Category — dental pain

 This is a cautionary report. Redheads are back in the news. This week NBC reported that redheads are more sensitive to pain that people with other hair colors. People with red hair need 19 percent more painkillers than the greater population.

Research published in the Journal of American Dental Association (July 2009) found that painful experiences at the dentist might cause more anxiety for men and women with red hair, who were twice as likely to avoid dental care than people with dark hair. People with red hair need larger doses of anesthesia and are twice as likely to avoid going to the dentist than those with other hair colors.

[Read more →]

Yeah, dental pain sucks! There’s also physical, heart, and soul pain – and it’s always worse at night. Your quality of life declines and suffers as your pain increases and becomes extreme (chronic).

Take the meds, have the periodontal surgery, talk to a trusted friend, get therapy, see a specialist, bite the brownie, scoop the ice cream; do whatever it takes it takes to heal yourself.

This is the time to spend money before it’s too late and pain becomes your life. This is the only time to go into debt if you must.

I experienced extreme neck and left shoulder pain in January and February – and I’m left-handed so I’ve been unable to blog. I’m working on it and I want you to work on it, too.

I’m not abandoning  my blog. I have much to share and I hope to back soon. I’d love to hear how you overcame your pain.

What I know for sure is that its all connected.

Saundra Goodman
Got Teeth? A Survivor’s Guide
How to keep your teeth or live without them.
www.gotteethguide.com

Redheads may be hotheads, but we get colder quicker, bruise more easily, and feel more pain, including sensitivity to tooth pain, teeth cleaning, and periodontal surgery.

1.  A study by researchers at the University of Louisville found that redheads require 20% more anesthesia than dark-haired women. The studies were done on women only whose menstrual cycles were in sync because hormone increases can play a role in susceptibility to anesthesia.

2.  Another study found that redheads are more than twice as likely as women with other hair colors to fear and avoid the dentist.  Aaaak!

3.  A 2004 study showed that redheaded men and women alike require more anesthesia than their counterparts. Studies show evidence that pain pathways differ between men and women. [Read more →]

Brushing your teeth only removes up to 50% of plaque. Brushing and flossing only removes up to 70% of plaque.

You can control receding gums, periodontal disease, and plaque build-up using these tools at least twice a day:

1. Brush for at least two minutes with an electric toothbrush at night and a regular, soft toothbrush in the morning and after lunch if possible.
2. Floss after every meal. Use different types of floss to maximize your interest.
3. After flossing, use whichever GUM Proxabrush fits between your teeth. I use two different shaped brushes.
4. Then use the GUM comfort grip handle with snap-on Proxabrush on the places your dental hygienist has pointed out are your problem areas.
5. Use a tongue scraper when you’re finished.
6. Mouthwash can’t hurt.
7. If you get up at midnight or 2:00AM and eat, you have to repeat the process. [Read more →]

If you sleep alone and no one is there to tell you that your teeth make grinding noises at night, here are a few clues that you may suffer from teeth grinding (bruxism):

1. General tooth pain and increased sensitivity.
2. Sore jaw muscles.
3. Difficulty opening and closing your mouth.
4. Headaches and earaches.
5. Popping sounds when you open and close your mouth.
6. Your teeth look abnormally short or worn down (worn tooth enamel).
7. You notice small dents in your tongue. [Read more →]

Teeth grinding or clenching (bruxism) is a common condition once considered harmless, or at least annoying.

Today’s doomsday financial news is causing increased teeth grinding that can cause serious damage to your teeth, your health, and your bank accounts in the form of gum disease, bite relationships, bridges, crowns, or dentures if the case is severe enough.

Common causes of teeth grinding include:

1. Inability to deal with stress or anxiety (economic or financial).
2. Lack of sleep.
3. Anger and frustration.
4. Aggressive or hyperactive personalities
5. Alcohol and/or drug consumption. [Read more →]

Whoopi’s right. Gum disease (AKA periodontal disease) can kill you.

Watch Whoopi talk about her experience with gum disease and tooth loss at www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLDL8NhNxWA

If you can’t afford dental implants, you may need to get a denture and then you may need to get my book. Seriously.

What I know for sure is that it’s all connected.

Saundra Goodman
Got Teeth? A Survivor’s Guide
How to keep your teeth or live without them.
www.gotteethguide.com for your Free Tips.

In November, my periodontist performed alveoloplasty surgery in my upper jaw to remove bone chips, bone spurs, bone splinters, and an infected root tip.

He added material into both sides of my jawbone to fill up spaces where my jawbone had been reabsorbed, stitched me up, and sent me home to finish my antibiotics. You bet I got pain medication. [Read more →]

We’re blessed to live in an age of amazing, ever-evolving dental technology; less pain, little or no blood, and vanilla-scented nose cones for the nitrous oxide hook-up.

So why don’t more of us make the trip to our dental professional at least twice a year to be poked, prodded, and cleansed to avoid complicated and expensive future problems?

Oh sure, it takes time, you’re one of millions of people who experience dental anxiety, it might hurt, and money will change hands. But do you really think that tiny little problem will go away by itself?

Every year 1-1/2 million people lose their teeth from periodontal disease and get dentures. [Read more →]