Lower Lip Bite (Page 1)

R565:

hi. I'm afraid I don't have an answer to your specific question, but I have a lip biting problem myself that I thought you might be able to help me with.

I bit my lip while eating a sandwich a week ago. Since then, i've been biting it, accidently, almost always while chewing, almost everyday, if not every day. I've had successive involuntary lip biting episodes in the past, but none that seemed to last quite this long.

I've been trying to chew much more slowly and carefully, but I can almost never manage to go without chomping down on it during a meal once or twice. It's usually sort of a sudden, spasmodic bite, while i'm trying to move food around in my mouth, usually after taking too big a bite, which I have a habit of doing. This worries me. I've heard cheek biting might cause cancer. Can lip biting too?

I have moderate to advanced periodontitis, and I suspect a bite problem (malocclusion?) so I fear this may be the cause. I've been slightly, now and then, snagging the inside lip with my front teeth, but could this be due to swelling from the intermittent biting?

Well, sorry I couldn't help you, but I was wondering if you had a similar problem, and how you dealt with it.

Thanks.

James n. Dawson/idiopathic12

Hi there

I found this site whilst doing a search for any information on lip biting as I have been experiencing this problem whilst eating and it's worrying me. I was relieved to find that someone else had had exactly the same problem. I was wondering if idiopathic12 was still having this problem or has it gone away?

It isn't the first time this has happened. I've had it a few times and it's stopped then come back out of the blue. It's completely involuntary and spasmodic and very painful. You described it perfectly.

If it keeps happening I will have to consult my GP.

Can anyone tell me why this happens please.

lunarjoycie,

Yes, my lip biting resolved itself probably more than a year ago. I've bity lip while eating recently, but not hard and it hasn't recurred or started a pattern. I think I've sort of become more aware when I'm getting to hurried in my chewing and taking bites that are too big.

My dentist said my bite is off, and it probably has been for years. I wasn't aware of this. According to him you can grind your teeth, your teeth can be lose and your bite can be off even when you don't know it. I suppose this may contribute to the tendency to bite your lip, besides wolfing your food, as I have a habit of doing.

Hope your own lip biting's resolved itself since your last post. I think you just have to be careful, and it'll stop eventually.

Good luck.

idiopathic12/James

Hi idiopathic12/James

Thanks for your reply. I'm happy to say my lip biting problem has resolved itself although realistically I know it may happen again as it's happened a few times.

However, I am more aware of it now and, like yourself, am consciously slowing down my eating and taking smaller bites of food. I have nipped my lip a couple of times but not taken a huge chunk out of it as I almost did before!!

It seems to me that there's always something to worry about but c'est la vie as they say.

Nice to know other people suffer too (that sounds awful but you know what I mean).

Thanks again

Kind regards

lunarjoycie

Dear r565 and Idiopathic, I sympathize with you to no end! I googled "lip biting while eating" and found your posts. I also have a terrible time lip biting DURING EATING and now my mouth has several sores and I keep biting them. This has worsened over the last year or so and is getting quite intolerable. Please Note readers that I do NOT have a lip biting issue that may be psychological but this issue is a physical anomaly that only happens while I eat. Yes I eat quickly and full mouth, but I do try NOT to bite. Yiikees, any suggestions?

I have been doing this lip biting thing for about 5-6 yrs. now. Sometimes twice or so in about a 10 minute sit down. Yes it leaves a sore and it takes a while for it to heal. I don't have a bite problem, it's just that sometimes while chewing I "chomp" down on my lip. Ouch! Really. I may not do it for months then all of a sudden - chomp. I've even said, "let me slow do and think about what I'm doing. Okay for a while and when I'm not thinking/aware of the "danger" - - chomp. My brother-in-law does it too sometimes. We laugh at each other when we're sharing experiences.

bestartifacts,

I'm afraid I can't offer any advice, except being VERY conscious of eating smaller bites and chewing more slowly and carefully. (I wolf my food too, but not as much now, due to this lipe-bit tendency). Maybe you ought to try soups, stews and smoothies awhile, and your "neuromuscular" response will go back to normal.

I did have a dental exam about a month ago, and my dentist did confirm my bite was off. Maybe you should see your dentist to have that looked at. (What to do about it and how much it'll cost, I have no idea. Mine hasn't been worked on yet, and I have no idea how much it would or will cost, or what it involves.)

Again, SLOW and CAREFUL is the only possible cure I'm aware of. Or get yourself a blender. Good luck!

idiopathic12/James

Lip biting as described is very common, and doesn't require a malocclusion. Malocclusion makes lip biting more likely, but as you can tell by the frequency of related posts, is not required.

R565- you are describing a hygroma that occurred from salivary gland trauma from the lip bite 1 yr ago. Draining the yellow fluid (saliva trapped in the injury) will relieve the swelling temporarily (if not permanantly). Sometimes a small surgery is required to permanently resolve the issue.

Eating slower and with less distraction is the easiest way to reduce or prevent lip biting while eating.

Hope this was helpful.
Mach7, MD

Thank you for this post, I am also a lip biter. I just recently bit my lip once without knowing it, then again on the same wound really hard and bled. I have the same wound in my mouth for like a week now, and it hurts to eat and kiss. I think that it is due to eating fast, not concentrating and an off bite that I was suspectible to this.

Another suggestion is to always stay hydrated and keep your mouth moist, and wear chapstick all the time. I am going to concentrate more when I eat, and enjoy my food! Good luck others!

Just googled this site re lip biting and was so relieved to see I
'm not alone. I bit my lower front lip with my front teeth last week so hard it made it bleed and have since bitten a couple more times but am very aware when eating now and make a point of chewing slowly as paranoid i will take another chunk out of it. I have done this a few times in the past but it seems to be coming more of a regular occurence. Fingers crossed we all stop soon.

Hello,
I'm on the line too, maybe a bit deeper. My dentist tends to tell me I might eventually get cancer from biting.. well eating, destroying my inner lips and inside mouth. I can't stop. The more I want to stop the more I deepen the holes. Blood is only the first clear sign, if only I could stop there *grin* Right now half my lower lip got eaten is 20mins (what I call superficial bite, first layer of skin out) and yesterday I cleared the right cheek inside quite deeply though, and now it's healing.. all white and hurtful. I think it's due to anxiousness but no idea what causes that anxiousness. Almost 30yo and done this very bad habit for all my life. Can't stop it *grin*

This is weird but painful! I have suffered this lip biting during eating a couple of times over the years and have had a very bad episode today. Started about two days ago while eating lunch a work. I've been preparing for a big presentation which I was quite uncomfortable delivering and I think this has contributed to my lip injuries. After the presentation I stopped at Subway for a late lunch again and bit my lip 8 times while trying to eat a foot long sub. Now I have a splitting headache and tried to eat a little of my wife's pasta salad and did it twice more. Yes, I may eat a little too quickly but now I'm thinking it has something to do with the stress I've been under for the past few days doing this dam presentation. I think its due to anxiousness too!

yes, i'm a lip biter but not often. What I do is first rinse my mouth especially the bite area with hydrogen peroxide. Don;t know if this reduces the sore but it should do some cleansing. Since my bite this time is at the front of my lower lip i find that using a pout with my lower lip stops the biting. it looks odd but if it helps who cares. This is hard to hold for long so I use another tactic. I put a piece of food over the bite and eat that way. it slows eating but that is probably a good thing. a piece of chicken or a lima bean is good for me. it will get dislodged but I get another and go on. I've been two days now with no bites. Hope this helps somebody.

r565, I bit the inside of my lower lip in the same spot twice in a one week period. It has been over a month now and I still have a large swollen bubble in the spot where I bit. It is not painful, but it is visible when I smile and is rather anoying. If you were ever able to get rid of the swelling, what did you do?

I've bitten my lip really badly, not cause eating. It was kinda self-inflicted ( I was kind of out of it ) but now its been really swollen and all yellowish and around the yellow red. I've bitten my lip in the same spot but never as bad. I'm concerned it may be infected. Any ideas ? I've been searching all over the internet and this is the first site close to my condition.

I've just bitten my lower lip for the 2nd time today, while I was eating an apple and the lip-biting was completely involuntarily. This happens to me during prolonged periods when I'm highly stressed or anxious. I'm finishing my PhD and I might bite my bottom lip off by the time its over! My jaw spasms shut and sometimes, for those few milliseconds, I'm even aware its happening while its happening. If you're like me than I say treat the root of the problem - stress, and eat a lot more slowly!

i have a lip problem im 13 and im a lip biter and today i bit my lip and it swelled up massive and i dont know how to cure plz help a poor kid

HERE'S A SUGGESTION:
i have bitten my lip (and even worse, my tongue) far too many times, BUT KNOW THAT EVERY SINGLE TIME I HAVE, it is due to my talking while chewing, or thinking about something else (reading, tv, etc.), or even over-enjoying the food (e.g., chocolate, cookies, etc.) all of which pevent FOCUSING and CONCENTRATING ON THE ACT OF CHEWING. Is this an easy habit to learn ? Maybe not, but EVERY TIME I BEGIN TO EAT, I KNOW I MUST THINK ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES IF I DON'T (pain and discomfort for many days, inconvenience, worry about possible serious long-term health problems, embarassmemt, regret, feeling stupid, etc.) AND THUS REALIZE IT IS VERY MUCH WORTH IT, AND JUST DO IT. THIS habit (remembering to think about it when i start eating) is NOT so hard to develop, especially because after finishing my meal or snack without incident, i 'REWARD' myself with a mental pat on the back, an imaginary high-five, etc., a 'way to go !'. In fact, i enjoy food even more while concentrating on the act of eating and enjoying it and the act of preventing harm to myself. It feels good (of which i REMIND myself), so i do it !

btw, it is proven that when one eats slowly and concentrates on the food, puts down ones fork and knife and chews well before swallowing, one eats a LOT LESS and thus stays fit. It is also very very important to eat the right foods, and to do this one must think about what one is about to eat, and why, then do it correctly. SO, maybe you have something 'better' to do, but after you bite your lip or tongue, suffer the pain, and put on too much weight, you might realize that you DON'T.

EATING (or 'dining') should be a meditative, focussed experience. It makes it even more enjoyable, and less harmful. Be grateful that you have food to eat and time to eat it. There is plenty of time to say something BETWEEN bites (not while chewing, which is rude anyway), and if you must read or watch the tube while eating, or for some reason eat on the run, keep in mind the danger and BE CAREFUL (it's WORTH it, and that is that).

For those with an ulcer, look up mucocele. If there is a liquid filled ulcer that never goes away, that is what it is and you will need surgery. Also, making sure your lips are closed together while chewing seems to help. I've already had one mucocele and i'm in danger of another.

PLEASE HElP !!
Okay well I have a bad habit of bitting my lip,One night I bit it So Hard.The Next Day I Could See Bite Marks On My Lip..(eww).It Hurts So Much every time i eat My Lip hurts and when i barely touch it,it hurts.I Already Gargled with salt water.Is There Anything Else to heal it?

PLEASE HElP !!
Okay well I have a bad habit of bitting my lip,One night I bit it So Hard.The Next Day I Could See Bite Marks On My Lip..(eww).It Hurts So Much every time i eat My Lip hurts and when i barely touch it,it hurts.I Already Gargled with salt water.Is There Anything Else to heal it?