As with anything, there are always a few drawbacks!
Initial gums discomfort:
In order to be objective, I feel it is important that I relay all the difficulties which I have encountered using the mouthpieces.
Ear Pressure:
Besides the initial discomfort for a few weeks of the mouthpiece putting pressure against my gums, I noticed a slightly odd feeling when taking it out in the morning. This was usually right below my ear and would usually go away if I shifted my jaw around for a minute or so. It wasn’t really painful, just noticeable. The funny thing is that I never felt it until after I took out the mouthpiece. Now after a few months, I rarely feel the feeling of pressure below my ears so I think that I have somehow acclimated to it.
Must breathe through nose:
Another issue I have found is that if I cannot breathe through my nose, the mouthpiece will end up coming out. When the mouthpiece comes out, my jaw will shift back to its “normal” position. The times I had trouble is either when I had a cold and my nose was clogged or sometimes if I worked out in the yard and my allergies flared up due to pollen or some sort of hayfever. A nasal strip used in conjunction with the mouthpiece seemed to help unless my nose was totally restricted. If I mowed in the evening and my nose became clogged later on in the night, it would force me to expell the mouthpiece and of course I started snoring without it in place. Luckily I am rarely sick, so this hasn’t been too major of a drawback.
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I want to thank you for writing such an interesting blog. I’m the snorer in my house and am tired of my husband waking me up throughout the night because he can’t sleep because of my loud snoring! LOL We have several friends that have the CPAP machines but I’m going to do what you did and try the mouthpiece first and see if that works. I don’t mind sleeping on the couch when I have to but the bed is much more comfortable!
Thanks Lisa! I hope it works out for you as well. It was a bit of an initial hurdle to get over and finally get comfortable with having in all night, but it has definitely helped me and my wife out tremendously. I can say after about 5-6 months now I almost don’t even notice it anymore and I don’t experience any soreness in my jaw or teeth.
So, are you still using a mouthpiece and doing fine with it? Still recommending it?
Great blog – thank you!
Thanks for the comment Lee. I’ve lost quite a bit of weight over the past year. It has helped somewhat “soften” my snoring according to my wife which is almost tolerable now for her. Some of the nights I have gotten away with not using it, however on most nights I am still using the mouthpiece especially if I am sleeping on my back. I have started to sleep on my back more often now though as I have been dealing with a pinched nerve in my back/neck which always necessitates using the mouthpiece.