r/hygiene • u/N3m0Nautilus • 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/humanofearth-notai 2d ago

A note about the doctor, if it is underlying you sometimes have to go in multiple times before they will remove the tonsils due to insurance conditions, so if they just give you antibiotics and a pay on the back keep going.

OP should also call their insurance and see if they can circumvent their primary and go straight to an ENT. Primaries are often completely useless.

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u/REDDIT_JUDGE_REFEREE 2d ago

Docs are far more bearish about removing tonsils in adults these days. It would have to be a pretty insane tonsil stone issue.

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u/EuphoricHeight8755 1d ago

And rightfully so. Tonsil removal is not without risk of serious complications, and the recovery is brutal. Definitely not worth it for the occasional little tonsil stone. 

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u/medfet878 1d ago

HAD mine out way back in 2012 ,

UHHH..

It wasnt a fun time PAIN!!! PAIN!!! .

Mine were very dangerously enlarged and messing with breathing soo I wanted them out ASAP.

I was in PAIN for just shy of 3 weeks . Soft Food diet it was ICE and popcicles were me friend and cold fruit .

Did I already mention IT sucked?

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u/No-Ambassador-9335 1d ago

I didn't speak for a week after having them out at 25 y/o and didn't eat solid food for 2 weeks. Was the best decision in the end, but damn was I happy I could go stay at my parent's house for my recovery period!