Toothache but it isn't a cavity?

Question

Occasionally, I'll get completely unexpected and sharp pains in practically all of my teeth (not at the same time) and I know for a fact it's not cavities. How? Because I brush 2-3 times a day, floss countlessly for fear of getting a cavity and when I went to the dentist, he said I didn't have any cavities. Besides, I've had plenty of them and I know what they feel like.

It's been happening a lot more frequently lately and it's not unbearable, it's just a bit of pain in a tooth or two at a time. Sometimes it's my front teeth other's my jaw teeth where I have my fillings (also a sign it isn't a cavity). I've heard stress can trigger these kind of toothaches and that is possible because I have an irrational fear of the dentist and whenever I see that commercial with a gigantic tooth that surrounded by people I panic about my teeth (fear of dentist) and that's when it starts hurting a lot of the time.

Should I seek a dentist or a therapist (lol. Also, I'm 16 if that matters and I have a lot of fillings because of low calcium levels or something like that. I don't eat mounds of candy or anything of the sort.)?

Answer 1

I would be concerned if it's in areas where you already have had fillings because of recurrent decay. That means that even if you have had a cavity that was filled, a few years later another one may present itself underneath or around the filling.

     Eating candy isn't the only way to get cavities. The bacteria in your mouth that causes cavities actually feeds off of carbohydrates (sucrose is just one of many carbs) that you eat and produces acid as a byproduct! This acid lowers the pH in your mouth and once the pH is low enough(around 5.5), enamel begins to demineralize. This means that calcium and phosphate are being removed. Once you stop eating, the bacteria work for 20 minutes after unless you rinse your mouth out with water. Minerals in your saliva will help remineralize your enamel, or put back calcium and phosphate into your enamel. This is where your low levels of calcium come into play. Fluoride helps remineralize enamel because it binds to calcium easily. Rinsing with an over the counter fluoridated mouth rinse, like ACT, may help!

      Sorry, I know that was boring. Now to address your tooth pain. Does the pain occur when you eat cold foods? Do you think you may have a sinus infection? Sinus infections sometimes cause tooth pain (mainly in the top arch of your mouth because your sinuses tend to expand and hit the nerves of your teeth). Do you grind your teeth at night? Sometimes that may cause pain. Stress usually can cause you to grind. Hope this helps! If you have any other questions you can email me right here on yahoo!

*Sinuses are just hollow parts of your skull. Your head would be much to heavy if we didn't have them! These areas are lined with tissue which sometimes can get infected and expand. I would recommend going to your dentist. If there's nothing more than just plain old dentinal hypersensitivity (the dentin is just a yellow layer underneath your enamel that contains hollow tubules. It's the layer next to the pulp. Sensitivity can be caused for this reason), he may just recommend Sensodyne toothpaste or a prescription Prevident toothpaste.=)

Answer 2

You really should talk to your dentist about. Don't be afraid, they almost never do anything on the spot. Record how often it happens and try your best to describe the sort of pain you're in. They'll probably tell you what it is and make an appointment at a later date. Look at things on the internet, get an idea of what might be happening also.