In so much pain with my tooth. Help please.

[Wineonafridaynight]

I am in the most excrutiating pain with my tooth. I'm not registered with a dentist. I can't afford a dentist even if I can get registered with one. Will my dr give me some painkillers or antibiotics if I see her? I am sure I have an infection.

I am in so much pain I'm in tears and can't sleep.

Whereabouts are you? Google primary care dental service followed by your county and a number for the emergency dentist might come up.

Have you taken painkillers?

try going to local uni. they might have a dental dept. if you need treatment be brave and let a student have a look. they will have a teacher with them so you will have exerlent treatment. make sure you have time to visit them though. antibotics normally take 24-48 hours to work aswell. good luck

Thank you for your responses. I managed to lie down and get some sleep for an hour or so and have just woken again.

Problem is even if I can get registered I seriously can't afford to go to the dentist until the end of April! Although saying that I don't even know how much they cost.

I will try the idea of local university. Although I'm also irrationally terrified of the dentist too!

My face is hurting from my head to my chin and into my throat!

I'm feeling really sorry for myself. Has anyone got any tips to ease the pain? Have taken Ibuprofen. No paracetemol in the house.

You have to reprioritise your finances so that you can afford a dentist! Toothache doesn't just go away - even if it does after this episode, it is only a matter of time before it flares up again.

There should be a NHS emergency dental service in your area.

You can get temporary relief by painting oil of cloves onto your tooth. But you really do need to see a detist.

MmeBlueberry Thanks for responding. I will try the oil cloves.

Not wanting to be rude but it isn't a matter of I'm putting a holiday or shopping trip ahead of my health. The things that I am prioritising are everyday things like petrol to get to work, food, council tax, rent, etc... We are on one salary having previously both been in paid employment and now it makes emergencies like this difficult to afford without living beyond our means.

Thanks for that info Team Edward. It looks like I wouldn't have to pay the whole cost up front if it is band 2 or 3 which would help somewhat! Now just to find a dentist.

I have discovered that the pain is significantly worse after sleeping. I think that is because I'm pressing my teeth together. So as long as I don't sleep again, I should be fine! . Even managed a joke - I must be feeling a bit better!

Thanks TeamEdward. I think I;m going to wait until the dental prastise opens and see if they can fit me in on a normal appointment. It is much better when I have been awake than when I have been asleep so hopefully it;ll stay that way.

Just to say I had this last week and I do feel for you Wino, as the others said when I rubbed clove oil from a cotton bud on the infected area it numbed it immediately, hope u feel better soon.

Thanks mummyplonk. Going to go and get some as soon as the shops are open!

How are you this morning?

I really do sympathise with you on the pain.... I am waiting for root canal treatment on a tooth with a crown and I had an emergency appointment with my dentist on the 2nd Dec 2009 who gave me ab's, they cannot fit me in for the actual treatment until the 24th March . Since Dec, I have had another lot of ab's that didnt' really help. For the time being, it has settled, but I am very wary on brushing the said tooth, I am very gentle with it and don't eat on that side at all.

I agree with the clove oil - it does work, apply it with a cotton bud to the tooth, make sure you don't get it on your gums though.

Bonjela for Adults works well too - although you can only apply every 3 hours, but if apply this inbetween the clove oil it should help.

My emergency appointment cost £46 which included my appointment, the cost of my check-up which was actually due two weeks after my emergency appointment, 2 xrays, and the cost of my root canal treatment in March.

Hi Bellavita. Poor you. That sounds like it has really been dragging on! You must be counting down the days to your treatment now. Hopefully once you have had the root canal treatment that will be the end of it.

I can't even figure out which tooth it is in my mouth! I had a wisdom tooth come through not too long ago and it feels sort of next to that one. I wonder if the wisdom tooth has something to do it.

I tried to go back to sleep at 6. I made it to 6.30 before waking up in pain again so have given up now. I'm going to try and have a cup of tea and something to eat, although it feels to sore at the moment to eat but I'll give it a go. Then I have to head into work and try to sort out seeing a dentist. I can afford the initial appointment at the moment but then will have to see what they say about additional treatment as really can't afford £200 at the moment!

Having just returned from extremely expensive dental appt yesterday, I'm very sympathetic.

Last year, when I had similar problem and it flared up so quickly at work that my cheeks bulged with abcess and i looked like a squirrel pouching nuts for the winter I discovered a local dental hospital which had an A&E type arrangement. I just rolled up and they treated me. Free! It was in east London (you're probably miles away - the Royal London Dental Hospital - and they were terrific.

And I meant to add: therefore, worth checking for a local dental hospital near you?

I do recall there was a slight element of student teaching about my treatment - a scary moment when some whipper-snapper with a white coat and teenage acne advanced wielding a high-speed drill .

However, his hands weren't trembling which was A Good Thing. And since the whole area was numb he could have gone through my cheek and I'd have been none the wiser. As it turned out, it was perfectly fine.

Now i've unnerved you. Will stop.

Some counties have Dental Access Clinics, where you can get emergency NHS trtmnt, but are not actually registered with a dentist or practice. I know they definitely have them in Wilts and Glos, not sure about other parts of the country. Try googleing it.I used one a couple of years ago, I had ignored a broken tooth and ended up in agony! Ibuprofen alternated with paracetamol works quite well too.

I have also just been through this. I feel your pain. I was in agony and literally wept with pain. My initial nhs appointment was £16.50. I then paid for a prescription for anti biotics (£7.20 I think). I then went back and paid £29.50 for first part in root canal treatment. She told me I dont need to pay any more when I go back to have it finished in three weeks. In the mean time i took nurofen plus and paracetamol. From experience tooth problems do not go away so I hope you find a local dnetist or go to the out of hours NHS one.
Good luck

Thank you for everyone's help and advice!

I made it through work today...just! Managed to get registered with a local dentist and got a cancellation appointment for midday tomorrow.

I'm currently trying to keep the pain at bay. Took ibuprofen and paracetamol all day. Have since spoken to out of hours doctor who told me to get some Solphedine (codeine with paracetamol) and take that as well as the ibuprofen. She also said to rub Sensodyne where it hurts. Unfortunately it is all helping a little but not enough to get rid of the pain. Not expecting to get much sleep so have set myself up on the sofa with laptop, TV, blankets and hot water bottle.

It's OK for a while and then suddenly gets really bad again. Oh well. 12 hours to go!

Sensodyne will do precisely NOTHING for your toothache! Which is why you don't see doctors for toothaches. Sensodyne helps if you have exposed dentine, which would mainly cause you pain on eating/drinking cold food/drink.

If it is wisdom teeth it could be Pericoronitis. This happens when bacteria get under the gum flap on a partially erupted wisdom tooth (well, any tooth really, but more common with wisdoms) and causes an infection.

You need antibiotics & painkillers. Dentist is best bet. You may also need the area cleaned out. to avoid hot food & drinks as this can make the pain worse.

And please DO NOT put that hot water bottle on your face!

She did actually suggest putting it on my tooth to cover it shortly before eating and it did help. Just not for long enough to eat much and everything tasted a bit minty!

That said, I have discovered that brushing my teeth about every half hour with Sensodyne does help to soothe it temporarily. Any ideas why this is?

Don't worry - hot water bottle is nowhere near my face! Neither are the blankets! Just being used to keep me warm in this cold flat of mine!

Hold warm/bordering on hot water in your mouth ( you will work out ideal temp)
and get to a dentist!

Hope you get some relief when you get to that dentist later.

You only pay for Band 3 if you have a denture. So you can get all your own teeth sorted with just the band 2 payment.

Neat Whisky applied to tooth or gum will numb it for a bit.

Just reread post, Band 3 is any treatment including laboratory work, so avoid crowns too to keep it to band 2.