The Emotional Underpinnings of Swollen and Receding Gums

A pain in the mouth grabs your attention. While it may well warrant a call to the dentist, you might also wonder if there’s a spiritual reason behind your gum swelling. What are the possible emotional underpinnings? 

Your mind and body work together in a two-way street. Physical ailments can lay you low mentally, and emotional disturbances can result in physiological symptoms.

Could your mindset affect your mouth? Let’s take a closer look at the emotional and spiritual underpinnings of swollen and receding gums and how to manage the issue physically and mentally. 

Causes of Gum Swelling and Receding 

Your gum swelling may result from any one of multiple physical problems. While it’s easy to see the mental connection in some, such as bruxism, others have a more elusive link — if one at all. After all, while you may certainly have strong emotions after a wayward hockey puck strikes your jaw, your mindset before the accident didn’t influence its trajectory.

However, even gum swelling that results from an apparent physical cause can create emotional underpinnings that influence recovery. Here are five potential culprits. 

1. Food Stuck in Teeth

If you’re a fan of popcorn, you should know that it can lead to abscessed gums if a bit of the shell gets trapped between the soft pink stuff and your teeth. Any food particles lodged therein can cause trouble, but popcorn’s flaky kernels are particularly insidious. Removing the lodged particles helps, but bacteria can flourish, resulting in bad breath and gingivitis. 

2. Pregnancy Changes

Are you considering adding to your family? If so, you should know that you become more susceptible to gum disease while expecting, thanks to hormonal changes. Pay particular attention to oral hygiene during this time, including booking regular cleanings — and advise your dentist of your condition. 

3. Cracked or Infected Tooth

Although they seem solid, your teeth are living tissue and issues there can spread to your gums. For example, people affected by bruxism may grind their teeth in their sleep, leading to cracked and chipped teeth. Pay attention and check with your dentist about a mouth guard if you often have frequent headaches, especially upon awakening. 

4. Certain Medications

Certain medications can impact your gums. For example, anticonvulsants, calcium channel blockers and immunosuppressant medications can cause changes that affect oral health. 

5. Gingivitis or Periodontitis

Gingivitis is gum inflammation, usually thanks to infection and resulting from poor brushing and flossing habits. Periodontitis is a more severe version that can lead to lost teeth, warranting a dentist’s visit.  Symptoms include red, angry and swollen gums, bleeding, especially when brushing and flossing and bad breath. As the condition advances, your teeth can begin to feel loose. 

Gum Swelling, Systemic Inflammation and Your Emotional State 

Some causes of gum swelling, such as bruxism, have obvious emotional underpinnings. Tooth grinding is one of many signs of anxiety. However, mouth problems with apparent physical causes can still have spiritual significance. For example, gum swelling that originates from food particles trapped within may reflect emotional overeating, indulging in unhealthy foods and neglecting oral hygiene thanks to poor mental health. 

Food and faith also often intertwine. Many religions have strict rules around what you can eat, although, in the New Testament, Jesus proclaims it is not what enters the mouth but exits that defiles it. The words you speak are more important. If you are subconsciously feeling guilty about something nasty you said to another, the resulting stress could lead to behaviors that affect your oral hygiene — a spiritual cause of gum disease.

Physical discomfort invites you to get mindful. Explore the possible physiological causes for your gum swelling — but dig into your psyche, too. Have you recently used your words to harm another? Are you struggling with communication, and could the subconscious stress of your endeavors manifest in your mouth? Looking at the problem from all angles can help you find more rapid relief. 

5 Tips to Reduce Gum Swelling and Improve Oral Health

How can you reduce your chances of gum swelling and keep your mouth healthier? Living in alignment with your spiritual code helps, as it eliminates unconscious stress factors driving poor oral health. 

However, you can also elevate your physical routine, making mouth care less mundane and more spiritual. Here are five tips that can improve your oral hygiene, reduce gum swelling and make you feel better spiritually, not just physically. 

1. Make Brushing a Self-Care Ritual 

Brushing can seem like such a pain, but doing so twice daily is imperative to keeping your gums healthy. To make the sensory experience less unpleasant, transform brushing into a mini self-care ritual. 

Take your time, paying particular care along the gum line, holding your brush at a 45° angle to do a thorough job. While you scrub, recite positive affirmations to yourself in the mirror, such as: 

• I am worthy of happiness
• Caring for myself makes me better each day
• I am capable of maintaining my health 

You should brush once in the morning and again in the evening. Make your evening ritual the full monty, including floss and a fluoride rinse to strengthen your enamel. 

2. Investigate Gentler Flossing Options 

Who can blame you for disliking how traditional floss cuts your gums? It’s worth paying a dollar or two more for softer, wider styles that reduce the pain factor. Those with mobility issues can investigate water flossers or pick-style devices with handles for easier maneuvering. Research shows that water flossers effectively remove plaque from between teeth without the associated “ouch” factor. 

3. Examine Your Diet

Many of the same foods that aren’t great for your body, like chips and popcorn, are also bad for your teeth. Conversely, other foods strengthen your oral health. 

For example, your mouth has a microbiome like most of your body. Therefore, eating foods rich in pre and probiotics can nurture the good strains of bacteria that promote gum health. Crudites or crunchy veggies like carrots, cauliflower and broccoli act like miniature toothbrushes to scrub plaque away from surfaces where it can support unhealthy bacterial growth and spur gum swelling. 

4. Reduce Stress

While it’s admittedly easier said than done in today’s world, reducing stress improves every aspect of your overall health — including improving swollen gums. Try the following to tame your tension: 

• Take your time by scheduling adequate time for tasks and transitioning between them to avoid overwhelm 

• Make time for healthy hobbies and socializing. 

• Practice relaxation techniques such as yoga, meditation, partner massage and deep breathing 

• Laugh — it’s a fabulous stress buster. 

5. Seek Connection 

Humans are hardwired for connection with others. However, modern life and its emphasis on productivity and material achievement rarely leave time for developing the type of deep relationships that benefit physical and mental health. 

Many people find connection with their family members. Cultivating adult friendships also helps. Attending religious or spiritual gatherings, tending to your physical fitness by joining a gym, participating in team sports or volunteering in your community introduce you to others who share your interests. 

Emotional Underpinnings of Gum Swelling 

Although many cases of gum swelling arise from physical reasons, spiritual causes of gum problems also contribute. Mindfully exploring the emotional underpinnings of your condition can bring insights that improve your overall health. 

Your mind and body work together as one. Leaning into the emotional underpinnings of gum swelling can bring physical relief and spiritual insights.