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Is there a way to tell for sure if you have periodontitis?

L

Lordofthedance

Junior member
Joined
May 7, 2019
Messages
14
Location
Belgium
Hi, so I'm sorry for bothering people on this forum yet again, as I'm quickly turning into a regular costumer. However, lately all I do is panic about my teeth.

Here's my full story(sorry for length): Two weeks ago my tooth started feeling weird(not pain, but like a pressure) and my teeth didn't seem to fit together quite right. I called two practices, but I politely declined due to them not being able to fit me in til next month. At that point I was really worried. Then cut to a few days later and the weird feeling seemed to have passed, so I didn't call again and the anxiety went away.

Then, this week it flared up again: it seems to be all over my upper front teeth now and I have a stiff jaw and dry lips. I called a different practice and they were able to fit me in next week( the soonest I've encountered). Now I'm beating myself up over the fact I didn't call sooner, because I falsely presumed no dentist could fit me in till very late anway(also I have a fear of the dentist). I have trouble sleeping at night and have now convinced myself I have periodontitis with all the googling I did.

The last time I went was three years ago, due to a loose wire( I had a lot of dental work done in my teens, cause my jaw was crooked due to a syndrome). I don't go for yearly check-ups, but since having had braces 10 years ago, I've always brushed for two minutes, two times a day with an electric toothbrush.

Anyway, to cut a really long story short, I was wondering if there's a sure-fire way to tell if I have periodontitis( I fear I've already described it above.)
 
Hi, I know this is making you very anxious and I hope a dentist comes along soon to give you some answers.

Bearing in mind that I'm certainly not qualified to diagnose anything, what you've described doesn't sound like periodontitis to me, the main symptoms are inflamed red/swollen gums that are painful or bleed easily, there might also be bad breath from the infection, you've not mentioned anything like that at all.

It sounds to me like maybe you're clenching or grinding your teeth at night and the front teeth are taking the strain (I do this) so when you wake up the muscles in your jaw are tight and sore and the teeth feel uncomfortable from all the pressure they were under, you might also be sleeping with your lips parted making them dry and sore which can also inflame the gums slightly. It's a great idea to get a dentist's opinion with an actual check up so well done for getting that sorted! hopefully that will relieve the anxiety and the issue may sort itself out, if it is a jaw issue they're usually stress related.

Try not to worry too much in the mean time, even if it is gum disease (which I doubt) it's slow to progress and you're taking the right steps already. Best wishes
 
Thank you for taking the time to reply. I recently changed the position I sleep in so it might be bruxism. I also suffer from sleep apnea and I think I heard once that that ain't great for your pearly whites either. Plus, my panic and stress usually flare up at night. I was wondering if I could take steps to reduce the (possible) bruxism until my dental visit? I don't currently own a night guard, but maybe there is stuff out there that could calm me down a bit at night.
 
No problem, sorry I couldn't reply straight away, I actually had a dentist appointment to get my night guard adjusted. As for solutions until your appointment you might want to try a herbal sleep aid if it doesn't contradict any medicines you might be on, I had some relief using a low strength CBD oil before bed but something like calms or rescue remedy (I think that's the name) might help too, or even straight up valerian root which is in calms but doesn't smell too great on its own (seriously its not nice lol).
 
Also I think I heard sleep apnea can cause bruxing but maybe a dentist will chime in on that one
 
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