Scared...Sick with Fear and Worry...Obsessed with Teeth Now :(

[michisafraid]

Hi all,

Well I am just sick with worry over my teeth. I was doing fine until my last LANAP (laser gum surgery). I had 3 quadrants done - one at a time. I still have one left but I don't want to get it now after my last one. I had the top quadrants done first and this last one was my first lower quadrant. I had a bleeding problem after - I was getting these large jelly like clot things (perio doc called them 'liver clots')...and finally after a day he got the bleeding to stop with combat gauze! I was completely traumatized after that. I don't handle blood in my mouth too well, esp. those liver clot things. THAT scared me to death! My bite began to shift as well after that LANAP...I had to get it adjusted three times and may need another soon. I was told that is because my gum tissue shrunk and it healthy now so my teeth are finding a new place in their socket. That does make sense.

Well I have had trouble with my teeth over the past month. First it was my one and only root canal tooth - I almost had it out but decided to wait and watch it. I got 3 opinions on what to do and several x-rays and I am comfortable with watching it.

I have another tooth on the bottom - a molar tooth - that has a crack in it now. My dentist said it is not a big deal at all and it does not need treatment. I grind my teeth in my sleep and wear a night guard so I may have had this crack there a long time...it may have recently happened...I don't know. All I know is he x-rayed it, examined it and said no treatment needed. I have become obsessed with it and keep looking at it and keep thinking it is looking worse. I may even go back this week for another opinion. I don't know how I will make it there but I manage to. Some appointments I can't make it to the chair so I stand and he examines me that way. HE IS COOL!

And yep...another tooth too...my upper left...they call it a 'wash out' since the tooth is almost all filling. It is super sensitive to cold and sweet and has been for years and years but I live with it. Well I had a cleaning Monday and ever since my cleaning it is super sensitive. I am now freaking out thinking it might have something wrong.

And last issue my jaws ache and I get pains here and there and everywhere all over my mouth from my grinding so I always think something is wrong.

My fear is tooth abscess - that is a HUGE fear of mine. I worry I will abscess and die. I googled it and saw what they say can happen from an abscess - do people end up in the hospital for days on IV antibiotics and such from a tooth abscess? I never heard of that but when googling it I see it. YIKES to Google...I need to stop using it and scaring myself.

So I am afraid to eat too and I am losing weight. I am afraid of 'stirring' anything that might be wrong up. I am afraid to floss/brush but I do - and daily. I just don't want to look at my teeth for fear of finding something wrong. But I do look and I panic the whole time.

What is wrong with me? Did I develop an unusual obsession with my teeth that I need counseling for? Is anyone else this way or am I just weird?

Thanks for listening.

 

[lillyh]

Hello,
Ever since I had my wisdom teeth removed in Jan. and had several other teeth pulled (due to infection) I have been VERY OBSESSED with my remaining teeth...I just had two teeth refilled with composite fillings and I keep thinking they are infected too...I keep looking at them when I brush and floss...I have a red pimple on my gum close to one of the teeth that I think means it is infected but my dentist assured me it was just a canker sore..But I had the exact same thing on the other side of my gum by the tooth I just had extracted(which was infected)and the bump went away when the tooth went..So I worry about that..Plus I have atypical odontalgia which makes my whole mouth have aches and pains so I never know if it just that or if it is my teeth...So no you are not weird...Nor are you the only one with this obsession...I always tell my kids I should have married a dentist!!! I hope everything turns out well for you....

 

[carole]

YEP me too. I go through periods of thinking that there is something wrong with every tooth in my head. Don't worry about dying from infection it won't happen. I know you have read about it happening on google but you have a dentist and he is keeping his eyes on things.

I know it is hard but brushing and flossing will help to improve your teeth, not destroy them. I understand this too as I have been frightened that I will brush a tooth lose or something.

I have had an infection in my gum for over a year while I waited to get it treated and removed, the infection not the tooth. Obviously I have not died, the gum did feel a bit ansy every now and again, but you will not die. You have access to a dentist and can get treatment if you did get an abscess.

The grinding will make everything ache and also can give you a killer headache too. Do eat now, you can start with soft stuff if you like and work your way up to other stuff. Use an elec toothbrush or a soft manual toothbrush.

One last thing, DO NOT GOOGLE, their stories are sensational and who knows if they are true or not. It would be boring to tell the truth, which is, a person gets an abscess, the dentist gives antibiotics, person goes back after about 7 to 10 days and has either a rct or extraction of the tooth. Problem solved.

Now which story is boring to read, mine or google, one is true and one is scary and sensational.

Good luck, you will be fine. Listen to your dentist he knows what he is looking at and is the best person to put your fears to rest.

 

[Deejay]

Don't google!

 

[carole]

No don't google, we just google'd and it caused all sorts of confusion. It is a dark and scary place

 

[Davee]

Ack! I know how you feel. I am totally paranoid about my teeth and gums now. When you ask "what should I do?" I can only tell you what I am doing. I am giving myself some time to settle down and will try to take one problem on at a time. The focus is on try because my dental issues are driving me crazy. I convinced myself that one of my new fillings failed because it hurt for about 2 hours last week. Then the pain was gone. At first my new fillings hurt all the time, but given time they settled down. After any dental or gum treatment I really think the mouth and the nerves need to settle down. They are very sensitive, and it is very easy to jump to a conclusion that something is seriously wrong. The reason is - we had things that were seriously wrong with our teeth and gums, and any person will believe that the past is the best predictor of the future. So of course we wait for the next bad thing to happen.

I really wish you will get your last quadrant done. We know that the gums need to be healthy or the teeth fail. Teeth can have so much trauma and still survive. The gums not so much. So please think about finishing what you started because you know you need it done. We will be here to support you.

Now I am going to my journal to whine about my flipper. Best of luck to you and I seriously mean that.

 

[michisafraid]

Hello,
Ever since I had my wisdom teeth removed in Jan. and had several other teeth pulled (due to infection) I have been VERY OBSESSED with my remaining teeth...I just had two teeth refilled with composite fillings and I keep thinking they are infected too...I keep looking at them when I brush and floss...I have a red pimple on my gum close to one of the teeth that I think means it is infected but my dentist assured me it was just a canker sore..But I had the exact same thing on the other side of my gum by the tooth I just had extracted(which was infected)and the bump went away when the tooth went..So I worry about that..Plus I have atypical odontalgia which makes my whole mouth have aches and pains so I never know if it just that or if it is my teeth...So no you are not weird...Nor are you the only one with this obsession...I always tell my kids I should have married a dentist!!! I hope everything turns out well for you....

Thank you so very much for your kind reply lillyh, I appreciate it! It is nice to know I am not alone in my fears but I am so sorry you have to deal with these fears too, it is very hard and draining. I hope this goes away for both of us, and soon.

 

[michisafraid]

YEP me too. I go through periods of thinking that there is something wrong with every tooth in my head. Don't worry about dying from infection it won't happen. I know you have read about it happening on google but you have a dentist and he is keeping his eyes on things.

I know it is hard but brushing and flossing will help to improve your teeth, not destroy them. I understand this too as I have been frightened that I will brush a tooth lose or something.

I have had an infection in my gum for over a year while I waited to get it treated and removed, the infection not the tooth. Obviously I have not died, the gum did feel a bit ansy every now and again, but you will not die. You have access to a dentist and can get treatment if you did get an abscess.

The grinding will make everything ache and also can give you a killer headache too. Do eat now, you can start with soft stuff if you like and work your way up to other stuff. Use an elec toothbrush or a soft manual toothbrush.

One last thing, DO NOT GOOGLE, their stories are sensational and who knows if they are true or not. It would be boring to tell the truth, which is, a person gets an abscess, the dentist gives antibiotics, person goes back after about 7 to 10 days and has either a rct or extraction of the tooth. Problem solved.

Now which story is boring to read, mine or google, one is true and one is scary and sensational.

Good luck, you will be fine. Listen to your dentist he knows what he is looking at and is the best person to put your fears to rest.

Hi carole, Thank you very much for your kind words, I appreciate it. Wow a whole year with an abscess bless your heart, that had to be extremely hard! I'll bet when you had that tooth taken care of it was a major relief!

You are so right about staying away from Google, I am going to try harder than I ever have to do that. I wonder why when we know how scary it can get...why do we keep using Google? I suppose we think it will offer reassurance if we search hard enough, but it rarely does.

I shall keep on keeping on with my daily flossing, brushing, soft picking, etc. I just get so scared...but somehow, someway I am going to overcome this!

Thank you so much again!

 

[michisafraid]

Ack! I know how you feel. I am totally paranoid about my teeth and gums now. When you ask "what should I do?" I can only tell you what I am doing. I am giving myself some time to settle down and will try to take one problem on at a time. The focus is on try because my dental issues are driving me crazy. I convinced myself that one of my new fillings failed because it hurt for about 2 hours last week. Then the pain was gone. At first my new fillings hurt all the time, but given time they settled down. After any dental or gum treatment I really think the mouth and the nerves need to settle down. They are very sensitive, and it is very easy to jump to a conclusion that something is seriously wrong. The reason is - we had things that were seriously wrong with our teeth and gums, and any person will believe that the past is the best predictor of the future. So of course we wait for the next bad thing to happen.

I really wish you will get your last quadrant done. We know that the gums need to be healthy or the teeth fail. Teeth can have so much trauma and still survive. The gums not so much. So please think about finishing what you started because you know you need it done. We will be here to support you.

Now I am going to my journal to whine about my flipper. Best of luck to you and I seriously mean that.

Hi Davee, Thank you so much for your kind words, I really appreciate it! Yes I totally relate to us waiting for the next thing to happen since that is what we became used to. Now to break out of that cycle would be terrific...and hopefully in time we will do just that and be free from the worries!

I might get my last quadrant done, I am not sure. I have actually considered having those teeth removed and getting a partial denture - that is how traumatized that odd laser surgery bleeding has me. I still have nightmares...it shook me up so much.

I hope your flipper is not giving you trouble - hang in there.