Taylor wrote: āFri Feb 12, 2021 7:05 pm
I've been a long time reader of this Forum and am just now getting the courage to post, inspired a great deal by others who have shared their stories on this crippling, debilitating health issue - not sure what else to call it. I will try to be as succinct as possible but like so many others, I have had chronic bb, starting as far back as I can remember, to my public school years, when I was first labelled 'smelly Taylor' and as a result, I was shunned by my fellow classmates, and the worst thing that could happen to other students was to have their school desks for the year, in front of mine, or across the aisle.
By the time I was 10 years old, my teeth would bleed at night to the point that I would wake up with pools of blood on my pillow case, and my lips would be crusted with dried blood. To be sure, good oral hygiene was not practiced in my family, and I spent many hours as a child with aching teeth, with no relief. By the time I was 15, my mouth was in such bad shape that my mother was forced to take me to see a dentist as I'd developed what was known as 'trench mouth.' Many of my teeth were so loose that you could have plucked them out of my mouth, and my gums were a festering breeding ground for oozing black pus - the pain was unbelievable. But my mother was forced to seek medical intervention and the dentist who I saw on an emergency basis was horrified at what he discovered. He immediately put me on antibiotics/pain relief, and I was to rinse my mouth three times a day with slightly diluted hydrogen peroxide.
Once my mouth had started to heal and I could eat again, I noticed a strange and unbelievable discovery. There was no longer any putrid pus coming out of my mouth, and the horrid taste that was always in the back of my throat/tongue was gone. And the few friends that I had noticed, as well as my sisters!
I remember thinking that finally I had a cure for the putrid smell that was always in my mouth and a boy actually tried to kiss me at a school dance. I thought my life had just begun and I was on my knees with gratitude, every night.
But as I discovered this was just a temporary cure and my dentist told me that I had to stop the hydrogen peroxide, once my mouth had completely healed. So for about a month, I became a more confident teenager, and I revelled in the fact that when I tested my breath, it was a very sweet smell - the normal smell of someone who doesn't suffer from this insidious disorder. It was short lived, and then it was back to no one wanting to be within 3 feet of me and that constant, familiar rotten meat taste in the back of my throat.
Fast forward 40 years, and bb has ruined my life, in the same ways that so many of you speak. Two marriages, isolation, what eventually became social phobia, and throughout the years, thoughts of s******e. I was born into a family of 6 other children, and I was the only one who had this problem. A neglectful mother did not once take me to a doctor to determine what was causing this distressing problem with her second youngest child, and so I was allowed to suffer for years until my 20's, when I plucked up the courage to try and find some answers on my own. But the deep embarrassment, shame, and anxiety that I felt even saying the words, bb, when I had to tell far too many receptionists why I was making an appointment to see the doctor; kept me in such a state that often times I would cancel the appointment as it was just too shameful.
Over the years, I've had a "submucous resection" as one ear/throat specialist felt my problem was related to dripping mucous in the back of my nasal cavity; but this proved to be a painful ordeal and in the end, of course did not work at all.
I've spent thousands of dollars on products claiming to cure bb, only to be disappointed once again. One product that I tried that was based in Australia, gave me about 60% relief, which I supposed was better than nothing. But I wanted the freedom, and confidence, that comes with the feeling that had eluded me for so many years - that of being able to walk into a room with a smile on my face, and hug someone without them quickly stepping back with their hand over their nose, and asking me what I'd had to eat that day.
People without this issue simply can't imagine what it's like, how it impacts every single moment of your life. How it erodes your confidence, your ability to find love when you smell like rotting fish, baking in the sun. How do you explain to a possible love interest that you can't kiss them or even sit in the front seat of the car, because the smell coming out of your mouth is so fowl? The things that you don't do in your life - the jobs you might have had but didn't apply for because within a day, you'd be found out and quickly avoided, from there on in. The time you spend trying to avoid family/friends social activities and why you would get labelled as quiet and often times rude, simply because you couldn't say thank you for a gift you'd just received, because you'd have to open your mouth and talk. The list goes on and on. Over the years I would often think that the only love I could truly count on and be comfortable with were my dogs/horses, as they were oblivious to the smell coming from their 'mom's
mouth.
As hard as I tried to cover my bb, when my daughter told me as a young teenager, that I had bb a lot, I was absolutely crushed. I had tried to hide it for years but there's only so much you can do...
All this to say, that I believe I have found a cure for my bb and I never, in this life time, thought I would ever be able to say this. I had simply given up and decided the best thing for me was to live a life of solitude, with my pets my main source of love. This is what I have inadvertently discovered...
My doctor put me on a product called Anoro Ellipta, three weeks ago, which is a small hand bronchilator that I inhale once a day. It was designed to help people with mild to moderate breathing issues (I'm an ex smoker) and needs only be taken once a day. I was having shortness of breath and this product has helped me tremendously. I am not advocating this product or suggesting that you try it, but here is what I've discovered, as an unexpected side bar.
Along with increasing my stamina etc., I had noticed after about 4 days that the taste in the back of my mouth was changing, and when I did a breath test, the horrible smell on the back of my hand was very faint. After a week on A.E., I discovered that there was no bad taste in my mouth at all. In fact, it was quite sweet and my mouth felt fresh and lovely, for the first time in 40 years. I was stunned by this but so afraid that it was a temporary side relief, but after 3 weeks my mouth is as pristine as it gets. I can go to bed without brushing my teeth, and in the morning, there is no bad taste in my mouth at all. It's unfortunate that with the current global situation, I can't try speaking to people up front and personal, but I do know that there has been a drastic change in my bb...and it's gone!
I can only assume that whatever was causing my chronic bb, tonsil stones that I can't see, constant nasal drip in the back of my throat etc.. whatever is in this product, is killing the offending cause of my bb. It doesn't matter what I eat, or if I even brush my teeth that day, if I take a puff of A.E. at the same time every morning, it lasts all day and through the night. I really don't want to analysis this too much as I am currently still in the 'excitement phase' and looking at myself in the mirror each morning, and wishing that I could kiss someone, for the first time without having them back away and plug their nose.
So three weeks after starting this product, I no longer have chronic bb and I suspect that if I should stop the A.E., it would probably come back. But if this is the cure that I've been waiting for all my life, at least I can now spend some time on Planet Earth feeling like most people who have never had to deal with this horrific problem. I have more research to do but I can keep you all posted as the weeks go by. But I haven't felt this much relief and happiness since that time, so long ago, when I was just 15 years old, and thanks to an excellent dentist and hydrogen peroxide, I had the sweetest smelling breath, even if it was only for a month.
I don't know why we've been cursed with this problem and for many years I thought that it was me. I've never, in my life, met anyone else with chronic bb, and because it was so shameful to talk about, I didn't have the where with all to ask questions etc. I just let this disorder slowly erode away my confidence, self belief, happiness, and motivation. When I think of all that I could have accomplished, especially if I'd had a mother who cared about the suffering of her child; it makes me want to curl up and cry all day.
Thank you for listening and please know that your stories continue to inspire me.
Stay safe.