A few weeks ago I got mauled by the dentist. Or actually the dental assistant. At one point I thought my jaw was dislocated, but thankfully it wasn’t. That was quite an experience! I felt like I was either being mauled by a bear or the dental assistant was letting out some major frustrations. Thankfully I’m alive to tell about it. :)
I have not been to the dentist in several years. And boy have I paid for it these past few weeks. I’ve known for a long, long time that I had teeth that needed dental attention, but I have been the biggest procrastinator about it. I make sure my girls have their regular visits, but who has time to take care of mom? Anyone else have that problem?
So a few weeks ago I finally made an appointment to hear just how bad things were, hoping I could at least save my teeth. I ended up having minor laser surgery on 3 of my teeth because the decay was so deep. The laser surgery did a number on my gums and needless to say, my gums were incredibly raw, extremely sore, and throbbing by the time it was over. The only way I know to describe them was that they looked like white shredded meat. The dentist said that it was like having a scab in the mouth.
Well this “scab” was very painful and put me on a liquid diet for a little while. It was at least 3 days before I thought of how herbs might help. Why I forgot to use herbs right away when I have shelves of dried herbs readily available, I do not know. I suddenly had one of those light bulb moments that perhaps I had some herbs on hand that could speed up the healing process.
And they did just that!
I woke up one morning after using this herbal mouthwash recipe (below) a few times and found that my gums were much less white and were improved greatly. No longer did they look like shredded meat, but were just a solid white and the inflammation was greatly reduced. I did not at all expect to see results so quickly. Each morning after using the mouth wash, my gums were so greatly improved and the white was completely gone in just a few days. I have every confidence that this mouthwash greatly sped up the healing process.
So which herbs did I use? I rummaged through my shelves, and these are the herbs I chose for this mouth wash:
- Calendula – fights inflammation and bacteria; soothes tender gums (Buy here on Amazon)
- Rose Petals – has astringent properties that help mouth sores (Buy here on Amazon)
- Echinacea – antibacterial (Buy here on Amazon)
- Chamomile – reduces inflammation and soothes the nerves (Buy here on Amazon)
- Cloves – kills bacteria and reduces pain (Buy here on Amazon)
DIY Herbal Mouthwash to Heal The Gums
Ingredients
- 1 part Calendula
- 1 part Rose Petals
- 1 part Chamomile
- 1/2 part Echinacea
- 1/4 part Cloves
Directions
- Mix herbs together in container.
- Add 1 tablespoon of herbs per cup of water to pan of boiling water.
- Cover with a lid, remove from heat.
- Steep herbs for 10 minutes.
- Strain
- Swish mouth for a minute or so and spit.
If you wish to only use one herb, I would recommend calendula.
- 1 part Calendula
- 1 part Rose Petals
- 1 part Chamomile
- 1/2 part Echinacea
- 1/4 part Cloves
- Mix herbs together in container.
- Add 1 tablespoon of herbs per cup of water to pan of boiling water.
- Cover with a lid, remove from heat.
- Steep herbs for 10 minutes.
- Strain
- Swish mouth for a minute or so and spit.
- Use it 3 times a day until healed.
