Between the demands of work and the demands of your home life, it can feel impossible to avoid stress all the time, but its effect on your well-being is serious enough to make it something you should limit as much as possible. Stress can impact your smile in direct and indirect ways. Stress can lead to TMJ dysfunction, and trigger a habit of grinding your teeth at night. These problems can cause you pain, and potentially damage your teeth – if you experience symptoms of either, let your Prairie Village, KS dentist know. Stress can also indirectly affect your oral health by intruding on your routine, and causing you to brush and floss less effectively.
Stress Can Lead To Habitual Teeth Grinding
TMJ dysfunction and bruxism are frequently connected, due to the way one of these conditions can lead to the other. If you suffer from these problems, the pain you feel in your face, neck, head, and jaw can become new sources of stress, making an already unhappy period harder to manage. Teeth grinding creates the added worry of dental damage. If you fail to act in time, your teeth could start to show signs of wear and tear that make your smile less attractive, and threaten your oral health.
Your dentist can work with you on these conditions, and put a stop to them. A special oral appliance you wear to alleviate problems with your jaw that affect your life. Your appliance can also protect your teeth at night, so that they are not damaged by persistent grinding.
Is Your Stressful Life Causing You To Make Choices That Hurt Your Smile?
Stress from a busy schedule can be a common issue for many people, but one that can feel difficult to properly address. If a stressful life period starts to interfere with your routine habits, and you fall out of a consistent brushing and flossing routine, your risk for problems like tooth decay will rise, as will your chance of having problems with gum disease.
Regular Checkups Keep You Informed About Your Smile
Even in stressful periods of your life, you should take care to protect your smile by regularly brushing and flossing, as well as by keeping your sugar intake under control. You should also keep up with your routine dental appointments. If you feel that your smile feels healthy, and that you can go without a planned exam, you should be aware that you could miss out on early detection and treatment for an oral health problem that could worsen, and create bigger problems for you.
Dr. Browne Can Help You Keep Your Smile In Good Health
Dr. Browne can help you preserve your healthy smile, even if you are experiencing a period of stress in your life. Our practice is excited to offer important oral health services to individuals in and around the Prairie Village, KS area. To learn more or to schedule a visit with Dr. Browne, contact our office today at (913) 901-8585.
