Oh god not again

[fuzzybritches]

A few months ago I had horrific toothache. An x ray revealed that a wisdom tooth and adjoining molar were severely decayed and probably infected hence the terrible pain. Antibiotics barely touched it. I ended up getting them out privately because I couldn't stand the pain, genuinely it was the worst pain of my life and I've had three kids.

All healed now but have been chewing on the other side since. First because I was conscious of the wound/stitches and then because I didn't have any teeth there for chomping 😂

But now I'm starting to feel the start of a similar pain on the 'good' side. My x rays never showed any decay on that side a few months ago and I'm not sure if I'm being paranoid because I'm slightly traumatised by the pain of before. But is it possible to develop decay and issues this quickly if you've solely been using one side of your mouth for chewing?

I know the only answer is to visit the dentist but it's so so hard to get seen hence why I ended up having to go private last time. Also due to go abroad next week and terrified I'll be struck down while out of the country. Has anyone experienced anything like this?

I doubt the pain can come on that quickly if the recent xrays showed all was OK in those teeth. Could it be an ENT pain? It all kinda merges into one when infection occurs there. Is it upper or lower jaw?

All lower.
I do have a bad mouth ulcer on that side at the moment but it's not near the back teeth where the pain is. Last time the pain was deep in my gum and it feels similar to that. Apparently the old teeth were really badly damaged inside and in the root even though they looked ok from the outside.
I think I'm maybe thinking the worst because I was so unwell before and I couldn't stand it again.
Is it possible to cause toothache from over use? Ie just using the same side to chew all the time?

Do you have a cold or any sort of blocked sinuses? This can cause aches in your face that you may be reminding you of the toothache.

I'm not a dentist but decay takes a while to set in and I'd always thought it has to be pretty established before it actually causes pain. So I would think it unlikely that it would suddenly start hurting so shortly after your dentist's last check up.

Could you go for a private consultation just for peace of mind before you go? Definitely book travel insurance just in case you are worried while you are away!

Could it be misalignment if your conscious your favouring one side of your mouth?

Are the teeth erupted (i.e. through)? Are they straight or could the wisdom be pushing on the molar next to it because its a bit angled? Is the pain in the lower jaw?

I mean, it’s probably not going to get better by ignoring it. Go in and see what you’re dealing with.

I’ve had bad tooth pain that turned out to be a simple fracture that was solved in a day and I’ve had a major issue that took 3 or 4 visits to sort that evolved into something else years later.

Either way it wasn’t going to fix itself.

I don't have a cold but I have had a heavy feeling in my eyes this week and the dc all have colds so maybe there is some ENT issues happening too. But it definitely feels deep in the gum like before.
I'm definitely using that side of my mouth for chewing. Like always. Which probably isn't helping but I have a massive gap on the other side now. I'm just really frightened of going through the pain I went through before. I barely slept for a week and the pain was constant and intense. I had a 5 day course of antibiotics and by the end it had toned down slightly but the only real relief was when they were out.
I can't stand to go through that again and I certainly can't afford to pay for it again!

The one I had removed was partially erupted and had totally decayed the molar next to it too. The one still in there is also partially erupted but there's no gap between them so it's easier to keep clean.

I’m in the process of having an implant on one side. I only have (had) one molar each side on the bottom and since losing the tooth and eating on one side I’ve broken a crown on that side (it’s been 8 weeks?).

Is there a flap of skin over it if it's half erupted? I had to have mine out in surgery cos one was part through the other was sideways and going nowhere. The one with the flap got infected a couple times before i had it out. My teeth werent decayed though, it was the infection in the tissues causing the pain.

What country are you visiting OP, and for how long? I only ask, because you may find it easier, quicker, and cheaper to get a dentist to look at it while you're away, assuming of course that it's a holiday and you're not going to be tied up the whole time in business meetings or whatever.

@fuzzybritches could be sinuses … can be same kind of pain and can be viral or bacterial and so for the latter may need antibiotics. You may not even feel blocked up!

No advice, but sympathy OP. There are no NHS dentists near us and so had been using the emergency one but suddenly had toothpain that, as you say, was worse than childbirth. They put me on a waiting list for a surgical extraction as it was a tricky one - the wait was 6weeks plus! I couldn't get through one night! I was awake all night crying and sometimes just screaming with the pain. The only thing that lessened it slightly was holding iced water on it - not something you can do when asleep! I paid £200 for a private dentist 40 miles away to get it out the next day. :(

It's a disgrace isn't it. Surgical removal in hospital was up to a year wait where I am. And people who don't have the option to pay privately genuinely have to live that long with the pain. Or hope that endless cycles of antibiotics keep it under control.

To the pp who asked - yes there is a little flap over the tooth and it has become infected before. I used some antibacterial mouthwash last night and it does feel slightly better today.

I really think I'm partly traumatised by what happened before. The pain, the removal, the recovery was all so awful that I'm terrified of going through it again. But logically I had an x ray just a few months ago, if there was decay visible on the other side I'm sure it would have been mentioned then.