Tooth infection concerns

[Electricdaisy]

I have been fighting what seems to be a wisdom tooth infection for a month now, swelling and pain pretty minimal after the first couple days of discomfort. Bc of my dental phobia (I actually have not been to the dentist since I was a child), and a lack of dental insurance, I have been researching endlessly about natural remedies, trying everything from gum massages with herbal oils and tinctures to megadoses of vitamin, C, raw garlic, probiotics, red light therapy, you name it. I seem to be keeping the infection somewhat at bay, but there are a few gumlines that will release pus when pressed on and that makes me terrified I might lose those teeth as well. I’ve been also sick with a pretty nasty virus for about 2 weeks now so my body is overwhelmed trying to fight 2 things at once. There is no bad smell, no boils, no bleeding, or any visible inflammation, just the bit of pus and also, my bite has been off since this started. Is it an unreasonable fear that I will lose several teeth or that this infection is eating away at my jawbone? Im holding on to the hope that if this were the case, my body would let me know but my symptoms have been quite mild. I just don’t want to spend thousands of dollars on dental procedures if I could somehow heal this on my own… but terrified also that I am making things worse. How long can one be ok with a tooth infection?

 

[Anxiety Riddled]

@Electricdaisy you sound like you’re in the same boat as I am. Well a sinking ship is what it’s felt like… We seem to have very similar situations and fears. I’ve been dealing with wisdom teeth issues for over 3 months (I’m 33 and they just suddenly now decided to come in… fast too). I too also have dental phobia which has kept me from going to the dentist since I was a child. I seemed to develop an infection which I’m terrified is spreading and causing more issues. The last week or so I’ve been having extreme discomfort (it feels like a pulling feeling in my gums, not just in the back at the wisdom teeth but the whole mouth). I got an antibiotic from my primary care doctor over a month ago to hopefully treat the infection but I’m pretty sure I still have it. Due to the discomfort and pain my wisdom teeth have been causing I haven’t eaten solid food in over 3 months and I’ve lost over 30 pounds. It’s been miserable. I finally took a baby step and made an appointment with an oral surgeon to assess the damage of my teeth and get the wisdom teeth removed but I still have a little over a week until that consultation. I’m absolutely terrified that I caused more issues putting this off. Due to the sensitivity in my teeth they always feel loose which has led me to stop taking care of my teeth all together. My mouth is in bad shape with the plaque build up and infection. As for the infection I would say to try warm salt water rinses (not sure if you have tried that yet). It seems to provide some relief when it comes to the inflammation and pain.

 

[dezz183]

@Anxiety Riddled hello can I ask how long did you have a tooth infection for and did it get worse ??

 

[Anxiety Riddled]

@dezz183 I’m not entirely sure how long I had it but apparently a week of amoxicillin knocked it out because when I went to the oral surgeon for my wisdom tooth removal consultation they said they saw no sign of infection but my gums have been getting very red and have quite a few white spots that are uncomfortable. The gum issue I’m having is more than likely due to poor oral hygiene (my mouth has been so sensitive and uncomfortable that I refuse to brush which obviously is not helping my situation).

 

[dezz183]

@Anxiety Riddled ahh I'm sorry to hear that tbh yeah I have a infection at the moment I keep thinking it's gonna get worse I can't seem be able get a dentist at the moment

 

[Anxiety Riddled]

@dezz183 if you have a primary doctor try reaching out to them. My doctor is the one who prescribed me the amoxicillin for my infection. I too don’t have a dentist.

 

[dezz183]

@Anxiety Riddled yeah I will have to give them a try tbh thanks for answering

 

[Electricdaisy]

@Anxiety Riddled sorry for the late reply and thank you so much for your message! How are you feeling now?? I ended up getting my wisdom teeth removed a month ago and am healing from that. Both the dentist as well as the oral surgeon did not see any infection on their 3d conebeam scans. I didn’t tell them about the pus pockets out of fear for the worst, and also I was hoping the pus or whatever this is would go away after the tooth extractions… but a whole month later, and those gumlines still exude that substance when pressed. It’s not much and doesn’t “smell like infection”, really but it’s freaking me out bc I know how dangerous and unhealthy underlying infections can be! My bite is still a little misaligned and I haven’t been able to eat normally for 3 months, and only on one side. I hope you are feeling better

 

[Anxiety Riddled]

@Electricdaisy unfortunately the end of April and this whole month have been very uncomfortable for me. I finally have my wisdom teeth removal surgery next week. How did your procedure go? How is/was the recovery? I think I’m more nervous about the recovery due to my age and the fact that they are removing all 4.. I’m curious if it is infection you have if they didn’t see one on the X-rays. My gums are still in bad shape and I’m afraid they are going to tell me that I have an infection and they can’t do the procedure when I go in. They told me I didn’t have an infection at my consultation but that was a month and a half ago now at this point… I feel for you with the not being able to eat (it’s been months for me as well). I hope your bite and discomfort improves soon!

 

[Electricdaisy]

@Anxiety Riddled I’m 45 and feel my recovery is going pretty ok, given my age! My pain was minimal but I only had 2 wisdom teeth removed. My teeth/gum issues really are stemming from what I’ve experienced prior to wisdom tooth removal , and I’m desperately hoping it all gets resolved soon bc I haven’t felt like myself in months! I know you have a hard time taking care of your oral health with the discomfort but maybe you can start with some oil pulling and gentle gum massages? Along with regular warm salt water rinses? I’ve been able to reverse my gingivitis with these and other methods. Wishing you all the best with surgery! Keep me posted

 

[Anxiety Riddled]

@Electricdaisy that’s good to hear. I’m 33 and they were informing me at my consultation that recovery will be a bit more prolonged due to my age. I’m just hoping for no complications, especially dry socket... I hear that is so painful. I’m sorry you haven’t felt yourself in months (I know how you feel). I hope your gum issues improve soon! I’ve heard of the oil pulling but never really looked into it. I do warm salt water rinses pretty much every day. Im hoping that maybe the salt water rinses have kept me from developing an infection.. fingers crossed! And thank you!

 

[letsconnect]

Apologies for butting in, just don't want anyone wasting their time or money on remedies that don't work. There's no evidence that oil pulling or gum massages do anything for oral health. It's quite simply removing the biofilm of bacteria (plaque) that helps to deal with gum disease, and by far the best way to achieve this on a day-to-day basis is by mechanical means (brushes/interdental brushes/floss, depending on the area in question). There's lots of info here:

How to prevent and stop gum disease from getting worse

Is flossing is pointless? How do you best look after your gums? Find out how to prevent gum disease or stop it from getting worse!

www.dentalfearcentral.org

 

[Anxiety Riddled]

@letsconnect I have actually heard that before (that it wasn’t proven to work). I was watching a video a while back online by an hygienist stating that oil pulling is more of a “fad”.

 

[letsconnect]

@Anxiety Riddled I don't think it's a coincidence that the oil pulling craze started at the same time that coconut oil for use in cooking was being promoted (I believe its popularity nose-dived when people found out that it clogs up their arteries...). Wondering who was the mastermind behind that coconut oil fad?

 

[Anxiety Riddled]

@letsconnect that’s interesting, I never realized/knew that. I feel like coconut anything is being pushed all the time now the last few years. Coconut milk, coconut water, coconut oil (for teeth and hair). They try to make it seem like it will fix all your problems .

 

[letsconnect]

Yes, it's all very odd