If you have recently visited Panoramic Dental and the dentist or orthodontist prescribed an oral appliance for you, you probably have questions. The most pressing question patients have is whether or not it's uncomfortable to sleep with an oral appliance. The answer has many variables, but Panoramic Dental is here to cover the variables and answer this question for you.
It Depends on the Appliance
A mouth guard, for example, may feel weird at first, but it's not like sleeping in headgear for braces. Likewise, sleeping with invisible retainers or accidentally falling asleep with Invisalign or other invisible braces feels different too.
Sleeping with headgear for braces takes the most getting used to as the headgear can be felt all the way around your head. The part that sticks out from the front of your mouth also causes some patients problems with sleeping on their side or front. Back sleepers have no issues.
A mouth guard used as protection against bruxism (grinding teeth while you sleep) may feel bulky and uncomfortable at first. However, most patients report that they adapt quickly because they don't wake up with facial pain or headaches. Other oral appliances are lightweight and barely noticeable when you sleep.
The Oral Issue Being Treated
Patients require oral appliances for jaw alignment, teeth alignment, and overall protection of the teeth. Depending on the severity of your oral issue and how your dentist or orthodontist is treating it, the appliance may be uncomfortable to sleep with initially. As the treatment begins to work, you may notice discomfort less and less.
How You Typically Sleep at Night
Back sleepers have the least difficulty adjusting to sleeping with an oral appliance. There is nothing pressing on their faces because their heads are facing toward the ceiling.
Stomach or front sleepers have it the worst because they put their faces with the oral appliances right into the pillows. Side sleepers can adapt and find a comfortable position for their faces and heads while still sleeping on their sides. Depending on how you sleep, you may or may not find an oral appliance uncomfortable.
Talk with Your Dentist or Orthodontist at Panoramic Dental
If you have any further concerns about your oral appliance, talk to your dentist at Panoramic Dental. He or she can help you figure out how to sleep with the appliance in a way that is most comfortable for you.