Mystery pain ruining my life

[realh]

I've suffered from rapid tooth decay most of my life; I think 12 have been extracted, and most of the remaining ones are crowned and root filled. For the last few years I've had pain on the right side. It's not usually very severe, but what makes it so awful is that painkillers don't really help, and I can't tell where it's coming from and get it treated. It's making my anxiety and depression much worse, and I've actually cancelled holidays at the last minute because of that. It comes and goes, usually for days-weeks at a time, but it feels like the periods when it's not bothering me are getting shorter. Sometimes the pain feels more like it's coming from the top and sometimes from the bottom. The only thing I'm 100% sure about is some gum inflammation between two crowns in the upper jaw, which seems more or less permanent (what could be causing it?), but the pain that's bothering me feels more sort of dull, deep and constant, whereas gums tend to cause sharper pain only when brushing or flossing.

Years ago I had pain which seemed to come from near the back of my upper jaw, but when I went to my dentist we discovered it was the lower canine, and he root filled it. So I'm thinking the nerves are a bit screwy in that area and it's likely that canine is causing the pain again at the moment. That root filling is something like 20 years old now. And with all the other deep fillings etc, plus some soreness where it feels like there are sharp parts of bone under the gum at old extraction sites, they could be aching in sympathy. There's also probably tension in my jaw.

I saw my dentist about it yesterday, he took X-rays top and bottom, tapped them all, and applied cold, but nothing showed up, except the inflamed gum (and that only after I told him about it). He suggested I could have most of the remaining teeth on that side extracted and get dentures, but that's going to be months away. I'm due to have an extraction on the other side next week (which would cause enough anxiety by itself at the best of times), and then a crown and inlay replaced after that, so we thought it best to defer the decision about the RHS until after that. The extraction is going to be done by a specialist at a different surgery from my usual dentist because there isn't enough tooth left to pull normally. Today the pain is worse than ever and I'm dreading going through the extraction and recovery while in so much pain on the other side, but I don't want to put it off any longer either.

Help!

 

[Sevena]

You should go to the doctor.

Nerve pain is often not affected by traditional over the counter painkillers, though there are other medicines that can ease it. One thing that's important to note is that it can be made worse by anxiety and stress, and anxiety and stress also affect how we perceive pain. It's common for people to be very worried about unexplained pain, and the pain becomes more frequent and/or severe as a result.

I'm no expert or medical profession, but the doctor may be able to investigate a little further and perhaps prescribe something that will help.

Dealing with frequent pain can be really upsetting and it can have negative consequences for your mental health. That is also something you should be able to discuss with your doctor. It doesn't matter if the pain isn't usually severe - for it to be having such a negative impact on your life means it's an important issue.

Hang in there, and don't be afraid to ask for help. You might want to look up calming meditations and grounding exercises for when your anxiety is high. You alone might not be able to do anything about the pain right now, which is very disheartening, but you can put a focus on your mental health.

 

[realh]

Thanks, that's really helpful. I think you're right about the mental interaction, and it's like a feedback loop. I have got long term anxiety and depression too, but every time I try antidepressants they make my anxiety and insomnia much worse. I have told my doctor about the pain; he just said to increase my dose of amitriptyline which I take for sleeping; it's not a big help. I think I'll have to go back to him. My sister, who's a nurse, said I should also ask to be referred to a maxillo-facial specialist. I mentioned that in a letter I sent to my dentist a few weeks ago, but he didn't bring it up yesterday, and it must have slipped my mind. I think I'm also subconsciously avoiding asking for extra treatment and appointments because I get so anxious about that too.