Help please - toothache painkillers not working

[dahliaaa]

Has anyone got any magic advice.

I've got two teeth which need extensive treatment. (Both butchered by a 70's dentist who was later struck off.)
One cracked all the way through and needs root canal plus crown. I'm NHS patient but because the work needed is complex dentist (who I really like) said not covered by level 3 and would need to be done privately. Cost for both teeth £1500. I don't have at the moment and because pain had gone away we agreed I would wait a couple of months until had the money.

Unfortunately last night started with much much worse pain. No sleep at all last night. Tried alternating paracetamol and ibuprofen at work but didn't touch it all. Took 2x nurofen plus at 6pm. After about an hour started to ease pain a bit (enough to make it bearable but now as strong as before and unbearable.)

Rang dentist today but she was off and fully bookedThursday and Friday. Said they would call me tomorrow to see if anyway could fit me in anywhere. Added complication is that we are going away Saturday - Wednesday to see family. DH has inoperable and we really need a little break.

Sorry for the essay ! Can anyone suggest anything for tonight to help with pain? I've got fairly high pain threshold but sat in tears. There doesn't seem to be any swelling ...

Thanks Lilabard my dentist opens at 8am so going to go there rather than phone to beg for appointment (they didn't have one today but think I need to be more clear about level of pain.)
The thing I'm bit worried about is that dentist said it would take two appointments over a few days. Worried that first part of treatment won't actually solve the pain (?)

Polter- feminax ultra has sadly been taken off the shelves

Dahliaaa first appointment in theory should rid you of most of the pain, if not all.
It takes 2 appointments because it's a bit fiddly from the dentists point of view, and they like to make sure everything has settled and if there is any infection to drain (not always) that it's all out so to speak. I've had it done to one of my teeth as well and found that inbetween my own appointments my tooth was quite tender to bite down on but nothing some painkillers didn't sort.

The idea of the first visit is really to remove all the pulp/nerve and the second is to work the canals to their proper lengths so they can be filled up. Some people come in after the first visit and say it still hurts and others come in and say I never felt a thing after the anaesthetic wore off! Unfortunately there's no way of knowing which camp you'll fall into. Sometimes it can take more than 2 visits if the tooth is very hard to settle or there is a lot of infection present, but 2 normally does it.

I hope you get sorted asap cos I know it's not pleasant company!

Good move about going in rather than phoning btw - clear your day if possible, take a book, and tell them you don't mind waiting around until you can be fitted in because you are in so much pain. They may have a no-show or a cancellation at some stage!

Almost 100% certain your dentist is lying to you about the work needing to be done privately. Especially if it's the same dentist doing the private treatment.

In fairness, they'll lose money doing it on the NHS but it's unethical to suggest it's not possible. Can't help with your toothache, sorry.

Thanks Lilabard for info - really useful.

V interesting MrsMorton - I did wonder. But then this seems very common with other people I know who are also with 'NHS' dentists. (I.e. Anything other than standard work gets charged at private rate.)

Yeap I've had the same thing -
Am with NHS dentist but they've referred to their specialist who comes into the practice weekly when it's more complex work, and it's private rates. Utterly disgraceful in my view that when you're in masses of pain but can't afford to have the treatment you either suffer or resort to having the tooth pulled, which is much cheaper. (Been there done that too)

Hope you're feeling better soon. One word- do NOT use a hot water bottle against your cheek as one poster suggested... heat will draw the infection into your cheek and you could end up even worse. An ice pack is what you want.
Also- corsodyl is much stronger than listerene so try to get a bottle. It costs more but I found it excellent- hold in your mouth as long as possible before spitting out.

Hmmm interesting babbity - hope you get sorted soon

I found sensitive toothpaste directly on my tooth helped my toothache. Worked better than the numbing gel for me.

Thank you for all the tips. I basically just used a mix of all of them !
Very very painful through night so didn't get any sleep but dentist fitting me in this afternoon thankfully.

Glad to hear you are getting sorted OP. Afraid I can't shed any light on whether your dentist is trying to pull a fast one as I am in NI and our NHS contract thankfully doesn't use the banded system yours does, cos it sounds bloody awful!

Good luck. I was in your boat 2 weeks ago. Root canal sorted it - no pain since. Bliss. If you get pain again, try alternating ibuprofen and paracetamol every 2 hours so no chance of 'overdose' of either (and only an hour or so to go before more if they aren't working!).

Children's teething liquid anbesol really helped when I was in agony with an abscess. Boots or Morrisons have it.

Had root canal work done this afternoon. I was beyond caring about cost. Would have sold the car and the cat to have it done ! Fingers crossed it sorts it.

I'm sorry you are all suffering too - toothache is truly awful.
There is something very wrong that people are in severe pain but are denied treatment because they can't afford it :-(

miaow I don't suppose it helps if I say that root canal work today was nothing compared to the pain of last few days...
I hope you manage yo find a way to be able to have treatment

I used Superdrug's own brand. I did some googling because I thought I'd invented it but other people had been doing it before me with other brands.

I'm also here in solidarity. I had root canal three weeks ago, but annoyingly it didn't work and I am going to have the tooth extracted. Fortunately it's a back one. I could have had the RCT re-done, but I just want that sucker gone. I'm on antibiotics to try and settle it down before it's pulled, and am taking the slow release ibuprofen which lasts "up to 12 hours", plus paracetamol on top when I need it. I also have the Orajel, plus a mouthwash the dentist recommended called Peroxyl. Toothache is brutal.

Oh Judy that's sounds awful :-( hope the painkillers are doing something
When did you know that the root canal had failed ?

dahliaaa at the time she could only find two canals, and that tooth (molar) would usually have three, so it was always risky. It didn't settle, she reduced the bite, it did settle, and I went to get fitted for the crown, but she said to wait s bit longer and reduced the bite again. After that (last week) it just seemed to flare up again. I could have had it out when I went on Wednesday - and possibly should have, tbh - but am really phobic about needles and was scared the infection would neutralise the anaesthetic and I'd need loads of injections. I feel like I live at the Dentist's just now. Fortunately she is completeky lovely, but urgh!

You poor thing. Don't blame you for just deciding to have it taken out now.
Only thing I appear to be left with is a horrible chemical taste - maybe linked to the root canal work.