Bad breath has altered my personality

[ivegotaquestion123]

I apologize for the length of this post***

I have had bad breath my entire life. My Dental Hygenist says that I take great care of my teeth and my Dentist concurs. I brush regularly and floss daily. I drink lots of water. I have tried all sorts of things from eating nothing but bland, non-offensive foods to not drinking alcohol to eating nothing to every over-the-counter remedy I can find (Breath Assure, Chlorophyll pills, parsley, sprays, mouthwashes, etc.)

Nothing has ever helped and I started developing negative social mannerisms that alienate me further from people. I will not stand near someone if I can help it & if I have to I try not to speak & I even hold my breath in. I step back during conversations because I believe I can be smelled from 6+ feet away. (I have had things said to me by strangers so it's not just in my head.) I at least make a point to keep something (table, counter, distance) between me and the other person.

I tried going to a "Breath Clinic" once but they sold me $200 worth of products that didn't work. Even if they did work I would have to constantly use the products throughout the day. I even used a fake name because I was so humiliated.

I read things like "brush your tongue, floss, do this, do that" & that just adds to my poor self-image. People seem to think that just brushing will solve this but it doesn't. I drink more than I should if I am in certain social situations because either the alcohol keeps me from thinking about it then (less inhibitions) or I reason that maybe the alcohol odor will cover my stench. I know, a horrible way to deal with the problem.

I don't look at people if they are closer than I can deal with because my mouth would be pointing in that direction.

I have times that I want to be spontaneous or out-going but I know I stink and know that the more I put myself out there the easier target I am for embarrassment.

I have always believed that everyone else had something over on me because they could always say "You stink" and I would be devastated.

I realize that I have chronic post nasal drip (I always thought that drainage was normal) & that could be the culprit. What kind of Dr. do I see for that? An Allergy Dr. or E.N.T.? How does a Dr. go about curing post nasal drip? I have been checking my insurance to find specialists in my plan but which one? (I don't need a referral)

Has anyone that has had bad breath due to post nasal drip really found a cure? What kind of treatment is there? It has never made a difference when I have used meds be it antihistamines, allergy, sinus, whatever. Is a nasal irrigator useful? How often do you have to use it? Anybody have answers?

[This message has been edited by ivegotaquestion123 (edited 08-06-2003).]

[tagger]

I'm not convinced the post nasal drip is the culprit. It may be stomach problems. You did mention acid reflux. It's common for bad breath to have nothing to do with dental hygiene. The source may be your acid reflux or some other stomach problem. For the post nasal frip you would see an ear, nose and throat specialist. For stomach see a gastro intestinal specialist.Good luck!...Tagger

[zuzu8]

As usual, TAGGER has come up with good advice re: acid reflux/stomach issues. This is a common cause of chronic bad breath.

Simple post nasal drip may not be the problem but the CAUSE of the drip may be...one of which is, you guessed it, acid reflux...and of course there's chronic sinusitis, or inflammation of the respiratory tract (nose, throat, windpipe, lungs)

Halitosis can also be caused by diabetes, liver or kidney ailments, but since you mention you've suffered with bad breath "all your life" it's unlikely it is any of these, because by now you'd be having other symptoms .

Again, some kind of digestive disorder is a possibility. Since your dentist has determined that your mouth is healthy, perhaps you should get a complete check-up by your GP or, as Tagger suggested, see either of the two specialists she mentioned....

Question: In case this is still a local mouth problem, has your dentist ever recommended a specially designed tongue scraper to be used way WAY far back on the tongue? Normal toothbrushing of the tongue isn't the same. This scraper is designed to go much farther back. It takes time and patience to overcome the gagging reflex, but I've heard that it sometimes completely cures the bad breath problem as long as the cause is not digestive or nasal etc.

Good luck,

zuzu xx


[This message has been edited by zuzu8 (edited 08-06-2003).]

[princeta]

hey i am going through the same thing as u. it is destroying my life, at least u can drink alcoholand be okay, me if i take little alcohol or eat pizza, my breath goes for the worst. The smell is most likely coming from ur mouth, do u have a white or yellow coating on ur tongue? Do u get tonsil stones? i looked on the internet about his problem and tryed Therabreath which i thought didnt really work for me, even though many people that say that tryed it say it worked. Right now I am using a product called Tri oral which i think calms the problem, but i dont think it has iliminated my problem. You should try it if u are interested.

[tracey2775]

i have also had really bad breath since i was 9. i am now 27. like you, i wont stand too close to people and often if i have to speak, i pretend to play with my mouth to try and cover the smell. i floss 3 times a day, brush after every meal, brush my tongue and use mouth wash 3 times. recently ive heard about a mouth wash called "retar-dex" and i find it works quite good. its quite expensive to most washes though.
ive just been diagnosed with acid reflux so maybe that could be my problem but what about when i was 9?