Bad breath even though nose. Only getting worse and affecting work now

Posted , 4 users are following.

My bad breath started 3-4 years ago and is actively getting worse. Now it's to the point where it comes out of my nose when breathing. I'm a dental assistant and my patients can not stand to be laying down with me next to or even near, this is with a face mask on as well. As you can see it's strong. Because of this Ive started to dread coming to work, going out to restaurants, even simple things as going going to cvs ,parent teacher conferences. My toddler covers her nose and my family doesn't seem to want to be near me and I don't blame them. I don't want to offend anyone with my Bb. As a dental assistant my dental hygiene is impeccable. I get cleanings, floss religiously, brush after every meal (4-5 times a day), had my gums checked (as having gingivitis can cause foul odor), filled/changed fillings(cavities, decay), scrape tongue any time I'm in the restroom, use antibacterial prescribed mouth wash, change my tooth brush every week because My tooth brush when used longer than a week leaves me an awful scent/ taste, use salt water rinse and recently doing a baking soda rinse (balances acidity level in mouth) This being said I believe it has nothing to do with oral hygiene and to be honest non of it has made it any better but still believe if I stopped doing these things I wouldn't feel right or good about it .

I did get all four wisdom teeth pulled out and Noticed that after that it only got worse. The oral surgeon referred me to an ENT specialist to see if it had to do with post nasal drip, my tonsils, tonsil stones etc. still no hope in this department. They did go through my nose with a tube and still.. Even did nasal rinse for a while I mean it didn't hurt to try but still no change and instead got worse over a few months. Also the ent had put me on 2 or 3 weeks of antibiotics and we crossed that off after, it had not worked. From ENT I got referred to a Gastroenterologist. Before doing anything she had me tested for some sort of virus in the stomach you could get if you had traveled out of the USA in the last 2 years which I did. Sorry I don't remember the name of the virus. The test for that came out negative so we moved on , I've always had heart burn here and there but never anything serious regardless I had a endoscopy done checked for h pylori , cancerous things and everything came out normal . Before I had my endoscopy done I had been taking acid reflux medicine for 4 months and I don't know why If my heartburn had never been that serious nonetheless I was willing to try anything.. 3 months prior to my endoscopy I stopped taking the acid reflux medicine and thats when my heart burn got really bad. Maybe I got used to taking the anti acid ? Who knows, the endoscopy I got done still came out normal like I had mentioned before. I have also tried the I forgot exactly the name of the diet but basically all foods that are acidic. Anyway Now I am here back to point zero with no more hope and no idea where else to look. I'm scared of losing my job Bc there has been a sudden change in the patients that do come back for anything! This is definitely not good for the doctor I work with and only makes me feel awful. I also don't want to be perceived as a mother that doesn't care about her daughter Bc of not attending school events etc. all things I'd give anything to do. Daily and minimal things have become confidence destructors and I don't know what to do anymore.

0 likes, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • Posted

    Bad breath even through nose*

    Also forgot to say even immediately after brushing my teeth I'll still have an awful smell, it's a 24/7 thing.

  • Posted

    As someone with similar symptoms I feel your anguish. I know you said you scrape your tongue a lot - what do you use? I read some good things about a certain brand and it's actually having quite a positive affect on my breath (i think, need to test it properly first though)

  • Posted

    maybe you have bad bacteria in your mouth and stomach causing this. Try a good probiotic drink. 
  • Posted

    Fortunately I don't suffer from this problem but I can certainly see how it can really affect you life. The only thing I might suggest is to look at any and all medication you might be taking. You did mention the stomach meds you were taking and the reaction that you had when you stopped taking them. I am suprised that the gastro doctor didn't find anything at all. I think i would try another gastro doctor for a second opinion. I ended up having to do that for a problem I was having. My first gasro just wanted to run test after test, without ever seeing me. I finally changed doctors and got one that would talk to me. Got some answers. Another thing is that you could consider trying a different type of stomach medicine. I don't know what contry you are in, but if you are in America Nexium is the strongest OTC. Prilosec is a second best and then on down the line. Good luck with this.Oh one other thing, If you can stand it, you might try dipping your mouth cover in mouth wash before putting it on. It could help cover the smell. I wouldn't dip the whole thing, just enough to cover you mouth, assuming you could still breath through it. lol

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