I find the part about your ongoing tooth issues very interesting.  I have suffered from bruxism (nighttime grinding and clenching) for years. So much so, I've had to have 1 wisdom tooth out and 5 molars root canalled. It's an absolutely horrendous condition to have once it goes into full swing.  Add to that, it's a very difficult condition to get rid of once you have it.

I've slept with a custom night guard in for 2 years now and it's safe to say, without it, I'd have lost most of my molars.

Do keep up with the guard at all cost because what you're doing in your sleep can and will destroy your teeth.  Not only will you endure the physical pain, but the financial pain as i have found out is every bit as bad. Think I've now spent in the region of £6k getting my molars sorted. I'm 47 and don't want false teeth so trying to save them. I'm also not a candidate for implants because I'd be at very high risk of them failing due to the pressures i exert upon them when I'm sleeping.

My dentist told me 20 years ago I had a grinding issue.  But i had no pain, and thought i knew best up until around 4 years ago when my teeth began to get badly damaged. I thought he was trying to stiff me for £80 (night guard), but yeah, it's now cost me around £6k. If i could go back and kick myself up the backside, I would.

Hi to you ProfBaw and yes my night guard is worn every night!  I've always looked after m teeth and I remember returning to work after getting married (I was 21) my wedding photo had been chosen to be in the Northern Echo, smiling and one of the older female colleagues said I looked like I had false teeth as they were so perfect. I was furious and considered it as an I nsult. Flash forward 52 years and I'm sure if my husband hadn't got lung cancer I'd still have a full compliment of gnashers that looked perfect. Still we all have our crosses to bear and mines damaged teeth. Carol 

Hiya.  Yeah, the number one cause of grinding is stress and anxiety. Other stuff like some medications, poor sleep, abnormal sleep issue (sleep apnoea) and lifestyle habits can cause it too.

Like yourself, mine started due to huge amount of stresses in such a short period. When i was around 22 my father died, then all 3 remaining grandparents, all within 13 months, and a horrendous break-up with the mother of my first child. I never grinded or clenched my teeth before then. Around 25 years later, the grinding and clenching is still an issue.

Since my wife was diagnosed with BC, I have woken up many a time after dreaming i was chomping on chewing gum and I'm still chewing vigorously as I'm coming around.

With me, all life's stresses go to my jaw.  Some people it's their shoulders or sore heads. You may find you might suffer from a stiff jaw and headaches from time to time too. Talking of chewing gum, steer well clear if you're grinding. Same with anything overly chewy like steaks etc. Not an instant cure, but it does lessen the tension in your jaw over time as you're not over using it.

Dear carol put scooters in enclosed passage on side of our house, better than outside when cold out,if warmer out tomorrow for a quick shop Both of us, Brenda likes me there for extra bags for her things.

Glad Norman went to appointment finally .

Still reading your messages whenever you are on.

Take care glad you got a tooth guard , my latest meds have rotted all mine in a year All top out letting gums heal and then bottom out and falsies top ,at least no more tooth ache . and can give Brenda a proper sloppy kiss .

Take care my dear keep positive and look after yourself.

Love Billy xxxx

Dear Billy, you are funny and Bren is a lucky lady to have you, my tooth guard has been around for three years now, well apart from when the puppy ate it!  Norman is so much better after his blood transfusion and has rosy cheeks (or that may be down to 98 mph winds and minus degree temperatures).  The scan was easy and we were there and back in an hour.  But life never, ever goes to plan in my world.  My son in law drove from Surrey on Friday morning to paint and have the cottage ready for Christmas but we ended up with a Red severe weather  warning and having not heard from him we were worried until he arrived here Saturday morning to collect the beds etc.  All the power and telephone masts had blown down and he has just been here today again and still there is nothing working and likely won't be until late tonight.  So everything is in a mess again because he had no heat, no light and everywhere was shut due to no electricity.  Mind he did make me laugh, he's highly intelligent but obviously has no commonsense.  He'd ordered our Xmas lunch meat at the butchers in Middleton and he had given him half a dozen venison sausage for free to try for breakfast.  So he laments the fact that he couldn't cook them but tells me he had heated water up on the calor gas range (no gas in Middleton).  I looked at him and said, if you can boil water you can cook sausages in the frying pan, on the hob.  He hadn't thought about that he said as they always grill them, he looked really crestfallen and realised how stupid he'd been.  So he has had to drive to Barnard Castle each night to buy food and use his phone, these youngsters don't know they're born.  Good job he wasn't around in the early seventies when we only had heat and light three days a week.  Take care, love Carol x 

Good to hear Norman is feeling better after his transfusion. Your life sounds as hectic as mine and keeps us all smiling. 
 

Take care

Nicola x

Hi Nicola, my life has got t worse tonight as Faye has just rang to say she has been in hospital since yesterday morning with extremely high blood pressure.  I'm not surprised as she has been so worried about us and her teaching assistants job has not been at all good this term.  I've just relayed the news to Norman having to shout over his TV news what was going on, I was so bloody mad that he kept flicking his eyes to the news I stopped telling him, after a big sigh he muted it then said he hoped she didn't come out with more than High blood pressure knowing how  Hospitals are at the moment, just what I needed to hear.  I've now got a large glass of wine and rang Margaret and bent her ear!  He doesn't look too well tonight but I can't expect miracles.  I have no idea if my son in law has left to drive to Surrey and the way things are going we will be lucky to have a Christmas together.  We'll, the best laid plans and all that. Carol x

Hi Carol

Your poor daughter, she must be feeling terrible. Stress/worry is such an awful thing and work plays such a big part in it. I got promotion in July this year but feel I'm sinking most of the time.

It's not nice for you knowing she's in hospital but must be needed, especially at this time.

Good that you have a friend to chat to and hope it helps. 
 

Truly hope you get a family Christmas and Faye gets well quickly 

Take care

Nicola  x

Well what an afternoon we've had.  The haematologist has suggested that Norman now has cancer of the blood and the only way to find out is by doing a bone marrow test.  My heart sank as I knew this would be awful, he shook his head and said I'm not having that.  So he just kept repeating the same thing which was depressing him, so he switched off listening.  Eventually I asked if he could just have blood transfusions before he became too ill, yes they would do that he agreed.  We travelled home in silence.  Faye has just phoned and her blood pressure is sky high still but she is on medication and it should bring it down, I've advised her to be signed off work as she now has to go for an echo cardiogram on her heart on Tuesday.  She doesn't need to be running around with all the four year olds and teachers who aren't helpful.  Norman said, don't tell her anything about me, there's not much to tell her as he doesn't want to know if he has leukaemia and neither do I.  So there, we've agreed to just leave well alone and not put him through anymore trauma, I'm all for progress in medicine but there does come a day when you have to say, enough.  Daniel our medic has been today, the chest infection has cleared but an emergency pack will be made up for us in case he needs it, so a step in the right direction.  Lisa rang, Harry's class has been sent home as 89% have tested positive for covid!  Tugs is still here manically painting the cottage and guess who's going to clean it up next week, yes Me!  Take care, Carol x 

I've been spending money on the cottage, my favourite hobby!  We were going to take old front bedroom curtains down and hang them in the back bedroom but I've bought new navy linen ones and today there is a vase with white roses in it arriving to go on the windowsill, as I'm not buying Xmas lunch I've put the money to good use,  a beautiful forest green and wild flower cushion cover to go on the new velvet chair and some ornaments that I have at home, oh and some padded cushion seats for the kitchen chairs in cream with bumble bees on.  Tugs face timed me yesterday and showed me what he had done, it is all going to look lovely.  Harry rang me as he now has had a covid test, results today, how is your wrist I ask him, how do you know about that he asks surprised as it had only happened the day before, I'm a. Grandma I tell him, I know everything!  He giggled and said, I love you Grandma.  Norman has booked us in for Sunday lunch at the Otter and Fish, all his own idea and a lovely one, he says I need a treat, he's right, I do.  I have left Faye alone for one day, my ringing her to see how she is all the time will not help her blood pressure, she needs to be calm.  My friend Margaret rang me at 9.15 am yesterday and I knew something was wrong as she was in tears, where are you, in Basingstoke with Joan, her friend of many years and Margaret's daughters godmother.  Now Joan lives in the same village as Margaret two miles from me.  Joan's Dad died last Sunday, funeral this Friday, her brother lives in Basingstoke on his own, he'd gone shopping Thursday for new clothes for his Dad's funeral but Joan couldn't get hold of him on the phone, she rang his friends and she went round as she has a key, he was sat dead in the armchair, so she'd gone to Basingstoke to help Joan as he lives alone.  Oh my God Margaret that's awful I said, Carol you should see the house she says, it's like a hoarders except with expensive goods, ten watches all exactly the same still in boxes.  Joan's husband died of cancer three years ago, Roberts son died the following year aged 42 years, his wife two years ago and now Joan is completely all alone, having lost her Dad and brother (aged 71) within four days of each other.  This has not been a good year all round and everything happens near Christmas, it's as if the  universe is saying you're just a blip in time, don't get too content, or I'll shake  you out of your happiness and instead of a beautiful shooting star we get a grey comet thrown at us!  Well on that happy note I'm off for the papers and my pan au raisin.  Love Carol x