happens when you order a night guard through your dentist:
- You’ll have an impression of your teeth taken at your dental office
- Your teeth impression will be sent to a dental lab
- Next, professional technicians will use your impressions to manufacture your night guard
- Finally, you’ll return to your dentist’s office to try on your night guard. Your dentist might make some minor adjustments
Option 2: Buy an Over-the-Counter Night Guard
The above process can take weeks, which can feel like a long time when you have bruxism symptoms. Plus, this tends to be an expensive route. For people who want to save money and time, an over-the-counter night guard is an option. While you can have it in your hands the same day, it won’t provide the custom fit you’ll get with a high-quality night guard from a dental lab.
Option 3: Order a Night Guard From a Professional Dental Lab
In order to get that secure fit that won’t slide, you need a professionally made night guard from a dental lab. But rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, as is the case with over-the-counter night guards, each splint made in a dental lab is custom and unique. You can easily order a professional quality night guard online at Pro Teeth Guard. Plus, it's much more affordable than night guards ordered from your dentist.
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How a Professional Dental Night Guard Helps Teeth Grinding
If you have bruxism (teeth grinding), chances are it happens when you sleep. That means you might not even notice you have a problem until your dentist brings it up. While the cause is not known, bruxism has been associated with stress, certain medications such as antidepressants, and certain conditions such as sleep apnea or TMJ.
A dental night guard won’t take care of the problem’s root, but it will act as a barrier between your top and bottom teeth to take care of symptoms such as damaged teeth, headaches, tooth pain, jaw pain, or disrupted sleep. Here’s how a night guard from a dental lab can help:
Protection:
Professional night guards made in a dental lab are made of a durable high quality material designed to protect your teeth. Because it’s specifically designed for your mouth, it works with your natural bite and doesn’t interfere with the structure of your mouth.
Perfect fit:
A professionally fabricated night guard is like a hug for your teeth. It doesn’t shift, rock, or put uneven pressure on your teeth. You won’t need to worry about it sliding off in the middle of the night.
Durability:
Although more expensive than an over-the-counter night guard, a mouthguard fabricated in a dental lab is built to last. Because it’s built to protect your teeth for the long haul, it can also save you from expensive dental work down the line. Hard night guards are especially durable for heavy grinders.
Customizability:
There are many different options with professionally made night guards. Not only will you get the perfect fit, but you can order the material and structure that is best for your mouth. Talk to your dentist if you aren’t sure what type of night guard is right for you.
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Other Options for Treating Bruxism
While a night guard from a dental lab is a very common way to treat bruxism, it certainly isn’t the only way. If you or your dentist can determine the underlying cause of your bruxism, eliminating that cause could get rid of your grinding.
Some other potential treatments for bruxism include behavioral strategies like biofeedback for bruxism and botulinum toxins like Botox, although the use of Botox to treat bruxism is somewhat controversial due to the potential for negative side effects. Some people have also found relief via homeopathic remedies to treat teeth grinding.
It’s very important to discuss any potential treatments with your dentist and doctor, as each person has a unique situation and unique needs for their bruxism.
Where to Get a Mouthguard
Again, your mouthguard options include over-the-counter, ordering through your dentist, or ordering from a professional dental lab. Let’s review these routes in more detail and take a look at the places that provide mouthguards.
Over-the-counter
If you’re looking for a quick over-the-counter night guard option, you can get a night guard at your local pharmacy or an online retailer like Amazon. While this is convenient and inexpensive, an over-the-counter night guard won’t provide a perfect fit, and it won’t last as long as a custom-fit night guard. If you only have mild clenching, have a very limited budget, or just need something quick while you wait for a custom-fit night guard, an over-the-counter night guard can suffice.
Custom-fit from your dentist
If you’re looking for a custom-fit night guard, your dentist might have offered to provide you with a night guard. However, keep in mind this option is often very expensive. And while it guarantees a durable and professional night guard, it can also be time-consuming. It can take more than a month and multiple trips to the dentist until your comfortable and well-fitting night guard is in your hands.
Custom-fit from a dental lab
Fortunately, you can get the same quality you would expect from a custom dental mouth guard directly from a dental lab. Essentially, you’re cutting out the middleman to save money and time.
A custom-fit night guard from a retailer like Pro Teeth Guard will save you both time and money, as the order comes from you and not your dentist. Note that you will need to take an accurate impression of your teeth by yourself. If you think you can do that, an online retailer can give you a professionally made night guard with the same quality as the one you would get from your dentist.
How to Order a Custom Night Guard Online
If you want to order a night guard from the comfort of your own home, online dental fabrication labs make the process simple:
- Place an order online
- Receive an impression kit in the mail
- Follow the instructions to take impressions of your teeth
- Send your impressions to the lab
- Receive your completed night guard
The price will vary based on the night guard you choose but is typically between $150-$200. That tends to be much cheaper than a dentist’s quote. Plus, you can usually have your night guard in your hands within three to four weeks of placing your order.
At Pro Teeth Guard, you can get your custom-fit mouthguard at affordable prices. We make our night guards in a professional dental lab, and every night guard is guaranteed to fit comfortably with our 110% money-back guarantee.
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