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Re: Really weird dental problem

Started by Joel M. Eichen D.D.S. · · Last activity · 8 posts · 468 views

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01 / Original postRe: Really weird dental problemJoel M. Eichen D.D.S. · 21 Nov 2003 02 / This pagePosts 1–8Page 1 of 1 · chronological order 03 / Latest replyPost #8enk · 14 Dec 2003

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General fitness, health and nutrition
Published
21 November 2003
Last activity
14 December 2003
Original author
Joel M. Eichen D.D.S.
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8
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  1. Original post
    Joel M. Eichen D.D.S.
    Archived post
    #1
    Jim Patterson said:


    I used to have a great smile, but I have obsessive-compulsive disorder and
    can't stop salivating (whenever I think about salivating, I salivate).

    REPLY

    Actually I do too. It started for me with fast food. Whenever I think
    about it, I salivate .........

    Quoted message said:

    The problem is, whenever I swallow the excess saliva (several times a
    minute), my tongue rubs against my front gums and wears on them making
    them bleed. (You can read more here:
    http://raggedtiger.tripod.com/ocd.html )

    I've tried over 15 different OCD medications that don't work, and am in
    therapy with a behavior therapist but apparently there's not much to be
    done. All my dentist can think of is to give me a mouth guard, which
    protects my gums at home but I don't wear it in public. My dentist
    verified there is no physical disorder in my mouth causing me to salivate.

    Is your dentist Dr. Pavlov by any chance?

    Quoted message said:


    So I want to know what to expect after rubbing my gums continuously: Will
    my gums wear away behind my teeth first (where my tongue rubs), or will
    they recede in front at the same time? (They've already receded in front
    some.) Then will my teeth fall out, or will I just have teeth with no
    gums around them?

    Nope.No problem.

    Quoted message said:

    --
    Joel M. Eichen, .
    Philadelphia PA

    DISCLAIMER FOLLOWS:

    *********

    Dental health-related material
    is provided for information purposes
    only and does not necessarily
    represent endorsement by or an official
    position of the SciMedDentistry gang
    or any other official agency either
    actual or fictitious or Steve Mancuso.

    Advice on the treatment or care
    of an individual patient should
    be obtained through consultation
    with a dentist who has examined
    that patient or is familiar with
    that patient's dental history.

    STANDARD DISCLAIMER

    Report
  2. Jim Patterson
    Archived post
    #2
    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    So I want to know what to expect after rubbing my gums continuously: Will
    my gums wear away behind my teeth first (where my tongue rubs), or will
    they recede in front at the same time? (They've already receded in front
    some.) Then will my teeth fall out, or will I just have teeth with no
    gums around them?

    Nope.No problem.


    Well they've already receded some (as my dentist noticed), and if I don't
    control the rubbing then they bleed. I suppose I should I also mention
    that my dad and I have some sort of gum disease that apparently can't be
    cured (a specialist noticed our gums are pinker than normal, but couldn't
    diagnose anything, or give any advice other than lots of Listerine), so my
    gums are weaker than most peoples'.

    Someone asked if my tongue also gets sore from the rubbing, and it does
    sometimes. But I think my gums are a lot weaker, and I'm rubbing them
    right at the gumline where they're more vulnerable.

    Report
  3. yuckfou
    Archived post
    #3

    Hi Jim, I got obsessive compulsive disorder as well, and this caused
    me to not brush my teeth for 6 years due to fear of germs. What an
    idiotic thing to do.
    Dont really have any good advice, but I think salivating is a good
    thing for your teeth, concidering you probably use SSRI meds that dry
    the mouth, like I do. Best wishes!

    Report
  4. Joel M. Eichen D.D.S.
    Archived post
    #4

    Do not panic. If you get up to seven years without brushing, then its
    time to worry.

    (yuckfou) said:

    Hi Jim, I got obsessive compulsive disorder as well, and this caused
    me to not brush my teeth for 6 years due to fear of germs. What an
    idiotic thing to do.
    Dont really have any good advice, but I think salivating is a good
    thing for your teeth, concidering you probably use SSRI meds that dry
    the mouth, like I do. Best wishes!

    --
    Joel M. Eichen, .
    Philadelphia PA

    DISCLAIMER FOLLOWS:

    *********

    Dental health-related material
    is provided for information purposes
    only and does not necessarily
    represent endorsement by or an official
    position of the SciMedDentistry gang
    or any other official agency either
    actual or fictitious or Steve Mancuso.

    Advice on the treatment or care
    of an individual patient should
    be obtained through consultation
    with a dentist who has examined
    that patient or is familiar with
    that patient's dental history.

    STANDARD DISCLAIMER

    Report
  5. Jim Patterson
    Archived post
    #5

    Well yeah the salivating is good, so that's why my dentist didn't want to
    prescribe something that would make me not salivate. The excessive
    salivation is because of my OCD, not any physical problem. The worse
    problem is that everytime I swallow, my tongue rubs against my gums making
    them bleed.

    I'm so tired of my mouth being sore and bleeding because of this, but I
    guess no one can help. My dentist gave me a mouthguard to protect my
    gums (she can see my gums are receding because of this already), but of
    course I don't wear it in public.

    All I want to know is: after my gums have been rubbed away by my tongue
    (which is indeed already happening), will my teeth fall out or just stay
    in without any gums around them?

    Report
  6. Paul
    Archived post
    #6

    Is the rubbing of the gums occurring behind the top front teeth? If so, you
    could have an acrylic guard made to just fit behind your front teeth on your
    gums only. It would be like a retainer in a way...the same shape. You could
    wear this in public as it would not cover the entire tooth and would allow
    you to talk...

    "Jim Patterson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:


    Well yeah the salivating is good, so that's why my dentist didn't want to
    prescribe something that would make me not salivate. The excessive
    salivation is because of my OCD, not any physical problem. The worse
    problem is that everytime I swallow, my tongue rubs against my gums making
    them bleed.

    I'm so tired of my mouth being sore and bleeding because of this, but I
    guess no one can help. My dentist gave me a mouthguard to protect my
    gums (she can see my gums are receding because of this already), but of
    course I don't wear it in public.

    All I want to know is: after my gums have been rubbed away by my tongue
    (which is indeed already happening), will my teeth fall out or just stay
    in without any gums around them?

    Report
  7. Jim Patterson
    Archived post
    #7

    Yeah it's behind the front teeth. My dentist thought about putting
    something like that in to protect them, but said my speech would be
    slurred. Is there something better that wouldn't affect my speech?

    Paul said:

    Is the rubbing of the gums occurring behind the top front teeth? If so, you
    could have an acrylic guard made to just fit behind your front teeth on your
    gums only. It would be like a retainer in a way...the same shape. You could
    wear this in public as it would not cover the entire tooth and would allow
    you to talk...

    "Jim Patterson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:


    Well yeah the salivating is good, so that's why my dentist didn't want to
    prescribe something that would make me not salivate. The excessive
    salivation is because of my OCD, not any physical problem. The worse
    problem is that everytime I swallow, my tongue rubs against my gums making
    them bleed.

    I'm so tired of my mouth being sore and bleeding because of this, but I
    guess no one can help. My dentist gave me a mouthguard to protect my
    gums (she can see my gums are receding because of this already), but of
    course I don't wear it in public.

    All I want to know is: after my gums have been rubbed away by my tongue
    (which is indeed already happening), will my teeth fall out or just stay
    in without any gums around them?

    Report
  8. enk
    Archived post
    #8
    Quoted message said:

    Yeah it's behind the front teeth. My dentist thought about putting
    something like that in to protect them, but said my speech would be
    slurred. Is there something better that wouldn't affect my speech?

    Jim, I wore a retainer for several months that caused me to slur and
    lisp at first. You can teach yourself not to not slur or lisp though.
    I sang in the car, read out loud to the cat at home, and spoke
    normally within two or three weeks. You might want to consult a speech
    therapist for help developing correct technique since you might have
    to deal with this long term if you go the mouth-guard route.

    enk

    Report

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