Nick Kemp - Treating Bruxism

Bruxism, or teeth grinding, can be treated successfully using light or deep relaxation (hypnosis), and NLP to change the problem behaviour. In most instances the client finds themselves in an emotional spiral from which, regardless of what they think, they can't find any relief. It's useful to remember that the actual grinding of the teeth is at the end of a behavioural sequence. Prior to the teeth grinding the individual has to think and feel a certain way in order to create a state which then results in the activity to create "the problem".

In many instances the individual then finds that they are endlessly anticipating the problem and thinking in the same way, feeling the same and then exhibiting the same problem behaviour. Every day becomes like "Groundhog Day" which can frequently lead to a feeling of helplessness. As if this wasn't bad enough, the teeth grinding can often also result in physical dental problems and of course a lack of proper restful sleep.

I have treated many people with this, including one client who had actually bitten through the mouth guard supplied by her dentist whilst sleeping, and another client whose jaw had locked up so much that he had problems even eating. Both these clients were also great examples of "anticipated anxiety". Of course anxiety ALWAYS requires the individual to be focussing on the future (problem) possibilities rather than relaxation, which is always about ease in being in the here and now. The combination of NLP, Hypnotherapy and other tools works really well to change the old "problem pattern" of behaviour, so that the client can begin to feel substantially better. The client with the locked jaw problem was amazed at how relaxed he felt even during the very first session.

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