LOUD vocal stim and teeth grinding / tensing.

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Help ! ! My son's exceedingly loud "eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" vocal stims are now accompanied by vicious teeth grinding - almost nonstop - and he tenses and squuezes my arms very tightly while doing so.

I am really worried. What do these things indicate ? He has stimmed "eeeee" before but the horrific tooth grinding and arm squeezing while tensing up are new. He cannot tell me as he is not verbal. Help !

No idea what it means but he may need a mouth guard to prevent him from doing irreversible lifetime damage to his teeth. It may even help calm him if he has something to bite down onto. I used grind my teeth before as a form of stimming.

Tensing up and teethgrinding/clinching seems to occur often in autism.
My dentist said - as long as I can remember (since 5) the I was "the type" who would grind teeth and be tense.

Maybe he's more stressed out or anxious lately than he used to be. Is there anything going on that could be contributing to those things? I heard that medication that can help with stress or anxiety helps some people stop grinding their teeth. It would be best to talk to a doc or psych about those things thou & try to find a non med way to help him 1st.

Sensory overload. Stress. Frustration. Involuntary reflex. Take your pick of one or a combination. At least that's my guess based on personal experience.

Low magnesium levels can make it difficult to relax muscles in the body and can lead to teeth grinding or restless legs. Stress can also cause teeth grinding.

I've had two root canals due to teeth grinding.

It happens when I'm sleeping or when I'm under extreme stress when awake. If I'm overloading and I can't get away, then it's crunch time, the noises are horrible and my jaw will ache for days after. My dentist loves me though, regular business for broken fillings.