Pain driving me crazy...

[Strange girl]

Christmas has been going really well, or it was until I developed a dental abscess.. I think I got a bit of seasonal chestnut trapped between gum and tooth.. and of course it flaired up as soon as doctor and dentist went skiiing for the week. My dentist isn't back til Tues and I woke up boxing day in pain and tenderness. Called out of hours dentist who said cold compact and take something for pain, ie paracetomol or ibuprofen.. no joy, couldn't sleep, totally agony, swelling in gum began and I knew I needed more than a cold compress to last the week. Managed to get son to come with me to A&E after being told to go to emergency dentist by NHS direct. Bless, my son really doesn't understand or empathise at all with my situation, but he managed to sit in A&E with me behaving impeccably for over 2 hours!

 

Got in to see dentist and I wanted him to drain it? to relieve the pressure but instead he just gave me amoxycillan? anti biotics.. so spent another sleepless night in absolute agony taking nurofen and paracetomol as often as allowed.. then began the downhill climb.. antibiotics not yet kicking in- feel flu like, face and neck and tongue have continued to swell up and pain killers my own gp have given me only take the edge of for max an hour, then have 3 to wait in sobbing pain til redosing. codeine/ paracetamol and diclofenic.. I feel like such a wuss.. I am hoping the antibiotics will work eventually as my throat so swollen and jaw so stiff I have taken to communicating with pen, paper and charades... fortunately my son prefers this to the verbal method- silent nagging...

 

Does anyone know if I can have alcohol to help my pain relief? or if this is against the effectiveness of the antibiotics? I don't care if the only reason is I might feel loopy with painkillers.. I just need a better pain relief to help me off to sleep.. ..A friend of mine brought over a few cans of stella artois, or I have a couple tiny bottles of snowball I could happily drink? Anyone know of any reason why I shouldn't? TIA.

[Kris]

Christmas has been going really well, or it was until I developed a dental abscess.. I think I got a bit of seasonal chestnut trapped between gum and tooth.. and of course it flaired up as soon as doctor and dentist went skiiing for the week. My dentist isn't back til Tues and I woke up boxing day in pain and tenderness. Called out of hours dentist who said cold compact and take something for pain, ie paracetomol or ibuprofen.. no joy, couldn't sleep, totally agony, swelling in gum began and I knew I needed more than a cold compress to last the week. Managed to get son to come with me to A&E after being told to go to emergency dentist by NHS direct. Bless, my son really doesn't understand or empathise at all with my situation, but he managed to sit in A&E with me behaving impeccably for over 2 hours!

 

Got in to see dentist and I wanted him to drain it? to relieve the pressure but instead he just gave me amoxycillan? anti biotics.. so spent another sleepless night in absolute agony taking nurofen and paracetomol as often as allowed.. then began the downhill climb.. antibiotics not yet kicking in- feel flu like, face and neck and tongue have continued to swell up and pain killers my own gp have given me only take the edge of for max an hour, then have 3 to wait in sobbing pain til redosing. codeine/ paracetamol and diclofenic.. I feel like such a wuss.. I am hoping the antibiotics will work eventually as my throat so swollen and jaw so stiff I have taken to communicating with pen, paper and charades... fortunately my son prefers this to the verbal method- silent nagging...

 

Does anyone know if I can have alcohol to help my pain relief? or if this is against the effectiveness of the antibiotics? I don't care if the only reason is I might feel loopy with painkillers.. I just need a better pain relief to help me off to sleep.. ..A friend of mine brought over a few cans of stella artois, or I have a couple tiny bottles of snowball I could happily drink? Anyone know of any reason why I shouldn't? TIA.

 

Hiya,

 

I do sympathise as I had much the same thing myself a few weeks ago. I couldnt eat or sleep for ages.

 

The Doc gave me antibiotics and the dentist took the tooth out when the infection had gone down. Amoxycillin didnt even begin to touch it. The Doc had to give me something much stronger but with both the message was the same "Dont Drink"

 

I know the feeling of waiting for the next 4 hours to end so you can take more painkillers

 

Hope you feel better soon.

 

Kris

[something_different]

ooh i really sympathise with you!

 

I know how it feels

 

I too was just given antibiotics and they did not kick in

 

also ended up calling NHS direct again and goin to an emergency dentist to get it drained

 

Only then did i feel better

 

he asked if i wanted more antibiotics as the course i had been on was done (he gave me diff ones than the original dentist perscribed)

 

i said yes just to be on the safe side

 

i could not eat at all when i had my abcess not even my favourite homemade soup

felt so ill with the painkillers antibiotics and not eating

 

i think u shld try and get it drained as antubiotics were of no use to me

Edited December 28, 2005 by something_different

[lil_me]

I don't think anyone other than a pharmacist can answer that question, but with an uncle who is one I know some antibiotics can be lethal with alcohol metronidazole is I know someone who ended up seriously ill mixing the 2. Also it stops the antibiotics working properly. I'd do one or the other.

Edited December 28, 2005 by lil_me

[Kathryn]

Hi Strangegirl,

 

I really sympathise, having been the vicim of a dental abcess several times, I know it's the kind of pain that you really can't ignore. <'>

 

I really think you should call NHS direct and get expert advice about whether or not you can take alcohol with the antibiotics. I can only tell you from personal experience that some years ago I was offered antibiotics for a similar abcess and my dentist advised me not to drink with them. I'm not sure of the medical reason for this, but it's probably wiser not to.

 

The same dentist also advised me to gargle with salt water - ie keep swilling it round the mouth as often as you can. Without going into too much detail, this brought the abcess to a head within a day and it burst and kind of drained itself painlessly without any intervention. It's worth a try and it won't do you any harm.

 

I hope you get some relief tonight and do go back to the emergency dentist tomorrow if the pain is still as bad.

 

K

[Tensing]

Oh you poor thing, believe me I know how you feel.

 

I found hot tea was great hurt like made at the time, but eventually abcess drained and it was bliss instant pain relieve.

[Strange girl]

Thanks all. I think by what you are saying, drinking is not a good idea so I think I will leave it.. I don't know why they have to give ineffective antibiotics to begin with. it seems like a lot of people end up having to go back and get it drained eventually anyway so why wait until its out of control? they could have nipped it in the bud so to speak when I was there.. It was hard enough getting my son to go to A&E the first time.

I have been gurgling a saline solution non stop since the first sign of pain.. but it has made no difference.

 

if something goes wrong it always happens at the most inconvenient time.. the worst part is I have been craving a left over turkey sandwhich with stuffing and cranberry since boxing day- but I can't bear to chew even soup! It already feels like I am chewing a lightbulb when I am not even eating. I sneezed earlier and banged my teeth together and ended up bawling and jumping around like a lunatic. My son copied me so there we were hopping around the christmas tree together like we were doing some weird shaman ritual.. wailing and pogoing.. what a sight it must have been..

 

only another hour and 42 minutes til next tablet...

 

(and yes, tea is the best thing I have found so far.. soothing heat.. )

Edited December 29, 2005 by Strange girl

[something_different]

all i had when i had my abcess was drinking warm boiled water thru a straw was the only thing i cld bear to take

 

I also gargaled salt water from the beginning and it made no difference at all

 

hope you get it sorted soon

 

it was such a relief when i went and got mine drained

[Strange girl]

Thanks. I understand the warm boiled water thru straw part, but not even an aspirin? I dread to think how bad the pain would be without the useless tabs I am taking as it is.. at least with them I get approx an hour in every four that I can take a break from excessive pain- although it never feels fine. Yesterday I craved the draining releif but today it is so sore the thought of touching it with a feather hurts.. but I like the sound of instant relief!

[lil_me]

If you can get it there is a dental gel called Orajel which is fab, I find Bongela hopeless but Orajel Max Strength just numbs the lot - caution if you get your lips or tongue with it it makes you dribble lol

[clair]

Hi, I can so totally sympathise with you, an absess makes you want to put your head through a wall doesnt it. I know that nothing takes the pain off it,however when my friend had one she went to A&E and they gave her some painkiller, I think it was Voltarol but not the tablet form, she had the one that you have to put up the other end. It worked for about eight hours and she did it herself when she got home. I think she said that if they didnt help her with something stronger she would end up topping herself overdosing on paracetamol. The only reason they gave her a suppository was because they have druggies in quite often who play them along. Of course my mate was so desparate she used the suppository even though the nurse said that she was supposed to administer it herself she let her take it home. It is worth a try having that even if it is embarassing. Good luck and i hope it goes soon. clair

[TuX]

Alcohol shouldn't be taken with drugs because with alcohol-some can cause overdose effects and others can stop drugs working.

 

I had amoxycillin a few years ago for an infection and abscesses but found the only long term solution was to have root canal treatment which is where the problems were around.

 

If own abcess has a specific cause,like an infected tooth,that should be sorted out rather than taking antibiotics for a long period.

 

 

One reason why antibiotics might not work for everyone is built up resistance from previous use,another is that it's just not the right antibiotic.

Edited December 29, 2005 by TuX

[lindy-lou]

i ended up in hospital about 4 years ago with a dental abscess,it can be serious if the abscess bursts and the poison gets into your bloodstream,so you shouldnt apply anything hot to it as that can make the abscess burst(yes i had a hot water bottle against it) the pain i can only second to child birth it was that bad,obviously the best course of action is to see a dentist to get the abscess drained and maybe the tooth removed,in the meantime i found that holding calpol in my mouth over the affected tooth,not swallow it just swill it over the tooth,you can do the same with brandy or whiskey but dont drink it with antibiotics,also some cotton wool soaked in clove oil helped a bit,hope you get it sorted soon,i have much sympathy for you <'>

[TuX]

i ended up in hospital about 4 years ago with a dental abscess,it can be serious if the abscess bursts and the poison gets into your bloodstream,so you shouldnt apply anything hot to it as that can make the abscess burst(yes i had a hot water bottle against it) the pain i can only second to child birth it was that bad,obviously the best course of action is to see a dentist to get the abscess drained and maybe the tooth removed,in the meantime i found that holding calpol in my mouth over the affected tooth,not swallow it just swill it over the tooth,you can do the same with brandy or whiskey but dont drink it with antibiotics,also some cotton wool soaked in clove oil helped a bit,hope you get it sorted soon,i have much sympathy for you <'>

Does it have a sort of antiseptic effect?

Salt (mixed into warm water) is an antiseptic and might work?

Have never tried that with abscesses though.

[mossgrove]

Unless you are certain drinking is OK you should never drink on antibiotics as drinking even small quantities of alcohol can make you very poorly indeed.

 

Ibuporofen (Nurofen etc.) is the best painkiller for dental isues as it is an anti-inflammatory (i.e. it shrinks the swelling causing the pain) as well as being a painkiller.

 

Simon

Edited December 29, 2005 by mossgrove

[lindy-lou]

i did gargle with salt and warm water but im not sure if thats the best thing to do after the hospital told me that heat can make it burst but it wont be hotter than a cup of tea i suppose,clove oil has a mild anasthetic property,it tastes foul but it does give relief.especially if there is a cavity in the tooth,which is the main cause of an abscess.also you can take 600mg of ibuprofen and 2 paracetamols 3 times a day.

Edited December 29, 2005 by lindy-lou

[lil_me]

Pain relief amounts also depends on the person, any medical issues etc aswell.

 

I can take CoDydramol 800mg, Ibrufen 800mg and codeine 30mg ( I think it is not got boxes handy) up to 4 times a day but some can't. Just make sure you don't go over the recommended daily amount you have been given. If the paracetamol and diclofenac not working I'd suggest going back asking for stronger pain relief on prescription. From experience alcohol as pain relief doesn't last long at night and wake up with headache aswell as tooth ache

Edited December 29, 2005 by lil_me

[Strange girl]

Thanks all for your ideas- I tried them all! Then I packed up my son and went to stay with friends while it was at its worst. Not that I was a bit too irritable or distracted to parent or anything ... but the extra help and pampering helped bide my time for the healing to work. Upped my pain relief and eventually it gone down enough so dentist can treat. never want another one of those. I did have a drink New Years eve, with the fireworks and countdown, and it was the best pain killer I'd had. I slept right thru at last, and surprisingly had no ill effects or bad head in morning.. pleasantly surprised.. carried on with codydra and anti-biotics as normal new years day and all was bearable. to a tooth-pain-free 2006..

[DAS999]

Thay always say do not drink for two reasons

 

1) it stops the drugs working as well

 

2) it can make you sleepy or feel unwell

 

I would not advise it but I would advise talking to a GP or phone NHS direct 08 45 46 47

 

Hope you feel better soon

[hev]

god isent toothache terrible,when i had my last bout i just couldnt function properly and its always so much worse at night,def on alcohol my bruv in law did that last week with brandy and painkillers,nearly fainted,went very woozy,hope it bit better now

[UltraMum]

also some cotton wool soaked in clove oil helped a bit

 

My mum swears by this - tastes and smells a bit but works!