Dry mouth.

[ruthalem]

Does anyone get a really dry mouth? When I awake in the mornings, my mouth is so dry my tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth. Then through the day I have to keep popping tic-tac into my mouth or keep having sips of water. Also I have a badly coated tongue which seems to be coated right into my throat and makes it difficult to swallow, it doesn't give me any pain but feels like there's a sort of blockage in my throat. Can anyone give me any idea what could be causing this.

[puncturedbicycle]

Diabetes? Sjogren's? Sleep apnoea?

[humanbean]

The coating on your tongue and going down your throat could be thrush. It's quite common. Can I suggest you take pictures of your coated tongue at its worst and show them to your doctor. There are treatments you can be prescribed.

If your problem is thrush it suggests that you may have a stomach and gut in poor condition. Do you have any obvious gut or bowel issues? Pain? Nausea? Indigestion? Heartburn? Toilet troubles?

[ruthalem in reply to humanbean]

Thank you, i will ask my GP the next time i see him, if it could be thrush.

[ahousefull]

Not on any other medication (such as a tricyclic?) Go see your GP as thrush and Sjogren's (another autoimmune problem) need to be ruled out - for your dental health, as much as for comfort.

[Treepie]

Another cause is stones in the salivary gland duct.

[foxglove]

I find sucking a fruit pastille helps. If you have to be careful of sugar Bach rescue pastilles are good - but more expensive!

[Coastwalker]

Hi ruthalem.

I too have had similar problems, dry mouth, difficulty swallowing, needing to swallow more, worse in the middle of a conversation, which made me feel like someone would think I was nervous, not so bad now, but I did use mouth sprays and peppermints a lot, but now only on occasions. Sadly still have the coated tongue, Doctors have dismissed it even when I asked if it was thrush. I popped into a new Chinese medicine shop and the Chinese doctor had a look at my tongue, but it baffled him too.

Looking back I wondered if it was thyroid related, I also had dry, hurting, watery eyes, but now on optimum thyroid medication, vitamins and minerals everything has got much better.

[ruthalem in reply to Coastwalker]

I also have dry eyes but my GP has prescribed some daily eye drops which seems to keep the problem under control.

[Hidden]

I have a similar problem and drink 5 litres of water a day. My GP says this is too much and has tested my renal function which is fine. She doesn't appear to want to do any more tests or knows a reason why. I am on NDT what are you on?

[mistydog in reply to Hidden]

Drinking too much water can seriously deplete your vitamins and minerals and flood the body's cells. 5L is too much.

[Hidden in reply to mistydog]

I know that but I am continually thirsty I have tried to reduce the amount but can't. I wee every half hour or so in the day but never wake up in the night needing a wee and am not desperate to go when inwake up even though I drink right up until bedtime and even take 0.5l to bed with me. Very strange don't know where it goes at night.

[puncturedbicycle in reply to Hidden]

Has your gp done a test to see if you're diabetic? This kind of crazy frenzied thirst sounds like a diabetes symptom.

[Hidden in reply to puncturedbicycle]

Yes she has tested that as well and liver function and all vitamin levels. I got print out of all results and some were low in range so I supplement. She is stumped. She did say she would look into it further but hasn't. I had to see her today as my Mum died on Thursday so obviously there were more important stress related things to talk about. I have to see her in a couple of months so will discuss it again with her. I have looked it up on this forum before if you search thirst and others seem to have the same problem. Thanks for your help.

[puncturedbicycle in reply to Hidden]

Oh bless you, I'm so sorry to hear about your mum.

Thirst can be caused by a lot of different things. I've had something similar myself, but it has passed before it became a real problem, and I've never had anything as extreme as what you're talking about. If the tests have been done then it sounds like your health is otherwise generally good, which is the main thing.

[Hidden in reply to puncturedbicycle]

Thank you I miss her and always will. I have had the problem 3 years now. I know you can die from too much water but so far so good. NDT did get me back to good health but did not make the thirst go away. I am just weird as my GP says not responding to levo like others. I will Google it more when I am in a better place. Thanks again x

[Lisas_tired in reply to Hidden]

Omg this is me too!! I literally have my drink in my hand all day, my docs tested me for diabetes & apparently I'm fine so I just left it at that.... My good friend (a Pt/nutrition guy) took my water levels and was so surprised by how high they were!

I went back to the docs a few wks ago to discuss the same issue and he looked back at my notes and said 'oh you came here 2 years ago with the same issue' I thought it was a few months back so I've been thirsty for 2 years lol!!! They are baffled by it & im not sure what other route I should take or suggest to them!!!!

Would love to find some sort of cure, when in a long conversation, my mouth gets so so dry:)((( xx

[Hidden in reply to Lisas_tired]

Yes just like me very weird. I went to a concert last night and managed to drink only a quarter of a pint all night due to toilet queues it was hard. My husband wonders if it is just a habit but I do just feel constantly thirsty!

[Lisas_tired in reply to Hidden]

Well I started thinking is it just habit & my body thinks it needs a drink all the time!! But like you, I am thirsty... As long as I'm not flooding my body then hopefully it will be fine. A few people have mentioned 'sjodgens' but not sure if there is meds for that anyway xx

[Hidden in reply to Lisas_tired]

Never heard of that but like you will carry on with the water, hasn't killed me yet!

[Lisas_tired in reply to Hidden]

Well if I find a cure & in still alive lol, I will let u know) xxx

[Hidden in reply to Lisas_tired]

Thanks that would be good and likewise I will let you know xxx

[ruthalem in reply to Hidden]

I`m not on any medication at all for my thyroid. For the last four years i`ve been told my thyroid is under active but not enough to take any medication, borderline my GP tells me. This dry mouth is really awful, i get a really nasty taste in my mouth all day long. The only time i get relief is when I have my meals, but my appetite is very poor.

[Hidden in reply to ruthalem]

Ask for a print out of your results you are legally entitled to them and post them on this forum for comments. If it is underactive then you should be treated for it ask for a trial of levo to see if you feel any better which you should do.

[ruthalem in reply to Hidden]

I don`t think my GP will be very happy about me asking for a copy of my results but, I will try the next time I visit the surgery. Thank you.

[ruthalem in reply to Hidden]

Hi wedding2000, thanks for encouraging me to ask for the results of my thyroid test, i picked up a copy this morning and was`t even asked why I wanted them, it was so easy. If anyone can understand them, I would appreciate it. Serum free T4 level ( XaERr) 16.3 pmol/L(12.0 - 22.0) Serum TSH level (XaELV) Above range 5.1mU/L (0.27 _ 4.2) I`m not very good with computers, do I need to post this somewhere else on here.

[Hidden in reply to ruthalem]

Sorry took so long to reply my Mum died last week. FT3 is the most important one to be tested. They have to give you them by law ask if they will test Ft3 that may be more tricky. Read Greygoose's response to someone who posted about living in Turkey the last day or so she is very good at explaining it all. You still look hypo Ft4 should be at top of range and your TSH is too high so the GP should increase your dose. Good luck.

[Hidden in reply to ruthalem]

Yes start a new post with help with results or private message Greygoose she is one of the best.

[MrsJim]

It might be Sjogrens and a quick way to test is to get a Jacobs cracker and see how long it takes before your mouth produces enough saliva to allow you to comfortably eat the cracker.

It's a good way to find test while you're waiting to see a rheumatologist.

As for chewing things to encourage saliva, I'd strongly recommend buying Oralgel or Biotene and sucking/chewing pastille such as Salivix which are all designed specifically for xerostomia which are all available without a prescription from the chemist and they're not expensive, taste great and ease the furry tongue immensely as well as ulcers etc...

It's vital that you don't use sweets or sugary products or drink lots of sips of water as you'll flush away the good bacteria in your mouth which allows plaque to go crazy ape bonkers in your mouth and you'll create bigger issues long term for yourself.

Hope this helps Hun.

[ruthalem in reply to MrsJim]

Thank you, I`ll try salivix pastilles.

[puncturedbicycle]

Pure set honey is pure honey. Honey solidifies if there is more glucose than fructose in it.

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to puncturedbicycle]

And honey gets more crystalline with age.

[Daisy77]

Or it could be a pituitary problem. There's another kind of diabetes, nothing to do with sugar, which causes these symptoms. Sorry I can't remember the name but if you Google the pituitary society they will give you the information. I have had the same symptoms.

[budd_james]

Honey is a super-saturated solution of two sugars: glucose and fructose. Since it’s super-saturated, it’s a natural chemical process that some of the sugars eventually come out of solution. Honey will even crystallize when it’s still in the comb.

The proportions of these two sugars are characteristic of the plants the bees fed on to make their honey. It’s the glucose that crystallizes, so some types of honey are more resistant to crystallization because they have low glucose.

Alfalfa and clover honeys crystallize quickly; maple, tupelo, and blackberry honeys crystallize slowly.

Honey will crystallize in the hive if the temperature goes below 50ºF (10ºC), and honey will crystallize in your containers if you have a cold cupboard cabinet. Finding a warmer spot to store your honey will slow crystallization.

It’s fairly simple to turn your honey back into a smooth liquid again by heating it.

[budd_james]

I frequently experience a dry mouth as well, however I do not have the tongue coating. According to my dentist there are tests that can be done to check the salivary ducts, etc. Speak to your dentist & they can refer you from there........

[ruthalem in reply to budd_james]

Thanks for your reply, I will have a word with my dentist the next time I have a check up.