I am not even sure where to start when it comes to my body drying out. I want to say it started long before my first surgery for Endometriosis in 2007. I have never really told this to anyone before but I am about to and I feel really weird about it.
My vaginal area has always been dry and I mean really dry to the point that even my clitoris was dry. It would be painful to even walk when it was flaring up. I remember seeing a gynecologist about it and they told me they couldn't find anything wrong. This pain lasted almost 10 yrs then suddenly disappeared. Having sex would be so painful because of how dry I was especially if the person I was with would try to stimulate my clitoris. Sometimes I would grin and bare it and I mean even doing that was horrifically painful but how could they understand this pain? I never told anyone because it was shameful to me and also because even when I was diagnosed with Endometriosis I didn't hear one person talk about this so I assumed it was a problem that not many other people had. Usually this pain with be more severe with my periods and I chalked it up to it being from me wearing tampons and it drying me out everywhere else. I would just use Vaseline and that would help.
About a month after my hysterectomy I started to develop this really weird feeling in my mouth. It was as if I had burned my tongue on something and it felt burnt all day long. The only way to make the pain subside would be to eat or sleep. I am now 4 years post hyster and the pain and dryness I have is just unbelievable. I can only equate it to my hyster or jaw because I have TMJ as well but no one can give me answers so I have to assume it is from my surgery.
The burning that I feel has a name and its called "burning mouth syndrome" it is brought on by trauma, post menopause and various other things and when I brought this up to my doctor she said that had nothing to do with my hysterectomy when it clearly states that it is possible. That is the reason I left that doctor. I have had so many issues over the last two years and she did nothing but make it worse for me. I had a complete mental breakdown and she said to me "what would make you feel you had a nervous breakdown" I was like "did you not see me in here almost once a week for 5 months straight out of my mind crying and not able to handle anything in severe crisis?" So needless to say I am confident I am in the right hands now.
The burning mouth has been here for a while and around the end of 2017 as well as the chronic canker sores and the mouth dryness came on full force. I thought it might have been the meds I was on that time or because they all cause dry mouth especially the Wellbutrin. I was using Biotene mouth wash, saliva inducing gum but it progressively just kept getting worse. At one point I thought maybe it had something to do with my jaw because I was getting nerve blocks put in my jaw as well as Botox and in February of this year had jaw surgery so I chalked it up to that causing it.
When I get the cankers they come with about 5 at a time or more and they clear then a new one comes in its place. It is so painful at times I can't even eat. Right now I can't drink coffee or anything that is acidic like wine, juice, and.....my favorite... tomatoes.. I don't know if what I am experiencing is food allergy related, jaw or menopause but I am frightened that I am going to get mouth cancer and whenever I go to the dentist I explain the situation but it always seems to get dismissed. I have all the signs for that unless I have Behchets disease which I do have a lot of symptoms. I hate that I have to research my symptoms online to get answers but seriously its like no one listens to me ever or I have so many issues they don't know where to start.
So for now I brush with special toothpaste and brush, mouthwash, candies that help create saliva, I swish my mouth with anbesol and dab on the Alum which was a solution for some online.
I should say that my doctor did notice that my last two blood tests came back with elevated IgM so she is sending me to an Immunologist which I am so thankful for. Maybe he can give me answers.
So for now I will just continue down this painful road and cross my fingers that someone can stop the pain.
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