SoberryHappy

Man, as if all of the physical and emotional damage that I've caused myself and others wasn't enough... I have officially wrecked my teeth. Binge drinking white wine and then passing out (no teeth brushing occured, obviously) a couple nights a week for the past 5 years has destroyed my teeth. I think I have more amalgam than actual teeth left in my mouth. Thankfully it's just my molars and my front teeth are spared.
Ugh, I am so ticked off that I allowed this to happen!!

On a side note, one of my favorite parts of being sober is my bedtime routine. I actually go to bed now, instead of passing out I wash my face and brush and floss my fillings (teeth is being generous) and then I put on moisturizer and actually go to bed.. it's so nice and something I really look forward to now.

Sobriety is the best!

J2911

I love hearing these positive messages! Good job! Crest Strips actually whiten my teeth when I use them now that I don't drink multiple glasses of Merlot each night! Cheers (sparkling cider) to good teeth!!

LadyinBC

Yes I really did a number on my teeth also. Mine were so bad I had to get most of mine pulled and get dentures. I had terrible gum disease and most of my teeth were pretty lose.

I have to say though that I am quite happy with my "new" teeth as they are straight and they do look quite nice. And it is nice to eat and drink things that are hot and cold and it doesn't bother me anymore.

PurpleKnight

That was one of my new routines too, bedtime was simply passing out, it now involves teeth brushing!!

MrBen

My teeth are also pretty bad, towards the back they are just a wreck. I have kind of a dip in one of my front teeth, luckily the rest of the damage at the front is just blunted teeth.

Now I've taken care of myself for a while I've realised they don't look too bad. I imagine yours don't look as bad as you think, remember you look at your teeth more closely than anybody else would bother with.

Wastinglife

I must have gone 5 years or more without brushing my teeth at night. My routine was to pass out drunk on the couch.

HeadLump

I always cleaned my teeth before bed. At least I thought I did. I used an electric toothbrush and I would wake up with toothpaste in my hair and all over my face - as well as the bathroom floor!

I'm much more accurate now

Jupiters

I have a dental appt. Sept 4th and am a bit afraid.
I'm sure the wine has corroded my teeth.

methodman1019

I lost all my teeth and had to get dentures. Some of it was hereditary, but my smoking and drinking didn't help, I'm sure. It was a hard pill to swallow at 44 years old.

Methodman

soberjuly

Sorry but I laughed aloud when I read this this morning. I just went to my last "repair the damage" dental appt yesterday. I spent so much on my teeth this last year, I think I paid for a year of my dentist's future kid's college tuition.

Passing out every night just doesn't make for a great dental plan huh?

"Do you floss regularly?"

"No, I pass out every night, floss? You've got to be kidding! That's no fun!"

The good news is, I went sober on Sat and had my (hopefully last) dental repairs on Monday. Now, so long as I take care of my teeth, I will just have cleanings.

My poor husband, he has paid a lot for my alcoholism.

The cost of the booze
The cost of dental repairs
The cost of laser treatment to get rid of the facial redness and veins in the face

He also once hired a nanny, so she could watch the baby that I was hardly capable of taking care of drunk all the time

Why did I drink? I guess I must have really hated myself, I think it is really a self-hatred.

I used to think, dentists (and oral surgeons and endodontists) must love alcoholics...okay that's a bit/very insulting, I am very much joking here...but my alcoholism was sure lining their pockets.

Viv22

Snap guys I have a dentail app tomorrow so so scared missing teeth from years of abuse from my ex the rest lose ones from not looking after them while drunk and passing out

ElleDee

Feels so good, doesn't it?! Yay!

DoubleDragons

I was a red wine lover, so my friends loved to joke about my constant purple teeth. I remember my hygienist remarking about how much red wine I must drink about a year before I quit, when she was cleaning my teeth. Mortifying. (and we always think we are so secretive. HA!)

SoberryHappy

LOL!! Thank you all for the replies, as much as I don't want to wish dental problems on any of you... it did make me feel better to read all of your stories! MrBen, I liked your point about nobody looking at my teeth as closely as I do (Thank Goodness!).

Soberjuly, I can so relate to your story. Before I admitted to my dentist about being an alcoholic he would run through the questions with me. "Do you drink a lot of soda? Do you eat a lot of candy? Are you drinking things with high acidity, eating lemons/limes? Juice?" And my answers for all of them "Nope, no, no way, not me". LOL, he just looked at me like "yeah right". This past time when I admitted about the white wine he told me that he figured it was either white wine (b/c my teeth weren't purple, ha ha DoubleDragons) or that maybe I was bulimic.

I am so thankful that I have good dental insurance... I definitely got my money's worth from them!! lol

SoberryHappy

Ha ha, oh the things we did to ourselves! At least you gave it a real try, lol. I never did, and it took everything in me to not barf while brushing my teeth in the morning if I had a bad hangover. My poor enamel! No wonder my teeth are in the condition they are right now!

Here's to annual cleanings from here on out!

jezza

Here's a link which maybe of interest.. Whether it works or not I don't know but can't do any harm.. I add a small teaspoon of Epsom Salts to the oil which gets some Magnesium in to the teeth which will help remineralize them and after a salt wash I do a 3% Hydrogen Peroxide mouthwash which kills any other lurking germs & makes your teeth white..

http://fashionista.com/2014/03/oil-pulling

Dee74

It took me several years but I finally got things fixed - only lost one tooth which is ridiculously lucky.

I think re-mineralization can occur Jezza, but I really recommend anyone see a dentist if you have significant cavities, severe or continued pain, any sign of gum disease or abcesses.

There's only so much we can do ourselves

D

jezza

OOOopppsss Sorry Dee forgot to put that... Of course go & see your Dentist if you have any concerns!!

Martin1

The worst thing about all this for me, is that I had two teeth smashed out as a child and was always self conscious of these. That eventually led me to drink to cope with the shyness.

I'm 27 now and when I speak it looks like I have almost no teeth. I don't know what to say. I haven't been able to leave the house since I was about 18. You can imagine what I'm like now. They badly need fixing but this is going to be impossible isn't it

Dee74

Hi Martin - I'm not sure what low cost option are available to you in the UK. I used a dental school a lot...they are only students but they are supervised.

Someone else I know from SR went to Poland (I believe?) to get their teeth fixed...much cheaper there, so eastern Europe could be another option?

There's always a solution

D