Matthew Gates http://notetoservices.com 3m 823 #dirtymouth
The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.
Dirty Mouth? Clean it up!
After you read this confession, we advise you take the challenge of the week: Brush Your Teeth Twice A Day.
I am not particularly OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder) all the time, but I like things neat, organized, and clean. There are times when I do, however, become lazy, uninterested, and ignore all my duties in my apartment, my car, and at my desk at work. More often than not I prefer to just have things simple so I know where everything is and I know it has been cleaned.
When I first wake up in the morning, I cannot stand the dirty feeling of a mouth that has been closed for the majority of the night while sleeping. There is no human on this Earth who wakes up with good smelling breath. Some may have tolerable breath, but the majority of people have bad smelling breath in the morning. The smell comes from the bacteria and saliva from our mouths overnight as we sleep. Once morning comes and I’ve done my bathroom business, I must take to the sink, brushing and scrubbing thoroughly my teeth, from the top front to the top back, to the underside of the front and back, to the bottom front and the bottom back and undersides.
Once my teeth have been brushed, I floss to get out anything else that may have been left in between my teeth from eating. Occasionally, my gums will bleed. I am not worried at all about the bleeding, as this is normal, especially if I do not floss for a couple of days.
Afterwards, I need to ingest some mouthwash, and I even swallow a tiny portion of it to clean the back of my throat. Only then can I feel comfortable enough to really talk to someone or give someone a kiss. Until my mouth is cleaned, I want nothing to do with anyone in the morning.
This routine is repeated twice throughout the day, morning and night. Occasionally, I may add a third routine in there if I feel my teeth are not as clean as they should be.
Throughout the day, I am not so paranoid about my mouth, but there are times when I do notice that I might feel my mouth is dirty, or I might have bad breath from some food I ate. This smell can be defeated in two ways: re-brushing teeth or mouthwash. I usually opt to use mouthwash, as this is easier.
The other day, as I gargled mouthwash for the second time, I had become aware of just how many places I kept mouthwash. In my home, at my girlfriend’s place, in my car, and at my desk. I suppose that must be the OCD? To some, it might just be, but to others, it is just me being aware of my dirty mouth and wanting to keep it fresh and presentable, not only for myself, but for others.
At work, with mouthwash at my desk, I know that I can always have good smelling breath and I feel that confidence does come from a healthy clean mouth. You can go into a meeting with the satisfaction that someone else may have bad breath, but it is not you. There is nothing to fear when you know that your breath smells good, even when talking to your boss, or the cute girl a few cubicles over. Having fresh clean smelling breath helps you feel confident and might even help you lose weight, preventing you from getting the munchies or sneaking food at the office.
Many people may feel that a tooth brush and tooth paste is enough. I do not care who told you that, where you learned it was enough, or where you thought that was true, but living in this day and age, oral health is very important, as your mouth is the entrance to all major and minor diseases, viruses, and bacteria. Introduce flossing and mouthwash into your life, and you will experience a whole new world of cleanliness. A tooth brush and tooth paste cannot go it alone. The antibacterial and antiviral properties of mouthwash can go a long way. You need the power of the three!
Mouthwash, big or portable, should be kept everywhere in your life, for it can certainly do wonders for your teeth, your gums, and mouth. From killing bacteria, to whitening, to freshening up breath, why not keep mouthwash everywhere in order to ensure you never have to go too far without being able to have a clean mouth? I would not say I go as far as carrying a toothbrush around with me, though I have considered it many times, including the floss, but I have opted to just stick with having mouthwash available in many places.
photo credit: B Rosen via photopin cc
Matthew Gates is a freelance web developer and currently runs Confessions of the Professions.
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