Severe dental pain - help me :(

[amehh]

I last saw the dentist in January 2020, no fillings needed but I've been clenching my teeth at night so they are sensitive (stress related) and my 2nd molar is misaligned so meets the teeth before any of the others (if that makes sense) so that is extra painful. This tooth is filled to high heaven and is basically a bad tooth, my dentist says - we are in talks of extraction anyway due to the amount of problems it has had in the past 4 years. Had a mouth guard fitted but it didn't get made before the lock down so I've purchased my own for now.

This last week I've been in sudden and severe pain, all on the left side. Upper teeth, lower teeth, gums and jaw, plus now getting pain in my ear and temple. I think it's an abscess caused by the pressure and damage of clenching my teeth but I can't see anything. I've been taking paracetamol and ibuprofen every 2 hours for days and it's getting worse. Changed to cocodamol and ibuprofen yesterday and I've been given amoxicillin which I've started as well. Dentist wants me to check back on Monday but I honestly don't know how I'll make it to Monday! I can't sleep, lie down, the pain is horrendous, I'd rather be in labour and it gets worse every day. My gums on that side are so sore to touch I can hardly brush them (I use sensodyne rapid relief toothpaste as well).

Can anyone help me? I'm terrified of dentists and dental work but at this point I'd happily have them pull all my teeth out with no anaesthetic if that's what it took. I'm trying to homeschool DS and look after
6 month old DD and all I really want to do is smash my face against a wall
Sorry this is long - trying not to drip feed information!

[Jabshere]

So sorry to hear this. Is it type 1 or 2? What treatment do you use? Have you considered surgery?

[madmumofteens]

Aw that's great you've been seen OP nothing worse than toothache 😘

[amehh]

@anywinewilldonow I don't know but it did seem to be a quick in and out job so maybe they are trying to limit contact time? I imagine a root canal would take quite a bit longer.

Local has worn off and I've taken some low dose cocodamol and all seems good for now. Just remembering all the advice from when I had my wisdom teeth out, soft food only for me - shame I didn't plan ahead and get some ice cream in!

[anywinewilldonow]

Does anyone know if the emergency hubs are offering root canals? I have a DS who is waiting for a referral and would rather he not have an extraction (back molar) if at all possible - he is only 19.

[starfishmummy]

Brilliant. I have had to have teeth out in similar circumstances and found that there was very little pain once it was out. Do remember to follow the post extraction instructions

[TheWalkingTalkingRed]

DishRanAwayWithTheSpoon oh thnank goodness! I had a panic at the thought of needing one and having my mouth open that long, while they pulled about! Yes that makes sense I can imagine all the extra cleaning involved must be a nightmare

[Beamur]

Keep taking pain relief for a day or so, extraction is quite sore. YY to trying to avoid dry socket. Follow the advice given to the letter!
Glad you managed to see someone.

[Ratoncita]

I hope you have a swift and painless recovery! (Chances are good as it came out so quickly!)

[chatterbugmegastar]

So pleased you received some help xx

[DishRanAwayWithTheSpoon]

So please op!

You will have some pain but it should be a lot less than the toothache.

A numb nose can happen sometimes when numbing up the mouth. Its nothing to worry about and should go

@TheWalkingTalkingRed I said our extractions were taking that long on a previous thread. The actual extraction takes the same amount of time it is just us gowning up, airing the room, cleaning down that is taking the time. It doesnt effect chair time dont worry!

[Fortheloveofscience]

Ah sounds like a good outcome OP!

I had an extraction a couple of months ago, I needed ibuprofen/paracetamol for the first 24 hours but then was basically fine, SO much better than the toothache. Just make sure you read all the advice about avoiding hot drinks/tooth brushing/straws etc to avoid dry socket.

[costco]

ah I see, all fixed! ignore me. hope the extraction heals well!

[costco]

I had a severe abcess 18 mths ago. I looked like elephant woman as that half of my face swelled to the size of a baked potato, totally distorting my jawline. It was horrific, and yes the pain is worse than anything. Codeine helped a bit, make sure you keep taking the amoxicillin and you might need a stronger/additional antibiotic, obv that needs to be prescribed. Dentist can't actually do anything in any case until the swelling has gone down, which should happen with the antibiotics. Codeine will cut your appetite and give you one or two other side effects but is safe to take the maximum dosage for three-four days until you can get this fixed. Also try clove oil directly onto the area.
And remember it will get better. It's incredibly hard and I really really feel for you, I've never been so miserable.

[TheWalkingTalkingRed]

I'm so pleased for you that it's over, try and have faith the dentist knows what their doing! Keep up with the OTC pain relief and try and relax...easier said than done I know, gums and the hole from the extraction will likely be more sore than anything. Good luck OP here's to a better night sleep for you

[Dodie66]

That’s good. Hopefully the pain won’t come back or at least it will be mild after the extraction. So pleased you got some help

[amehh]

@TheWalkingTalkingRed yes it was at an urgent dental centre and in 20 minutes I had explained the problem, had an xray, teeth checked, local anaesthetic, tooth out and 5 minutes with gauze in. It was crazy!

I'm feeling nervous for when the local wears off (also I've just noticed my nose is numb which I wasn't expecting!) In case the dentist was wrong and all that pain comes back but DH has said to stop being so pessimistic so I'll try my best! I think I will probably be in pain anyway since my gums were so irritated and also the healing from the tooth extraction

[TheWalkingTalkingRed]

"amehh* oh I'm so pleased for you! You've also put my mind at ease as there was someone bon here saying that tooth extractions would now be taking an hour to an hour and a half due to Covid and new procedures! Was this done at one of the new hubs did you say?
Oh I bet you're so relieved!

[Anewuser]

Brilliant op, I’m so relieved for you.

May you get a welcome night sleep.

[amehh]

Goodbye tooth! All done in 20 minutes, he said there wasn't an abscess but the bad tooth had irreversible pulpitis and this one tooth was causing all that pain - crazy! Have to finish the amoxicillin anyway but he said there shouldn't be a need for any of the pain killers I've been prescribed, just back to OTC stuff while it heals.

Thank you all for messaging me during what was possibly the most distressing pain I've ever experienced and I hope anyone suffering now gets some relief soon

[danni0509]

Good luck for your appointment at 3pm x

[amehh]

@DishRanAwayWithTheSpoon thank you for your insight - the initial thought has been the bad tooth and TMJ from grinding but I think the sudden severe pain has had my dentist and I baffled and the fact it gets worse every day with less "rest" time between periods of pain is difficult, especially with 2 DC at home - luckily my DH has been home too but he is due back to work next week so it really needs sorting. What is very frightening to me is the amount of pain relief I am now taking today and the fact I'm still getting attacks of pain intermittently and it is quite debilitating. I'd rate it up there with the latter stages of labour type pain - I've actually been resurrecting my hypnobirthing breathing techniques to try and get through some of the worse pain.

Hopefully I'll have some answers today - just need to get my big girl pants on as I actually have dental anxiety and get very worked up even for fillings but by this point I think it's all for the greater good!

I'll report back later

[DishRanAwayWithTheSpoon]

Oh thats good!

[DishRanAwayWithTheSpoon]

Hi Op

Im a dentist

Firstly your pain sounds quite normal for dental problems. I wouldnt jump to TN before looking at more obvious causes.

Toothache doesnt mean abscess. An abscess is a collection of pus, if you had an abscess there would be swelling. Abscesses are not caused by grinding.
Toothache is often when a tooth starts to die, it is inflammation of the pulp - the nerve. You wont find an abscess but it is still the tooth causing pain. The tooth dies due to chronic irritation of the pulp normally because of tooth decay but it can be due to a deep filling. Your heavily filled tooth sounds like the perfect candidate, and you say it has been problematic for several years

Pain that radiates up the side of your face and accross your top teeth can still be tooth ache, it is referred pain.

My other thought is the pattern of pain is consistent with TMJ, and whilst it sounds extreme for this it is worth trying. TMJ is when your jaw muscles go into spasm because they are overworked, normally due to clenching/grinding - which you do. I would try hot compresses, ibuprofen gel and a soft diet just to see if that helps, however I think if it was this the NSAIDs you have taken would have helped. Absolutely do not wear a bite gaurd that is not made by your dentist as this can royally fuck up your bite. Make sure you are doing your best to consciously relax your jaw during the day.

Orajel around the area of the heavily filled tooth may still help, and again is worth a try if this tooth is causing your symptoms.

I hope you get seen, unfortunately round my way they are only seeing patients who have had 2 courses of antibiotics. Which is ridiculous as antibiotics dont always help, I will keep my fingers crossed for you

[amehh]

Just received an appt with the urgent dental centre for 3pm today - fingers crossed

[pigdogridesagain]

@TheWalkingTalkingRed it's utterly horrific isn't it, I can sympathise with you. I would rather have dental pain than this and that's saying something because I absolutely detest dental work. @Redflowers8 I would love to have a chat with a fellow sufferer