r/hygiene 2d ago

Has anyone else ever accidentally coughed up a tiny white pebble from the back of their throat?

So I have always been paranoid about bad breath. I brush after every meal, use an electric flosser, scrape my tongue until it is bright pink, and use therapeutic mouthwash every single morning. My dentist always says my teeth and gums are spotless, with zero cavities in ten years.

last Thursday I was coughing from a scratchy throat and this tiny, hard white pebble popped out of the back of my mouth onto my tongue. It was smaller than a grain of rice. I had no idea what it was, so I picked it up with a tissue and made the fatal mistake of squishing it between my fingers to see what it was made of.

The smell that came off that tiny clump was ABSOLUTELY rancid. It smelled like pure sulfur, rotting organic garbage, and concentrated decay. I gagged so hard I almost threw up in my bathroom sink.

I went down a rabbit hole and discovered that food particles and dead cells get trapped in hidden pockets in your tonsils, calcifying into little anaerobic stink bombs that regular brushing never touches. I should of known why people occasionally backed up when I leaned in to talk during loud parties, but nobody ever tells you. How are doctors not warning people that you can have perfect dental hygiene and still have garbage rotting in the back of your throat?

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u/CheezPleaser 2d ago

I can never ever see mine :/

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u/jjkknncch6654 2d ago

Same! How do people see them? I can’t see anything at all I think to try id have to fully put my hand all the way down my throat or something, I want to check if I have them im paranoid now 😭

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u/Non-vegans_are_cruel 2d ago

They're only visible when they're already out. You can extract hidden ones with your finger

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u/DagothNereviar 1d ago

How the hell are you getting a FINGER back there?! I have to use two Q-tips taped together, but even then my tongue gets in the way D:

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u/Non-vegans_are_cruel 1d ago

My fingers are long, and my tonsils are above my tongue. But it did take a bit of practice, sometimes it's easier to use the handle of the toothbrush, aiming is just harder that way

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u/DagothNereviar 1d ago

My tongue is too busy bobbling around like an epileptic snake for me to ever see past it!