Husband is still dry--little saliva--after more than 2 years out but manages by sipping water during the day and using great mouthwashs for dry mouth--OASIS or BIOTENE--several times during the night. When he gets up during night he rinses quickly w/ one of these and can then sleep several hours w/ no water sipping. Great products! Has to get up anyway to urinate from all of the water and BOOST (liquid nutrition) he gets during the day. Gum helps during extra dry times too; sugarless due to problems which could be caused by sugar on his few teeth!

MaWalton,

Thanks for sharing. We all suffer so with this dry mouth. I have not found the Biotene mouth wash yet. I do use the other products and it helps.

I am 9 months out from last treatment. The recovery is slow, but am glad for any progress I make.

I hope your husband will improve some more in the future.
Thanks and take care
Diane

Diane,

I've generally been able to get Biotene products at some of the major drug stores (like Walgreens). I've also found them at Costco -- behind the pharmacy counter, although they're not prescription items.

I think someone on the forum also mentioned seeing them at Wal-Mart. Hope you can find some soon.

Cathy

You can get Biotene toothpaste at Walmart. I'm not sure about the mouthwash. The big grocery store I shop at (Wegmans, not sure how many states they are in) carries all the Biotene products including a jumbo size bottle of mouthwash. Like mawalton's husband, I rinse with that moutwash several times during the day and usually 2 or 3 times in the middle of the night when I wake up with a painfully dry mouth.

Do other people have p[roblems with getting enough aerobic exercise because of drymouth? I am finding that just walking fast for several blocks has the back of my throat feeling like the sahara and my tongue sticking to the roof of my mouth. I have a spray I use (Oasis makes a spray that has xylitol and some of the stuff biotnee has in it and is minty and nice and lubricating) but it really kind of slows me down from getting any good aerobic time in,

Swallowing water at these points is hard because I'm still having swallowing difficulties and I can do water but only in small siups and with careful swallowing which is harder if you're breathing hard for air!

So I guess I'm looking for tips too. I'd like to do more aerobic exercise to get back in better shape.

Nelie

Nelie the mouth spray sounds like something my husband would like to try. Biotene is great and there is also a Biotene toothpaste that my husband uses yes it's in walmart and also CVS and Brooks pharamacies. The last couple of days he has really started with the dry mouth were before it was just lots of mucuos and constantly spitting. We have put a humidifier in the bedroom and that has helped with the dryness at night.
Take Care everyone

Nelie, have you ever tried chewing sugar-free gums or candies? To me, I need them a lot when I go out for any activities including dancing which I am now learning, without which I share your feeling of being in Sahara.The products must be sugar-free so that the damage to our teeth is reduced. Other than a small bottle of water, a bag of candies and gums is a must for me when I travel around. Hope this helps.

Karen

I don't think I even have enough saliva for candy or gum! When I've tried, the candy or wad of gum always ends up getting stuck to the roof of my mouth itself......but the last time I tried was several months ago so maybe it's time to try again.

Nelie,

It may be worth trying the sugarless gum again (I had some of the same problems with it sticking to the roof of my mouth sometimes, but that seemed to lessen over time). I think it helped my remaining salivary glands to have something like gum that gave them a regular workout, because more and more of the "normal" function came back gradually, and the consistency eventually got closer to the "normal" range as well.

Cathy

If you go to the Oasis web site, www.oasisdrymouth.com, you can download a coupon for $1.50 off either the mouthrinse or the spray. Tom likes to carry the spray around when we're out.

Also, our Walgreens has Biotene products on sale this week, buy one at $6.99 get one free. Might not be on sale in all areas--check their web site or the insert in your local Sunday paper.

Joyce

OK, Cathy, you've encouraged me to dig out my supplies of Biotene gum (which I bought several boxes of before radiation) and try again!

Nelie

Diane, in our neck of the woods, Biotene products can also be found at Rite-Aid.

I said it once before here, that while I have no issue with Oasis directly, it is nothing more than water and a small amount glycerin, which you can buy for pennies at any drug store. At 8 bucks a bottle, I think I would just make my own up at home. It may keep your mouth moist for a while, but it does not help the health of your mouth by adding back the normally occurring enzymes that Biotene products have, and have a patent on including. I am hooked on the Biotene Oral Balance liquid, which comes in a small pocket size squirt bottle. I can carry it easily with me and I use about half as much water during the day and night.... (read: I have to go to the bath room half as many times which is more of a pain than drinking the water.) I used to have to be within 30 min. of a bathroom before this stuff. They have some new lozenges coming out soon, and in testing them I was able to go for an hour + without water for the first time in 8 years. Hopefully these sugar free things will hit the market in the next few months.

Brian,
My husband uses the biotene mouthwash and toothpaste I haven't seen the mouth spray yet,I'll keep a look out for that. He is just starting to get into the real problems with the dry mouth we use a humidifier at night which helps a little. Still dealing with alot of jaw and mouth pain see the dr friday and see what he thinks about all this pain that just doesn't seem to want to let up.
Take Care.

I also used a humidifier for the first year after treatment, it helped a lot. The oral balance liquid isn't really a spray but a thick liquid, just a little thinner than honey in a squirt bottle. As to the pain and discomfort it can be slow to resolve. I was on very strong pain killers for the bulk of the first year after treatment, of course I had more mucositis than many people who post here, since I went through before IMRT radiation. It can be a slow porcess, but it eventually does get better. Remember the healing timeline that is mentioned here so often... one month for every week of treatment

My hubby just ordered some stuff online from Biotene because we couldn't find it in our local drug stores. He is trying the gum, the oral spray and a gel. I am most hopeful about the gel. I know the sprays he has used in the past (not Biotene) were not very effective. I hope the gel will last longer. I will let you know how they work for him after giving it a little time.

I carry the oasis at work but just bought trident sugar free watermellon gum with xylitol it woked great for me its new