I can spit!

You're probably thinking, "uh, so can I," or "so what," or maybe even "gross, who cares?" However, it's a major break through that I CAN SPIT. I have Sjogren's (pronounced "show grins") Syndrome, my body attacks all of the moisture producing glands. I have extremely dry eyes and dry mouth. I cannot normally maintain enough moisture in my mouth to actually feel comfortable, I have to sip water all day. Because of the dry mouth, it's hard to eat solid foods without a high moisture content -- forget steak or granola bars.

I went to a new rheumatologist yesterday - Elizabeth Turner at Erlanger Hospital, B805, for those in the Chattanooga area in need of a GOOD rheumy. I had been to a different rheumy in the past; he had the bedside manner and compassion of a T-Rex in a bad mood. Anyway, Dr. Turner gave me an Rx for Evoxac and it actually works! I was taking something else, prescribed by T-Rex, but I would foam at the mouth for an hour then go back to being bone dry. I took one Evoxac last night about 7:00 PM and made it through the whole night without getting up to chew water.

(I refer to it as chewing water because that's pretty much what I do. I get a mouthful of water and start slushing it in my mouth working my lower jaw up and down instead of pushing it from cheek to cheek. I'm actually not the only one that does this. Others on the SjS forum have admitted to this.)

This is a wonderful feeling for me. I took another at 6:00 when I woke up and I've got spit! I can actually feel it coming out of the salivary glands and pooling under my tongue. Way cool!

You may not know how important saliva is, but it is immensely important. It helps boost your immune system. HUH? Well, dry mouth allows bacteria that your saliva would normally flush away to thrive. This leads to dental problems. Left untreated, the dental problems can lead to other medical issues. Did you know that the bacteria in your mouth responsible for gum disease can also cause heart disease? That's one of the reasons why you're supposed to see a dentist if your gums bleed when you brush or floss. That's an indicator of poor oral health; however, if the bacteria from your mouth enters your bloodstream, you can be in big trouble. It can attack your heart, your brain, or any of your other organs and shut you down. Nothing like needing a liver transplant because you didn't floss, huh?

So, anyone with dry mouth has to take extra care of their teeth. The last visit to the dentist I had we found 3 cavities. NOT a good thing. I have no intention of loosing my teeth. So, getting saliva flowing is an awesome thing!

Plus an added bonus, this should seriously cut down on the number of trips to the bathroom.

It just doesn't get any better than that!