Bruxism · Grinding and clenching

Grinding, clenching, waking up with a tired jaw.

Bruxism affects working adults under pressure more than anyone else: executives, lawyers, teachers. Tight masseters, morning headaches, teeth wearing down, a partner who hears the grinding at night. A night guard protects the teeth; physiotherapy treats the muscles and the habit.

Book an appointment See the approach

Beyond the guardMuscles and habits

EMG measuredSee your own tension

With your dentistTwo-way coordination

In brief

Bruxism is a parafunction: clenching or grinding outside any functional need, awake or asleep, strongly modulated by stress. It overloads the masseter and temporal muscles and the temporomandibular joints, and often coexists with neck tension and headaches. Treatment combines muscle work, habit awareness and, where useful, coordination with your dentist about a guard.

Daily life

Clenching the teeth, and everything else with them.

Bruxism does not pick a profile. What patients share is a period when everything had to be held together at once.

The partner hears it first

Grinding at night, loud enough to wake the person beside you. Often the reason for the first appointment.

A guard, and still the pain

Many arrive with a night guard and persistent tension: the teeth are protected, the muscles are not treated.

Headaches and tight shoulders

Morning headaches at the temples, a jaw that never fully relaxes, neck and shoulder stiffness on stressful weeks.

« I can feel that I am damaging my teeth. I wear the guard, but everything stays tight. »

What patients typically say at the first visit

01 Understanding

A habit the body keeps without asking.

Clenching and grinding overload the masseter and temporal muscles far beyond what chewing requires. Over months, this produces muscle pain, morning stiffness, headaches and tooth wear. Daytime clenching, often unnoticed at the desk or behind the wheel, is the most underestimated part.

What the literature saysBruxism is strongly modulated by stress and sleep quality. Management is multimodal: dental protection where needed, muscle treatment, habit-reversal for daytime clenching, and work on the triggering context. It is managed rather than cured: the goal is fewer symptoms, protected teeth and better sleep.

Masseter activity

02 The approach

Treat the muscles, change the habit.

Assessment of muscle tension, mouth opening in millimetres and functional scores. An EMG sensor can objectively measure masseter activity during the session: patients see their own tension on screen, and see it decrease.

Manual therapy and dry needling of overloaded muscles where indicated
A short daily routine: tongue posture, jaw release, targeted stretching
Habit-reversal work for daytime clenching
Coordination with your dentist about the guard, reports included

Personalised programme

03 Common questions

Bruxism, your questions.

Is a night guard enough?

A night guard protects the teeth but does not treat the muscle tension or the causes. Physiotherapy targets the muscles, the joint and the triggering habits.

Can bruxism be cured?

Bruxism is managed rather than cured: fewer symptoms, less muscle tension, protected teeth and better sleep. Most patients improve substantially with a combined approach.

How many sessions are needed?

It varies with severity and how long the pattern has been present. A first assessment gives you a realistic plan; progress is measured, so you see objectively whether it works.