hey everyone, it is 7 hours since I joined and posted the first message (no I was not expecting any responses yet) but since I went and got the oils and Dr. Bronners soap I went ahead and did my first OP tonight.

This is what I experienced so far. I figure if another newbie runs across this it might help in setting their expectations.

After going to the store I stopped to eat and then came back home.

I have read several places that it is "preferable" to do this on an empty stomach but not harmful otherwise.

I also took 4 close up pics of my teeth with my Android G1 and will post them on a blog some place. I plan on trying to document with pics before every OP session to see the progression.

I first had to brush after my meal so I decided to try the Dr. Bronners soap.

First I took my SoniCare brush and immersed it in Hydrogen Peroxide for about 10 minutes. Once it finished foaming I rinsed and repeated. No foaming second time.

I then opened the Dr. B's liquid soap. I had planned on getting the bar but the ingredients were the same and the dollar value was better for the liquid. I purchased two "flavors" the Almond and the Peppermint.

I chose the Peppermint to brush with. I have to say that is was like having your mouth washed out with soap with a "minty" after taste. In the wine world they might say "hints of mint" or "overtones of mint", either way it was basically kinda gross and at the same time kinda familiar tasting.

I won't say at this point it was good tasting, but maybe after time it will become more normal.

My tongue tingled a little bit also.


I chose the Natural Foods Organic Extra-Virgin Coconut Oil. The 29oz jar was $15 USD and is Cold Pressed, Non-GMO (whatever the means) and good for cooking according the label. it has 125 Calories per serving which is 1 Tablespoon and 14 Grams of Fat per serving.

I also chose Natures Plus Herbal Actives Grape Seed oil. It is alcohol free, gluten free, and the rest of the label is too tiny to read. go figure.

I took 1 TBSP of the EVCO and injected it with 3 drops of Grape Seed Oil.

The EVCO has a thick viscous texture, not real pleasant on first taste.

The 1 TBSP volume seemed a lot when I first put it in my mouth and then when I began swishing it around in less than a minute I experienced a feeling of wanting to spew what was in my mouth. I stopped swishing and tried breathing through my nose but could not back down from the feeling. I decided to expel some of the mixture to relieve the "pressure".

I expelled about 1/4 of the volume and went back to swishing.

There was not a lot of coconut taste though I can't be sure yet that the Grape Seed did not mask it.

It thinned out as the minutes ticked by, but I noticed a tendency for the liquid to push forward like I needed to spew. Heavy breathing through the nose abated some of this but by the 10 minute mark it was too much.

I spit out that batch and reset another, this time making a more level TBSP measure and the 3 drops of Grape Seed.

I experienced basically the same thing as before and only lasted about 5 minutes with this second round.

I thoroughly rinsed out my mouth with warm water and brushed with the Dr. Bronners Almond this time. It has a more soapy flavor and I got no taste of almonds. kinda yuckky.

I thoroughly flossed even around the broken teeth.

The taste was still that gross but familiar one and my tongue tingled a bit more.

There were several small "chips" of what I assume to be loosened tartar or I just missed them with all the swishing and the first brushing, not really sure.

There (of course) is no obvious color shift (yet?) and no significant amount of tartar has been removed.

The mouth is overall tingly and has a soapy taste.

I did cut into my gum when flossing so that is just irritating me but is not related to the process.

I had added a purchase of Tea Tree Oil Mouthwash to my purchases and I gargled with that.

That abated some of the soapy taste but added the Tea Tree Oil taste. not sure with is worse.

I will post follow ups as I can and am looking forward to answers to my original questions.

Thanks..

Mike

Um,
I know nothing about oil pulling. Frankly it sounds like a waste of time. I am just curious as to your health. I mean your mouth sounds like a disaster zone. I endured 2 surgeries to undo the carnage that had been unleashed on me from a root canal, I can't possibly imagine having 8 of them.

Today is day four and I really happy and surprised at the results so far.

So far I have used the Flax Seed Oil, and EVCO (coconut oil) for pulling adding in a couple drops of Grape seed oil.

I have done this 3 times a day on days 2 and 3 and plan on doing it 3 times today.

To be clear I have not used both Flax and EVCO in each of the 3 times a day. I use the FLAX in the morning and the EVCO at night. I have used either or for the middle of the day pull.

I followed that with DrBronners Peppermint Soap (liquid) brushing and flossing.

Ending with Tea Tree Oil mouthwash for days 1 and 2 and part of 3. It is too much and I discontinued it for now.

I also dug out a dental mirror and shepherds crook set I had bought at Walgreen's a few years ago when I first notice the calculus build up on the bottom front four teeth. It did not help then and as I was NOT willing to jab my gums or damage my teeth "chipping" at them, I put it away, trying occasionally to use it but no success.

The reason I dug it out is that after doing the pulling and using the DrBronners soap, I had a couple of rock like pieces drop between my gum and lip a couple hours after brushing and flossing.

I figured why not see if it would "chip" off. IT DID!
The first time I got one or two nice size pieces off without applying any significant pressure. So each time I brushed and flossed I used the pic and now all the VISIBLE calculus at the gum line is gone! I no longer have a black chunky line at the base of my teeth!!

I know there is more under the gum line in the pockets so I will continue the regime for a few more days with the Dr. Bronners.

MrCuddly suggested to me that it might be too harsh to use as toothpaste. He seems to be one of the "gurus" here and while I will probably bow to his wisdom and change to something like baking soda (and peppermint oil?) in a few days, I will use the DrB's until then because this is pretty darn cool, this early on in the process.

A tangent to this is that after my horror story with the abscessed tooth and getting it pulled I was told that I would be given the next available appointment and that I would get a letter telling me when that was. This alone had me confused as well as my normal terror about dentists.

Well that letter arrived this last Friday 9 July 2010, and guess what? The next available date is Jan 11, 2011!

6 freaking months before they see me as a follow up and to plan the removal of the two broken teeth I have in my head!

so much for all the dentists dire warnings about imminent heart disease, liver failure, etc. from advanced periodontal disease.

The upside is that now I have a target time of 6 months to let the effects of OP'ing to work. I truly hope that by then the pockets, receding gums and stains will be gone. Just so I can rag on the dentist. Childish I know, but I really hate dentists!

I know the OP'ing will not "cure" the broken teeth but at least the rest will go well and maybe I can convince him to also begin to remove the metal fillings and begin to figure out what to do once the broken teeth are cut out.

They are both dead, no nerves left what so ever just like the one that abscessed so there is nothing to "save" so it would seem that some form of tooth needs to be implanted and hopefully by then I will have a much broader understanding of the alternatives.

I get that there are problems with posts and some ceramics but then are also problems with having partials and dentures. So I will be researching for what seems to be the healthiest and most permanent solution.

That's all for now, will keep posting and try and get the blog up with the daily pics of my progress.

Thanks

Mike

Day 6-Changed from the Dr Bronners soap for brushing three times a day to baking soda twice a day and Dr B's before bed.

Teeth and mouth don't feel as clean (astringent?) with the baking soda and breath does not feel as fresh, will add peppermint oil to try and improve that.

The effects (on breath) from the baking soda don't last nearly as long as the Dr. B's soap.

As I posted earlier the visible calculus at the bottom edge of my bottom front 4 teeth is gone, which is good, but there is a slight whitish color of the tissue surrounding those teeth.

I am unsure if that is the effect of the OP'ing, Dr. B's or the baking soda.

I looked at the beginning pictures and the gum line was not "whitish" in them.

I will look up what that is supposed to mean, the white colored tissue, and what I can do about it. It may just be a sign that they are getting healthier, but I don't know yet.

teeth are still stained from tobacco and coffee and neither the Dr. B's or baking soda seems to make difference on the stains between teeth but then I have not been doing it very long, so it may just take time for those to go away.

I will post more as things change

Mike

I changed the brushing to include using baking soda with my sonic care brush dipped in the Coconut Oil.

I also mixed baking soda with the oil and some water and have begun to swish that through my teeth to try and work on the stains between the teeth.

Today it seems that more of the staining is slowly going away.

I will be getting a rubber pic to work on the stains as one poster suggested.

The whitish color on my gums seems to be "inflammation" and from what i read I think I am supposed to expect that it will decrease once my gums are "healthier".

I also understand from my reading that the "recession" might appear to have increased once the inflammation decreases.

The positives as I have said is that the calculus at the bottom of my lower teeth is gone and that as the gums recede I might find that more is below the inflamed areas.

will post more as changes occur

thanks for all the help and support messages..