Dental Health – Central Sensitization
Well, for starters, my skin as you can imagine is very sensitive, so sensitive that just bushing something lightly against it can cause it to turn bright red and make it sore. So a soft bristle brush was one of the first changes I made. Most dentists recommend this now for most people, so this may be something you are already doing. If so, GREAT!.
Being chronically ill and stressed also has big effects on your dental health. This ranges from an increased liklihood of developing cavities, to other dental issue like grinding your teeth at night (Bruxism), or feeling the need to bite your finger nails or the skin around you finger nails.
For the increased risk of developing cavities, I recommend regular dental cleanings, asking your dentist for prescription strength toothpaste, AND purchasing either “Sensodine” or the generic store brand version of toothpaste for sensitive teeth.
If you think you are grinding your teeth at night, you can ask your dentist about having a custom mouth-guard made for you. There are also athletic mouth-guards you can buy at stores and form yourself with hot water. For me, since I have so much pain, and because I sleep on my side, and because I have TMJ pain, I use the end of a Wilson’s athletic mouth-guard at night.
That’s just an inch of the mouth-guard cut off that sits on my back teeth formed to my teeth in a way that it does not move while I sleep. Anything else, and I have pounding headaches in under 5 minutes. Also, have you doctor check your B12 levels, if low, they can also wreak havock on your pearly whites.
I don’t floss, sorry folks, I don’t have a solution for that pain, so if you feel you need to give it up, you may want to get in the habit of using mouthwash. Try ACT for kids for a fluoride rinse, it comes in bubblegum flavor, protects your teeth, and it doesn’t burn.
However, the other type of mouthwash, I also recommended especially for those who forgo flossing, is the mentholated type, Like “Scope.” To be able to endure the burn, I recommend half rinse half water. If you still cannot tolerate it, add a bit more water until you can. Some is better than none. I’ve also heard “Crest Pro-Health” does not burn, and there are generic versions.
If you think you can survive flossing regularly, but are struggling, try purchasing a thinner floss, which requires less force to push through, like Oral-B Glide.
Your teeth may also be more fragile due to stress, mine certainly are, so I forwent hard foods long ago. If it crunches a little, OK, if it is hard to bite into, probably not the best idea. If you really need to chew on something, chew on gum, but sugar and artificial sweeteners are also something you may want to consider getting rid of too.
