30.

The Toothache

 

Sounds like a strange area to find something new in, yet this is something I have observed over a long period of time.

As a youngster when I had a toothache it lasted until I went to a dentist to have the tooth pulled or have a root canal. After an overnight toothache I was grateful when the dentist finally removed the source of so much pain.

After I started working with alignment and breathing I had an experience with a toothache that came on full force. My thought was to draw breath across the pain even though this was painful to do. My reasoning at the time was that when I feel some pain in the body I explore it, so let me examine this pain with breath, instead of avoiding it or trying to numb it!

I felt the bite of the pain as I drew breath past the painful tooth. As I did this the pain became more tolerable. With in about one minute the pain was minimal and I continued the breathing pattern of sucking in breath right across the area. Within 10 minutes the toothache was completely gone!

This was about 35 years ago. Since then I have used this on my own toothaches when they arrive and it works. I will call and make an appointment with the dentist, but I can do it with out the emergency type drama that surrounds this type of problem.

I have recommended this about four or five times since then, when a person has told me they are having a toothache. Each person experienced the same results? So again, not avoiding the pain and in fact, inspecting it with breath saved some others and me a lot of pain. I have spoken to dentists over the years about this and usually get a blank stare with little feed back, so I just drop the subject.

I came to know a dentist, now retired who had 40 years experience and was well versed in much of the research in dentistry. He said that the nerves at the base of a tooth can fire up as a result of something else going on in the body. In his experience though he had not heard of toothaches leaving this fast. That was as far as we got with the subject.

So I pass this on and maybe you will find a use for this Idea of breathing across the tooth ache some where down the line.

Posted by Harmon at March 23, 2003

Comments

What you suggest would probably work for pretty much any type of pain anywhere in the body, no? That is, to breathe into it, to inspect it, not to avoid it, and so on?

Posted by: Jordan on March 28, 2003

Yes, that is oh so true!

Posted by: Harmon on March 28, 2003
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Breath control and meditation are almost synonymous. And they can have tremendous potential for controlling pain and I’m disappointed that medical profession hasn’t done more to promote this sort of training. But, of course, it is easier to simply give some one a pill—It’s more profitable also!

Posted by: Solstice on April 8, 2003

Yes Soltice, observing our breathing is the basis for the mindfulness practice. Breathing practice for both meditation and for its practical applications is growing as a useful process in every area of life. It does take time to catch on. There are many wonderful practitioners of breath awareness who, I’m sure, are aware of the health efficiencies that doing a breathing practice can have.
Have you read the session on sitting at the computer?  That is very good way of doing 2 things at once.

Posted by: Harmon on April 17, 2003

03/ 23/2003