What is causing my mouth pain?

[kitsuac]

For about a year, there has been a constant pain in my mouth. It seems to radiate all across the upper teeth and gums and to some degree the roof of the mouth. I can reduce the pain by pressing my thumb against the back of my upper front teeth and the roof of my mouth. The pain is also reduced when wearing a mouth guard which covers that same area. The pain is pulsating and relatively dull but significant enough that it's distracting all day long (similar to having a tooth-ache)

My dentist hasn't had much to say about it, other than a vague idea that it could be related to grinding my teeth. I've never in my life caught myself grinding me teeth, and the pain isn't at the top of the teeth at all, so that doesn't ring true to me. It also doesn't seem to fit anyone's description of tooth grinding pain that I've heard of. Aside from this pain, I get A+ checkups at the dentist so it doesn't seem to be something obvious like a cavity.

It's unpleasant to be in pain 24 hours a day, and it's frustrating that my dentist doesn't seem interested in offering any additional help figuring out how to identify the problem or manage the pain at least. Looking for any tips on how to figure this out and get some relief.

 

[Busybee]

Are you sure it's not sinus pain or similar? I am asking only because I know that there is a pressure point in the roof of the mouth. If you want to sneeze the way to stop it is to press your tongue into the roof of the mouth. Pressing the area could just temporarily stop the nerve transmitting. Have your wisdom teeth erupted?

 

[kitsuac]

That sounds like a good idea to investigate. My wisdom teeth were removed around 10 years ago. The dentist has given me no indication that there are any tooth problems, but odd to me that the pain seems so focused around the teeth and gums. I guess that all the nerves are connected so it's difficult to know where pain is coming from sometimes.

Now that you mention it, even pressing toward the back of the roof of my mouth really decreases the pain. Maybe better if I switch over to a forum about sinus problems

 

[honestdoc]

How you would know if you have sinus pain is more pronounced pain upon bending forward, laying back, going up or downstairs. I'm still suspecting grinding and clenching because you don't realize when you are grinding/clenching and the bite guard is helping.

 

[kitsuac]

The bite guard is easing the pain just by applying pressure against the back of my teeth / roof of mouth. I can put the guard on any time throughout the day when the pain is bothering me and it's almost immediately relief. Doesn't seem to have anything to do with preventing grinding, just the pressure.

 

[honestdoc]

Apparently it is relieving your pain...always a positive result. There are so many benefits to the bite guard. Other benefits include preventing clenching and supporting your TMJ.

 

[kitsuac]

I've also started to use it while mountain biking. The trails that I ride have very rocky, fast downhills and at times I've noticed my teeth knocking against each other which is no good.

 

[lolzita]

Seems similar to what I'm experiencing... you can check out here
https://www.dentistry-forums.com/th...-in-front-teeth-help.23039/page-2#post-120493

Was there an initial trauma in your case? How did it start?

 

[kitsuac]

I don't remember exactly when it started, unfortunately. But if there was initial trauma, it was almost certainly during a mountain biking wreck or a particularly bad CHOMP while bouncing down a rocky hill. I'm at such a high heart rate and pumped full of endorphins that I don't really notice pain while riding, it all just blurs together.

It seems similar to what these people are describing, but not completely. I've been fortunate so far (knock on wood) that the pain goes away almost completely using a mouth guard and carefully positioning it just right. I've wondered sometimes if there's damaged skin which isn't healing and the mouth guard is soothing it, covering the nerves.