Like so many here my infection started as a niggling pain in my bottom lefentist t molar. I am due to have a root canal on this tooth in 2 weeks time but the next day the little niggle had exploded into unctrollable head cutting off agonizing pain, i tried relieving the pain just using paracetomol but that didnt touch it i then consumed half a bottle of whiskey which got me pissed but didnt take the pain away. I managed to get into the dentist the next day, the bus journey there was the most miserable thing I have ever endured. I saw the dentist who said I had an infection and she would prescibe antibiotics which i was thankful for but what i really wanted was for the excruciating pain to go away. The dentist was irish and I could barely understand her, she then said she could give me an injection to ease the pain so i agreed, she then injected me right at the end of my gum in the hard bit which hurt like ■■■■ but it took the pain away THANK GOD! she then told me to wait in the waiting room and she would call me in 5 mins to take another look. I went back in and she sat me in the chair then all I saw was a blur of activity and she was actually drilling into my tooth which I had no idea she was about to do. The dentist put a temporary filling in after cleaning out some of the infection, she then prescribed me erythromycin and metronidazole and tole me to take ibuprofen for the pain. To cut a long and painful story short it is now 3 days since i started on the antibiotics and I am still in ridiculous agony, should it be this long before they kick in, I am sure I am overdosing on ibuprofen and why is my mouth and ear and jaw still hurting like ■■■■, any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Yep the pain makes you want to jump off a cliff :D
You can take ibuprofen and paracetamol together, soluable paracetamol work far better than the tablets, Panadol are the best brand. Or theres Boots brand paracetamol and codeine theyre better than standard paracetamol, failing that clove oil 
Lets hope the antibiotics kick in tomorrow :D
Thanks for that..just to add my antibiotics run out tommorrow so pardon my french what the hell do i do after that???
Youll need to do the old salt / tcp water mouth washes and gum massage to encourage the puss out. Hot or cold face packs, applying hand pressure to the effected side of the face / cheek bone, holding icy cold water in your mouth on the area, these can all provide some temporary relief
Hi there
Poor you - I can almost feel your pain 
The combination of antibiotics should have kicked in by now. If there is no improvement you must contact your dentist again on Monday - as she's already drilled the tooth (which is unusual before a course of antibiotics) - she can open up the cavity again and release the pus.
As Dr Spock rightly says - you can use paracetamol and ibruprofen at the same time but do not exceed the daily dose as prescribed on the packets.
Hopefully the pharmacist will have warned you NOT to have alcohol with metronidazole - it can raise the blood pressure quite dramatically. Sorry!!
I do hope you will soon be feeling a lot more comfortable - I find I'm checking all my teeth with my tongue as I'm typing this .......
Thanks again for all advice..sadly it is bank holiday on monday so i may have to ring nhs direct instead..I am pretty scared of taking too many painkillers..it is 4.55 a.m in the morning and I was in so much pain I have taken 3 ibuprofen along with my antibiotics..I am taking too many I am sure of that..
Hi again
Remembered (in the middle of the night) that Monday is a Bank Hol - sorry! You could try NHS direct - do you have a dental emergency clinic attached to your local hospital?
I would advise against holding a HOT compress actually against your face - this can bring the swelling right out onto your face and could even burst through the skin.
As Dr Spock suggests try one teaspoon of salt in half a tumbler of hot water. Hold each mouthful for about one minute and repeat two or three times. You may find that your gum suddenly swells up showing the abscess has come throught the jawbone to the surface of the gum - hopefully the pus will then be released and the pain cease. Do hope this works. Good luck!
Do be careful with overdoing the painkillers - particularly paracetamol - it can do irreparable liver damage. :wah:
Yes heat from a hot water bottle wrapped in a towel can cause it to rage, see how you go, anyway itll probably burst later and thatll be bliss
just an update to let you know i havent been rushed into hospital for an overdose. I managed to get a couple of hours of sleep then woke up with intolerable pain again, i swilled my tooth with warm salty water for 5 mins this re4ieved the pain for about 10 mins, i have also bought anadin ultra now for the pain this contains ibuprofen, i took a couple at 9.15 and I have had some relief. I have been massagin my cheek and jaw and as of yet no lumps have appeared. I am still quite nervous as I have only 2 lots of antibiotics left for today. I seem to get about maybe 3/4 hours relief when i take the painkillers but I am definately exceeding the maximum dose, could i take maybe 2 anadin ultra's the next time i need them and 2 paracetomol or is that silly?
That amount of painkillers is far from excessive
It's really just the paracetamol that you MUST not exceed. People just don't realise how dangerous this analgesic is when taken in excess.
Keep on with the hot mouthwashes!
Thanx katie..I am doing okay with paracetomol and i have been having hot salty mouthwashes, no lumps yet but pain sadly is returning, I am holding off having any more painkillers for as long as i can bare it..I had 2 anadin at 10.20 and 2 paracetomol at 12.00. I think when i can get back to the dentists hopefully tuesday I am gonna ask her to pull it because I cannot cope with the thought I would have to go through this again..p.s sorry if I am bugging you but I need some kind of support with this agony.
Hi - don't worry you are certainly not bugging us - just wish we could have been of more help! I've had so many things wrong with my teeth over the years that I usually know the answers to most things. They are a real pain - literally I often think I should have married a dentist!
Maybe tonight, you should try propping yourself as high up as possible on pillows - cos as soon as you lie right down the pressure really builds up - I expect you've already found that out! Hopefully by then though your wretched abscess will have burst. :yuk:
Let us know how things go.
Katie
nearly 3.30am I am in agony once again, head splitting pain. My fiance is fed up of me cos i wanted to swap my teeth with hers. I last had 2 paracetomol at 8.00 pm last night and 2 anadin ultra at 9.00pm, i have only just taken more painkillers now along with a 5 minute salty mouth wash. I have run out of antibiotics but it may just be my imaginiation but does it seem longer between painkillers that this killer pain is returning..i dunno..but all i do know is that it is another long, lonely painful morning ahead..
Phew, you won't forget this Bank Hol. weekend in a hurry! The metronidazole and erythromycin are a pretty powerful combination - and have hopefully halted the infection - but of course the pus needs to be released, and it seems to be very stubbon to say the leaset .
It certainly doesn't sound as it you are overdosing and though you've finished the antibiotics they will still be in you system for the next 24 hours - hopefully you will be able to see you dentist tomorrow. Don't be fobbed off - insist on seeing her and hopefully she will actually do something rather than issue you more antibiotics. As there is still a lot of residual infection around she may be loathe to extract the tooth just yet in case of spreading the infection, but at least she could remove temp. filling and clean out the area again which should give some relief.
Best of luck and hope you have an easier day today. :wah:
Katie
You should have got some clove oil bossdean, it tastes vile but its good
Just a further update yesterday was another pain filled day..full of painkillers and I had a couple of cans of beer last night as i was in total misery. I took some more painkillers at 2.15 this morning, it is is now 8.30 and I dont know if this is because I prayed to god before I went sleep but I am pain free hallelujah. I have no idea if this the lull before a further storm, but I can actually put pressure on the infected tooth, there is no throbbing pain, my jaw seems ok and my ear has only mild mild discomfort. So for all those who feel no hope take all your antib's, speak to people on this site, pray like you have never prayed before and keep the faith. I will update if the pain returns and thanks for all your help
A further update, I went to the dentists this morning re my troublesome tooth, I decided against the root canal and asked her to pull it. This was weird and I hope never to be repeated experience. I needed 3 injections and around 15 minutes of wriggling and pulling bedfore the damn thing came out. It was the biggest tooth I have ever seen jeesh. Anyway the injections have wore off now and I am once again in excuciating pain. I understand there is trauma involved in pulling a tooth. I have taken 600mg of ibuprofen and this has dulled the pain somewhat. Is it normal for it to be this painful after an extraction?
Yes its quite normal, itll improve over the next 12 hours or so, a couple of soluble paracetamol will definately help
Hi there
Yes, it will be pretty uncomfortable for a while, particularly as it was such a traumatic extraction - Keep taking the soluble paracetamol every four hours as directed - but no more than eight in a day. Tomorrow you can start having warm salty mouthwashes again which will help with healing.
Do let us know how you get on.
Good luck
Katie