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cfhunter
119 Posts |
 Posted - 09/18/2007 : 18:58:36
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Okay so briefly: a root canal and 5 replaced fillings and a night guard later...I was feeling pretty okay with the confirmation from my dentist that there weren't any further fractures and everything looks good.
However after an extremely stressful weekend I am now having tooth pain in one of the very first fillings I had replaced to begin with.
sensitive to hot food is the first thing I have felt since replacement in May.
I am still after mANY books and readings later perplexed about how this current stress situation could be giving me this much trouble as tms??
After the dentist told me there were no fractures I felt better even that night...but now THIS is happening and I am feeling FEAR again.
I absolutely can NOT go get anything further done dental-wise.
can't afford it.
I need some input on how you all deal with the FEAR monster.
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justme
63 Posts |
Posted - 09/18/2007 : 20:16:41
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Ahh, the fear monster. At least you have identified the real source of TMS.
In the past I have tried the following approach to fear: Try imagining yourself distancing yourself further and further from the fear, until you get to the point of your ultimate fear, which in my opinion has mostly to do with death for most people. Start thinking about the implications of your death - how utterly out of your control it really is, how very little you really know about it and its aftermath. Once you have confronted your ultimate fear, the smaller fears fall into perspective.
Sometimes I think TMS is a spiritual gift - one that forces us to confront the mortality of our bodies, leading to the possible contemplation of the immortality of our spirits.
Just Me |
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armchairlinguist
USA
1397 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 10:34:36
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If what you are experiencing is TMS, it may not be your current stress that is 'causing' it. It could be something that you are not currently aware of that is much larger. Have you tried to journal since the pain's return and come up with possible additional causes? I think sometimes once we understand that we have stresses and TMS, we return to ignoring the unconscious issues that are at the root, thinking "Oh, I've already explored that, it must be something new." This may not be true.
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Wherever you go, there you are. |
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cfhunter
119 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 16:50:45
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the thing abou the pain is that I FEAR it could make things worse if I don't address it. OR if I feed into it and a root canal could be avoided I will be angry at myself for not working through it.
sigh.
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art
1903 Posts |
Posted - 09/19/2007 : 18:37:17
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Fear of fear is the most difficult and self-reinforcing emotional trap I know...
I've learned I cannot think my way to a solution, that I must disengage, cognitively speaking...Deep breaths, self talk, distraction, meditation, exercise, whatever it takes...
As I once wrote in another context, if fear is an ocean, and who can doubt that it is, then thinking is the leak in the boat, the hole in the dam.... |
Edited by - art on 09/19/2007 18:37:59 |
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AnthonEE
USA
80 Posts |
Posted - 09/20/2007 : 11:54:55
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Interesting that I had an experience with painful teeth about a year ago. My two front teeth became very painful, sometimes after having something hot, like tea. I was worried about why they were hurting so much so I went to the dentist and got checked out. She sent me to periodontist. Several weeks and 12+ xrays later I still had painful teeth with no diagnosis. Not sure if I was clenching through a very stressful period, if so I was not aware of it at all. But they really hurt. I converted to Sensodyne toothpaste which helped a lot. Since then the pain has gone from my teeth. Now it is in my arm, leg, back, neck, just about everywhere except my teeth. Nothing was ever shown to be wrong with my teeth. How interesting...
quote:
Originally posted by art
Fear of fear is the most difficult and self-reinforcing emotional trap I know...
And about the fear. I know EXACTLY what Art is saying. I get paralyzed by fear. If a muscle in my leg hurts from a previous injury, there is fear that if I walk it will get further injured or torn, then I'll be in really tough shape. It's not at all the pain that disables me, but fear of what the pain might mean. Fear that it is a weakness or liability in the muscle, joint, whatever, and that it needs more rest. It's the FEAR that I fight, NOT the pain. Not in any way the pain.
Unfortunately, I don't have much advice about how to combat the fear, I'm only now learning about TMS and I'm far from victory over that. I too would like to hear techniques how others climb over the fear. It causes anxiety which I believe fuels even more symptoms and further fear. It is indeed the monster.
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cfhunter
119 Posts |
Posted - 09/21/2007 : 13:03:11
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Anthonee and Art thank you for your posts. One thing Anthonee said is EXACTLY how I feel.
"It's not at all the pain that disables me, but fear of what the pain might mean. Fear that it is a weakness or liability in the muscle, joint, whatever, and that it needs more rest. It's the FEAR that I fight, NOT the pain. Not in any way the pain."
Shoot I can go through 16 hours natural child birth labor, 4 root canals (and god help me if I need another on this tooth) and that bothers me not. It's the fear of leaving something ALONE and ending up with a DEAD tooth and no reversal and having to pull it out when a root canal would have fixed it!
I am so darn MAD about this I obsess about it which makes me even madder!!!
sigh. I ate my soy beans for lunch and said hte F word every time I chewed because the heat from the food hurt that tooth really bad.
I was just saying it in my head to my braing to QUIT F-ing with ME!
thanks for letting me vent.
How come your dentist didn't do a R.C. on those two teeth? Heat and cold sensitivity are the hallmarks of a bad nerve in your tooth and have been SAID to never get better with out Rcanal.
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AnthonEE
USA
80 Posts |
Posted - 09/23/2007 : 18:03:27
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quote:
Originally posted by cfhunter
How come your dentist didn't do a R.C. on those two teeth? Heat and cold sensitivity are the hallmarks of a bad nerve in your tooth and have been SAID to never get better with out Rcanal.
Well they are my two front teeth, and I think I have very nice teeth. I shudder at the thought of losing the two front teeth to root canal. No way!! So this is why I was so scared about this tooth pain. So the periodontist did the hot/cold test and I did not have sensitivity beyond what was considered normal. Thank goodness the tests, x-rays, etc, all came up fine. No reason was ever found for the painful teeth. I swear they really hurt, all day long, maybe I was clenching. I was not aware of it though. So it eventually went away, took months. All this before I ever heard of TMS. So now I use sensodyne toothpaste, not because I need it, but because I started using it back then when it really helped, TMS or not, and now I decided I just like the taste of it. So my teeth are fine now, see:  I still don't know what that pain was about. So I think in my case it should go in the TMS bucket. In your case, the dentist seems to think your teeth are fine, is that right? If that's the case, you could get a second opinion I suppose, it should put you at ease. But see then you've ruled out any problems, and you must go on to battle the fear. I wish I could help with that, it's just that I haven't even learned to help myself when it comes to the fear. But at least you are not alone, you have plenty of company, if it helps. |
Edited by - AnthonEE on 09/23/2007 18:15:33 |
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cfhunter
119 Posts |
Posted - 09/23/2007 : 20:08:41
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Thanks AnthonEE. I am afraid though..that my teeth will fail the sensitivity test when i go in.
I am really suffering from some serious heat pain.
;(
I appreciate your help...and hope.
:) |
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h2oskier25
USA
395 Posts |
Posted - 09/24/2007 : 15:05:58
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My sensitive tooth quit bothering me completely after I cleaned up my diet by removing sugar and white flour.
But nobody on this board likes to hear that eating right improves your health. |
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Barb
USA
12 Posts |
Posted - 09/24/2007 : 15:37:06
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I was having bad pain in a couple teeth a few months ago. The dentist sent me to a periodontist who did the sensitivity test. ALL my teeth responded to the heat and cold. The periodontist said it is because I grind my teeth. I do it at night.
I had a night guard but it made me grind harder. I've heard that the soft night guards have that effect on people. My dentist wants me to be fitted for an acrylic one. But it is way too expensive.
Is your night guard keeping you from grinding at night? do you grind during the day as well?
Also, from time to time I have pain in my teeth and usually in my face at the same time (maybe sinus's). |
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cfhunter
119 Posts |
Posted - 09/26/2007 : 17:46:58
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I clench at night AND during the day so I had an acrylic nightguard made and can tell my teeth are less sensitive in most areas. HOWEVER-the root canal I JUST paid $1500.00 in total failed b/c of a fracture under the gum line we believe and I hda to have the darn thing pulled adter all.
So NOW I am two days past an extraction with a dry socket.
Life hurts right now..whew!
For the h2oskier I DO believe diet makes a difference...I haven't eaten meat in 19 years and only have whole grains in my home and no sugars (except fruit) and the dark chocolate for flavonoids so I agree with you on that but wish I had relief from eating and exercising so well.
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teeth teeth and more teeth-input please?
