No Toothaches Please!

Tooth Pain - Guess what? It happened to me. I am a dentist.  It’s not supposed to happen to me, but it
did. I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone: a tooth ache is terrible thing!

This didn’t start like a typical tooth ache. It started with
some flu-like symptoms and a cough on a Friday. Achy body, weak feeling, and
not much energy. We’ve all been there before, right? No problem. I thought I
could rest, drink lots of fluids, and get better in a couple days. What better
time then a weekend to recover? Well it didn’t go that easy for me. You see, my
body was so busy fighting off an infection coming from my tooth that it couldn’t
fight off the flu so easily. I was wiped out for over a week, spending all the
time in bed and feeling useless.

I hadn’t realized that my tooth was a problem, but then I
started to develop some sensitivity around one tooth. I took an x-ray of myself
and quickly found that my tooth was a problem. The sensitivity quickly
developed into something terribly miserable. I was taking Ibuprofen, Tylenol,
and just couldn’t shake it. It was excruciating pain that would bring a grown
man to his knees. It really made me feel like a wimp.

When I was young I had a root canal done on a couple of my
molar teeth. I don’t remember it being a difficult experience or painful back
when it was done.  It’s been years since
it’s been done. It’s rare that a root canal will fail, but it happens every so
often.  In fact it happens about 2-4% of
the time according to the statistics and research. It was obvious from the
x-ray that the root canal had failed, and I needed it re-done. 

I was put on an antibiotic right away since my immune system
was overwhelmed. It got so bad that I had to be given a second antibiotic. It
was downright miserable, and I just had a hard time kicking it. When my tooth
was worked on it was a pleasant experience. I couldn’t feel a thing, and I
finally was able to rest and relax. Medicine was placed inside the tooth to
help fight off the bacteria that were causing the infection. It took a little
bit of time to get back to normal, but I was doing so much better.

The body is an amazing thing! The immune system takes care
of us in so many ways, but it’s crazy how a simple tooth infection can lower
the efficiency of the immune system. The infection in combination with the
common cold can be quite crippling and is no joke. Don’t do what I did!  Don’t wait! The teeth have an important
connection to general health and overall well-being.

At Apple Tree Dental in Rexburg we're ready to help you if any toothache develops. We have an extraordinary team that's ready to take care of you an make you comfortable again!

-Sky B. Sessions, DDS

Apple Tree Dental
33 Winn Dr Suite 2
Rexburg, ID 83440