Moldable sport mouthguards are cheap and can work to prevent grinding. You can cut them down to size.
replyWord of warning, I did one of these about 3 years ago, and it left me in a tremendous deal of pain and a journey that reminded me heavily of OPs post.
replyAfter years I am finally doing mostly better, but would not wish that on anyone. Unfortunately I'm not an expert and can't tell you what is better, but there are few decisions I regret more than doing a cheap over the counter nightguard.
Once you use something like [1] where they make a custom one you'll never want to use the supermarket variety again. I would grind my way through the supermarket kind every 2-3 months but this one has held up really well and it cleans easily with denture cleaning solutions.
replyI tried all kinds of cheap options before shelling out the big bucks for a custom made guard. It's a night and day difference. The custom guards are ridiculously priced, but I cannot go back to OTC guards after having one.
replyThere are much cheaper options you can do at home instead of relying on a dentist to overprice it. See my comment elsewhere.
replyThe ones you are recommending in your comment history were not much cheaper than my custom, 3-D printed one from my dentist. Impression molded guards have nothing on what I ended up getting. I wish I knew the name of the device that was used to make it.
replyOften much more uncomfortable since they are much thicker, no?
reply> Another profession and service distorted by the insurance economy.
replyHit and miss. Dentists are an example of a non-insurance area in the US.
Regular health insurance doesn't cover dental procedures, and all dental insurances have a _maximum_ payout of around $1k a year. Not out-of-pocket maximum like regular health insurance, but a maximum value that _they_ pay out.
> put a chunk of plastic in my mouth to stop the grinding.
replyI have paid for two of these custom made guards. By far, have both been worth every single cent. I sleep so much better and have already reduced wear on tear on my teeth. I cannot sleep without my guard.