Bryanna,

I got the information on the dentist in KOP. This dentist sounds like who I need to see, and it looks like he can take care of multiple issues, which is also good. I will call (or email) this weekend to see how soon I can get an appointment. Hopefully it can be next week, but I see they are only open 3 days a week. I appreciate the information on what to say to the new dentist also. You're brilliant.

I feel a tiny bit better just knowing that I have some kind of plan ... thanks to you I'm concerned about the expense, but at this point I will just have to do what I have to do and figure it out later.

In answer to your question: my "ex" dentist has no idea I've been seeing other dentists over the past almost two months. He has no idea about the extraction either.

I'm scheduled to see him the end of this month for a 6 mo check-up, but I will be cancelling. I think from what you are saying I should start fresh with everything, including x-rays - and not call his office for them .... or should I? The way my account is set up, I don't actually know what I have/have not paid for. I do know that I will not be paying the entire balance - namely for the remake of the crown on the decayed tooth from June.

Thank you for the information on recovering money from these dentists, which I may refer to at a later time. I think momentarily I will just focus on getting these issues under control. I'm already stressed out enough.

Question: Knowing what you know about my situation ... and the fact that I am not improving as far as the swelling and sore areas in my mouth, do you think I should continue taking the antibiotics? I have been taking them consistently since Tuesday night, and have about 3 days (if that) worth left. I have not gotten worse, but not really any better either. I don't have any real consistent pain, but I want to do the right thing until I can be evaluated.
Also, would you advise oil-pulling with a few drops of oil of oregano to keep additional bacteria/infection from setting in? I want to do everything I can so this extraction site does not get any worse than it already is.

Sincerely grateful .....

bchristine,

Okay good. Yes, that dentist is highly skilled and very experienced in oral surgery and all restorative procedures. He does not condone or perform root canals, just so you know. If someone adamantly wants to have a root canal, he refers them to someone in PA.

It would be IDEAL to have all of your xrays taken by your original dentist, the periodontist and whomever else you have seen over the last 3 years emailed to you. Then you can forward them to your new dentist after you make the appointment. The reason being is that the xrays will help the new dentist get a clear history on the progression of your dental problems. So you would have to actually explain very little

Irrelevant of whether you owe money to the original dentist or not, the xrays belong to you and legally he cannot withhold their release from you. When you call the office to retrieve the xrays, they will ask why you want them. To keep things simple but put a bug in his ear, you could say.... remember that ongoing problem that I've had on the upper right side second molar? Well I've decided to get another opinion on that area and I would like my whole mouth to be evaluated at the same time. As I said, they cannot refuse to release your xrays to you. They may ask you to sign a release form for them, that's okay. They may even bring up your balance and get a bit defensive with you seeking another opinion when they've "been so good to you". Don't scream.... just politely say how appreciative you are with the generous payment plan but you want your xrays. If you can email them instead of calling... that may be better yet! Just be sure to have them in your possession before you see another dentist.

Do not stop the antibiotic. Take the entire rx. You have to keep in mind that the problem that may be occurring at the extraction site would be deep and not at the gum level. So rinsing is helpful as it draws bacteria out and down from the site. But ingesting something is also helpful. So how do you feel about increasing the oregano oil? Do you have oil caps you can take? Also, do you eat garlic? If you can get at least one clove of garlic a day in your diet that would be helpful too. How about vitamin C? Which brand do you take? I personally use Perque Potent C Guard powder and I take about 3500 or so mgs on a daily basis. How about organic herbal tea... like turmeric to reduce inflammation and pomegranate tea is a great anti bacterial and a potent anti oxidant. I like NUMI organic turmeric tea and Tulsi pomegranate green tea. I even make ice pops out of the pomegranate tea )

Do not cancel that cc appointment yet with the original dentist as that may send up a red flag which you do not need at this time. If you cannot get in to see a dentist before that appt, then cancel it. That would be my suggestion.

Don't mention anything about your balance to anyone just yet. Let's see how the chips fall and take it from there. Okay?

... you're welcome ~'.'~ hang in there!

Hi Bryanna,

Thank you for the information on how to handle things from here on out with the dentists, getting x-rays, etc. VERY helpful. I will do as you suggested.

I seem to have taken a little turn for the worse ... a bit more swelling, discomfort and (some) pain in that area. My bite hurts too. I just hope I can get an appointment this week, as I'm certain I can't hold out for much longer... I may start taking some Aleve for the pain/inflammation (I have not been doing this), unless you have a better idea.

I cannot get over how much we have in common after your last response! You totally think like I do, and I appreciate your suggestions. I have been eating garlic everyday (I love it); and sometimes I hold a little piece up in that area, just to let the healing juices flow through. I have upped my turmeric intake (I like Organic India brand) considerably, as well as adding it to my cooking more. I've also upped my Vitamin C intake, and just ordered some powder yesterday (NOW Brand). I like the brand you suggested, but it's a little over my budget atm (everything is really). The oregano oil I have is in liquid form and I just ordered more of that yesterday too. It's organic Natural Factors brand. I also ordered some clove oil, as I've heard this is good too. I periodically through the day take a spoonful of coconut oil to help with this "infection". A couple times I held some manuka honey up in that area, but then I thought the sugars in it would not be good ... ?

I can't thank you enough for your help and support ... it's not easy going through something like this alone. Thank you again.

bchristine,

Okay continue eating the garlic, etc. However, please refrain from placing it or anything else directly on the surgical site as garlic, essential oils, etc can burn or inflame the tissue, especially since it's already inflamed. Also, this is a deep wound into the jaw bone and the bone is open below the gum line as it is a hole where the tooth was. If the bone is healthy and not infected, it takes up to one year for that hole to fill in completely. The gum tissue will close over long before that. If the bone is not healthy, then the bone will have difficulty filling in. It is best not to put <<anything>> into that wound other than the salt from rinsing. No honey, no coconut oil, no clove or garlic oil, nada. Take those things internally to stimulate your immune system to send healing cells.

Aleve and other non steroidal anti-inflammatory meds can help reduce the inflammation if you choose to take them. But they are not safe to take in large doses for any length of time.

When you call Dr L for an appointment, specify a new patient exam and xrays but also specify that you recently had a tooth extracted and would like him to evaluate that area. He often calls his new patients prior to their appt to talk with them a bit. He's very personable and caring....

Keep me posted
Bryanna

Bryanna,

Thank you, I will take the advice you suggested which makes a lot of sense.

As today has progressed, I am experiencing more swelling - my cheek is hard and I'm feeling the bulging/extreme soreness of my gum in the area of Tooth#3 and at the very back gum of Tooth #1 (which is gone). I read on other posts to apply warm, moist compresses which I started a few hours ago. I also took (2) Aleve for the 1st time . I am hoping this helps. I'm not experiencing any real "pain", but the state of everything is very concerning to me. I'm still on the antibiotics.

I am starting to panic b/c I checked the Drs. website you recommended in KOP, and it shows there are no appointments available until 9/21. I absolutely KNOW I cannot last that long .... Can you give me any suggestions.

Thank you in advance.

Hi BChristine, and OMG, I am so sorry that you are feeling so much worse. I do hope you can go to someone tomorrow morning and be seen as a matter of priority.

Thank you, yes, I've got my "own" thread describing my recent journey and my quest to find out what is wrong and if it can be fixed or is it just "too hard" so they all dismiss me - it is here http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread223635.html ... My experience so far with the dentists has not been the greatest, and I see that repeated in other stories here. They seem to either think that I am a hypochondriac who is imagining all of this (my xrays are "clear", I have no obvious loud pain (so far), I have no obvious bumps in my mouth - therefore I should be fine), or they think my case is too hard and nobody wants to "get their teeth" into my case(s) (plural since I have more than 1 problem).

I can only tolerate one antibiotic - amoxicillin (so far), and I know this from the past as well. I went to see a doctor the other day and she prescribed me metronidazole (Flagyl) because she felt it could help with the anaerobic bacteria, when taken together with my current amoxicillin, but after reading about it, I did not fill it. I don't know if this is OK or not.

I've also been pretty much consistent with the natural things (Himalayan pink salt rinses, probiotic capsules, fermented things (sauerkraut juice (sauerkraut is too tough for me to chew) and Braggs apple vinegar; I gave up on my kefir as at one stage my grains got "sick"), lots of freshly juiced veggies (all colours), loads of garlic, vit C and grape seed extract, extra Ca and a bit of D3 (plus sunshine), etc. I cannot possibly know if any of this is helping for the actual (what I think is) infection, but at least they should not be making me any sicker unless I consistently overdose.

OMG FemLex .... thanks for your response.

DO NOT. I repeat: DO NOT TAKE FLAGYL. My (now ) "ex-dentist" prescribed this about two years ago for me when he didn't know what else to do about my dental issues. Being the "good patient" that I always am, I took it. After only two days I was feeling like I had a stroke .....I was having trouble functioning, but continued to take it. I continued to get worse and took myself off the drug. I consider myself pretty tough, but have never had such a BAD reaction to a drug.

I realize everyone's system is different, but after reading about the side effects of this toxic drug (AFTER-the-fact) I knew it was not good. This drug should be taken off the market. It took me almost a month to feel completely normal again, and who knows if the side effects left me with any permanent damage.

I have not checked out the link/thread you had in your post, but I will. I just wanted to warn you ASAP not to take this awful drug; in the hopes I can save someone else from going through what I did.

Wow, thank you so much bchristine warning me about this drug! Just a quick glance at its "specs" made me dismiss the idea pretty much right away. I still remember my issues with Augmentin, I don't want to try something else, it's too much for me, even though my issues with antibiotics have (so far) been limited to the intestines, I can't say that I've noticed any other issues. It is a very scary feeling when you feel it like an internal scraping "live".

I can't even begin to tell you how much I hope you find someone to help you really soon. I will keep you informed of any progress that I might make, or any news - I am hoping to see 2 people this week, fingers crossed they don't dismiss me or tell me to wait even longer. This is not only time consuming, it is literally life consuming, I can't and don't do anything else. I am still making notes into a diary, since this "thing" is tricky and quite variable.

Take care, take some cabbage and other veggies (juices are great, with some pulp added back) and lots of garlic, and I hope to hear some better news from you. And now, I'll just bounce ideas under the 'desperate times bring desperate measures' motto LOL, so please don't take this as advice, as it (obviously) may not be suitable or wise, but if you are still worse, I would literally take all my relevant history and tests so far and go into my chosen OS's surgery in the morning (make sure he is actually there and not on another site/office) and sit and wait for him to see you. It would be extremely unlikely for them to refuse you (at least I would hope!).

Femlex,

I'm glad you are not going to take the Flagyl. It was one of the worst experiences I have ever gone through, and I certainly would not want to see you suffer any more than you already have!

I read the thread you linked regarding your dental situation. You have been through so much! I hope you too find relief from your issues soon - hopefully this week. I continue to read about all the problems of those who have had root-canaled teeth, yet this procedure is done so often with patients who do not fully understand the consequences. At least I am fortunate in that respect - I have never had the procedure done.

Like you, I have lost most all confidence in dental professionals. Finding out that my regular dentist of 20+ years has not been taking care of my oral health properly, and "dismissing" (this word you use describes it perfectly) my concerns and complaints over the years is mostly (if not all) to blame for the predicament I am in.

Over the past couple months I have seen about 9 different dental professionals (one bio-dentist). A couple have been quite kind in taking the time to speak with me about my situation, but with the exception of the bio-dentist, they were all conventional in suggesting root-canals, etc. Bryanna has given me the name of a bio-dentist about an hour away who I am going to try and see this week - I just hope I can get an appointment because I know I cannot hold out much longer. Thank you for your suggestion about seeing the oral surgeon. I have had two unfavorable follow-up appointments with the OS who extracted my tooth, and I will not see him again. He charged me $215 for the one follow-up appointment, and according to Bryanna, he did not even perform the debridement after the extraction, which is very important. It's so frustrating to put your trust in someone hoping they will do the right thing; then you are either taken advantage of, or treated with haste and improperly.

Please keep me posted on your situation this week, and I will do the same. It makes these situations easier to get through when you have some support and understanding

bchristine,

Okay, I agree that you need to be soon asap. Dr L sometimes goes on vacation early September. Have you called their office? The answering machine would say if they are away or not. If you cannot get in to see him this week, then please consider seeing an oral surgeon to evaluate that area. I know you do not want to go back to the one who extracted the tooth, so get in to see someone else. Email me the name of the os you saw and some names of some others near you. I will look up their websites and see if I can recommend one to you.

You can apply warm moist heat to that side of your face, 20 minutes on then off. You can do that 4 times a day as that will get the blood flowing in that area and may alleviate some of that hard swelling. Also, make sure to drink plenty of water throughout the day. You want to stay hydrated and keep flushing out the toxins.

Please don't panic. Stay positive and focus on being present in the moment, find your calm ... you know how to do this with yoga and meditation. Now more than ever, you need to rely on what your body can do for you.

Email me those names of oral surgeons... I will take a look.

Bryanna