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gum recession due to overbrushing

M

melin

Junior member
Joined
Mar 11, 2007
Messages
8
Hi,

went along to the dentist today after a long absence. My teeth are thankfully okay, but I have receeding gums as a result of overbrushing with a "medium" toothbrush.

I'm hugely relieved that there isn't any periodontal disease, but wonder what I need to do now, other than use a soft-bristled brush. The recession is really quite marked in places, and I'm wondering how much I can expect the gum to regenerate...or if it will at all.. :(

I'd be really grateful for some advice,

Cheers
 
Get an electric brush, preferably a decent brand like Braun Oral-B. Can you have an appt with a hygienist so she can see you using the brush and help with your technique?

The gum won't grow back.
 
Thanks Gordon.

I'm a bit fed up with myself that I've damaged my gums forever, not clever....I've got very clean teeth though!

I was using a sonicare brush for several months, but I'd felt that that was where my problems started. Maybe it was too firm a bristle...or maybe it was just that I was brushing too frequently.

The dentist was very lovely but I really had to press for a snippet of advice, and they just said that things would be fine with a baby-soft brush. I will ask about the hygeinist when I'm next there though.

I'm guesisng that my teeth are now at quite high risk of decay where they're not protected by gum...? Heck.
 
melin said:
I'm a bit fed up with myself that I've damaged my gums forever, not clever....I've got very clean teeth though!
Don't beat yourself up too much....some of us manage to do this without breaks in regular dentalcare as the excuse. Over the years I received lots of conflicting advice but think my problem started when brushing too much when I wore braces as a teenager. I usually get told it won't get any worse if I'm careful and over many years I suppose it has stabilised.

melin said:
I'm guessng that my teeth are now at quite high risk of decay where they're not protected by gum...? Heck.
Not in my personal experience.....it's best to floss daily though. I think the current research shows that the rotary head brushes such as the Braun Oral B are best....you can get babysoft ones not just normal ones if you look.

The only real problem I have found is that eating icecream is literally a pain owing to increased sensitivity unless you keep it at bay with use of sth like sensodyne....I also had some desensitising treatment put on some teeth a year ago and that plus sensodyne seems to work fine......I actually had a pleasant icecream eating experience at the weekend whereas I have tended to avoid it for many years :p.

There are surgical solutions where you take tissue from the roof of the mouth and graft it on but you are probably not at that stage...and with preventitive action need never be....apparently grafts don't always work anyway.
Best wishes.
 
melin said:
I'm guesisng that my teeth are now at quite high risk of decay where they're not protected by gum...? Heck.

Nope not really (decay being caused by sugars and some starches), they're more at risk of sensitivity though. It sounds like you're doing fine in that department if your teeth are ok after a long absence :).
 
Thanks so much people for your replies and helpful advice.

It's a great site..coming on here spurred me on to make the dreaded appointment to see a dentist after years of avoiding it (that and noticing my receeding gums, at which point I started scrubbing even harder!)

My main reason, latterly, for not seeing a dentist was because I felt so ashamed that I hadn't been going, and had assumed that my teeth were in such a dreadful state that the dentist would be appalled with me. Reading about everyone else's bravery, and also the supportive and sympathetic comments from the dentists here made me feel human again.

I've read it so many times here already, but living with the fear and anxiety is so much worse than going to the dentist..I felt completely liberated just by making the appointment, and that was even when I thought that I'd be facing tonnes of work. Just the thought of getting to a point where I didn't worry in secret about my teeth any more.

Thanks for all that you do, and good luck to people out there who are feeling wretched about it all just now...

:thumbsup:
 
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