Toothaches

[jackie]

Silly question, but have you been to the dentist?

[mike001]

Could you have an abcess under the tooth? Hope you aren't brushing up and down, my dentist advised that it causes problems, he said sideways only or you can send bacteria under the gumsline.

[rosethecopycat]

could be sinus infection

Good luck.

[Catty1]

My dentist says SOFT bristles on the toothbrush - that's what to use.

Here's some temporary toothache fixes I found in a new book I got, maybe they'll help:

1. Put a couple of drops of oil of clove onto a cotton boll, put it over the sore tooth, and bite down. Keep it there for several minutes.

2. Then take 6 oz water (warm), 1/4 tsp salt, and several drops of vanilla extract - swish in your mouth for a full 30 seconds (use your watch) and then spit out.

Both the cloves and vanilla extract help kill bacteria and numb pain.

This is just temporary til you get to your dentist. It could be a hairline crack, an abcess, anything.

If the receding gumline is the cause, you may want to use Sensodyne toothpaste for a while.

Good luck!

[Giselle]

Yeah, I go to the dentist regularly. I think my last visit was a couple months ago and they didn't find anything wrong. I think they took x-rays that time, so if I had a bacterial problem, I'm sure they would've told me. Nope, I can't brush up and down because the gum on that tooth is very sensitive and it hurts to brush up and down. Thanks for the suggestions, Catty. I'll do the vanilla swish, and I just went out and bought my old toothpaste, the Aquafresh extreme clean or something. When I was using this toothpaste, my tooth didn't hurt so I'm guessing it really does get things extremely clean!

[krazyaboutkatz]

I'm sorry to hear this. Maybe you should try buying Sensodyne Toothpaste. I also have some receding gums and my dentist said that it's caused by brushing too hard. Most people don't realize just how hard they brush their teeth. I hope that your toothache will go away soon. Good luck.

[Giselle]

Ooooh! That makes sense! I admit, I do brush extra hard because I'm so paranoid about, well, tooth decay So now my line of attack is to use soft bristles and not to brush as hard. We're making an appointment for a cleaning soon so I can bombard my dentist with questions.