How can I stop night time teeth grinding?

[sunflower21]

I have been a night time teeth grinder for probably at least 7 years, likely due to lots of stress. I didn't even know it until a few years ago when I kept experiencing jaw pain, shoulder stiffness and signs of worn/flattened surfaces of my back and side molars. I finally had a custom nightguard made recently at my dentist's office which fits well and is relatively comfortable, but I know I'm still teeth grinding badly every night because I have aching jaws throughout the day and some wear marks on the nightguard after just a few weeks. I wore braces as a teen and since then my bite has become a little off due to dental work, a crown and general teeth shifting since I stopped wearing my retainers. I'm still under lots of stress which is likely not to lessen anytime soon. My question is to how to stop the teeth grinding? I tried Valerian tea but nothing really seems to work for me since it's getting worse and starting to cause some TMJ symptoms. I've thought of getting Invisalign to fix my bite and see if that changes anything, but the cost is too high for me at this point. Any ideas?

[Jerome Bogin, D.D.S.]

I have no clue how you could stop the grinding. It is easy to tell you to reduce the stress in your life but that is easier said than done. I think you need to keep wearing the night guard so that you are not wearing down your teeth. It is easier and less expensive to make you another guard rather than restoring worn teeth.I know nothing about your bite so I can not comment on whether or not ortho will help you.