My gum disease journey, I'm on the up....a great day.

[Tolkienista]

I've posted on here before about my periodontal journey navigating this disease.
I've been under a periodontist since April 2002 & from the start I knew it was serious & I've done everything I've been asked to do at home methodically, never missed a night of my regime & the results have been impressive.

I see my periodontist annually and my hygienist every 4 months.

Today was my annual checkup with my periodontist, absolutely everything was fine, nothing but praise.
Then into the adjoining room to have my four monthly appointment with my hygienist.
Again really good, full of praise & the bonus was I'm being moved to 6 monthly hygienist appointments.

I think why I'm posting this is to say that despite my fear back in 2002 that I'd have dentures by the age of 50, here I am at 67 and my mouth is healthy, stable and in great shape.
It really can be done.
I'm proud of myself for sticking with a regime while time consuming has produced impressive results.
Anyone who can relate, please share your thoughts.

Please let us know your regime! Working on mine at the mo.

Oh yes please re the regime

To be honest, it's not too much .
Morning ......brush my teeth manually, just a soft bristled tooth brush.
Night time......start with dental tape, find it easier to use than floss.
Next Tepe interdental brushes ( a variety of sizes)
Finally electric toothbrush io3 oral b range.
And that's it......takes around 10 mins at night. But I've stuck to it rigidly and it's paid dividends.
Used to use mouthwash, but haven't used it for years.

Do I enjoy it.....not really. It's a bit fiddly.
But once it's done and I run my tongue round my mouth, it's really worth it.

That's a good news story. I fear is losing my teeth, so it's good to see damage can be overcome.

Floss and Tepe, that's interesting. My dentist always says Tepe, I don't like them and floss instead. Have just bought a water flosser, haven't tried it yet. But my teeth are suffering because of the meds I'm on.

Thanks for your message.
From what I understand from my hygienist, Tepe brushes are really good because they remove up to 40% more plaque than brushing alone, getting into the spaces between your teeth. I've been using them for years and while fiddly, they are really effective.
The more I use them, the quicker I am at getting round my mouth.

@ShrimpBoil always working on mine!
I think I picked up (way back in 2002) that this was going to be pretty much down to me to do my part at home & while it is time consuming it does work, but you have to be committed.

My gums were ok but my bleeding score was quite high. I really worked on my flossing and interdental sticks over the last 6 months and the improvement was dramatic. I didn't even do it every day, just 3-4 times a week but having seen the improvement I do it daily now. I have an electric toothbrush up and downstairs so no excuse.
Glad yours have improved so much.

@Musicaltheatremum Oh wow, I love your quote "the improvement was dramatic" that pretty much reflects my experience too.
I'm not going to lie, some nights I have to drag myself upstairs to go through the routine, but once I get to my electric toothbrush I'm on the final third of my cleaning regime and I love that bit, just guiding the brush round my mouth.

Well done to you.

That's great news. Can I ask why you use a manual toothbrush in the morning, rather than an electric one?

Good question.
I've never really thought about it, but I guess it's because between night time brushing and morning brushing I only have one meal ...... (breakfast)so I'm working on the premise that not much plaque will have built up.

My hygienist knows I brush manually in the morning - has never said use your electric brush.

I really notice a difference if I don't use my electric toothbrush if we are on holiday. My bleeding does increase so I try to use it as much as possible.

That's really interesting. I don't have any bleeding at all, haven't had it for many many years, so I guess we're on slightly different trajectories.
I can see why you'd want to use your electric toothbrush, I would too.

Ooh interesting! I had a check up a few weeks ago and although I've never had bleeding gums when the dentist stabbed them (!) she said I was in the early stages of gum disease. She casually mentioned using those tepe brushes, gave me those mini tubes of corsodyl and sent me on my way! I hate the dentist so didn't ask further questions about those brushes but reading your story I'm tempted to give them a go. I already use an electric toothbrush.

@Ilikewinter yes definitely give them a go, can be a bit fiddly and time consuming but they clean @40% of your tooth that an electric toothbrush can't reach.
It's a bit of guess work which sizes to get, but I think you can buy a multi pack with one of each size inside.
I use mine every night and because I've been using them for so long, I'm really quick in getting round my mouth.
Go for it.

Well done! I’m 34 diagnosed at 31 and it’s been costly and I’ve slowly got there. If I miss flossing though for a day or two my gums bleed and are sore again this rarely happens but I’ve been caught out with holidays etc.

mine started in pregnancy and progressively got worse from gingivitis as I never knew what gum disease actually was, the lack of knowledge is so sad sometimes. I’m making sure my kids are fully aware of oral hygiene and treatments you can have such as hygienist appts

That's fantastic. I'm so pleased for you. I'm sure it's second nature now to have a very thorough regime.

Great post, I couldn't agree more, gum disease literally creeps up on you.
The same for me too and before you know it, you're in a world of adopting a cleaning regime with so many bits and pieces that takes up much of your wash bag when you go away.

I think the hardest thing for me is knowing, this is it. This is for life, you can't go into it half hearted you have to fully embrace it and that is sometimes hard to accept.

Good luck with your own dental journey & thanks again for sharing your experience.

Ain't that the truth, really is "second nature"
I could probably do it in my sleep, or blindfolded.
Put it this way , if I was exhausted and it was a choice between cleaning my face or teeth.......teeth would always win!

Yeah, your face won't fall off if you don't clean it! 😂 X

Had my gum disease for a good 20 years I think. Still got all my own teeth bar one implant,and that tooth loss was a baby tooth in my 50s. Its all about the cleaning and regular dentist and Hygienist appointments.