Hi Alex,
I have issues with grinding of teeth to the extent that some of my front lower ones are chipped and ground off -I suppose that I could have a few crowns put in but so far have not gone down that route.Mine is a sub mandibular joint problem where the jaw meets just below the ear so if I do not do the daily exercises of the neck and jaw I am plagued with neck pains, ear pains etc etc. I dont want to go down the route of surgery so am stuck with the exercises. On the grinding my dentist made me a plastic shield which I should wear at night over the lower teeth so that I cannot grind and do any more damage -it involves taking a cast and then having the lab to make it for you.In addition you might find that a special pillow will help your jaw/mouth to relax better at night-if you google best pillows it might come up with some suggestions but some are up to 100 pounds/ dollars.
The gum issue might be unrelated to the teeth grinding. I have some suggestions.See if you can you find a mouthwash that contains Chlorhexidine Gluconate Antiseptic (0.2%w/v Oromucosal Solution) -I assume you are in USA? In UK Superdrug do their own version.I used it after extraction and it was brilliant;my dentist said be careful as it stains the teeth badly but it is great for preventing any mouth/gum infection or preventing it. Teeth staining then involves extensive cleaning. The other alternative is any kind of iodine based mouth spray-I cant find in UK but when working in Asia I found lots of effective ones.
I know how you feel, as when bashing my hands in the garden doing jobs I bruise badly and think is this normal or when I have cramps in the rib cage think is it my spleen, but so far these are spurious thoughts! We always think perhaps am I moving or transforming /translocating into accelerated phase? If your bcr/abl and bloods are in order then your issues I suggest are otherwise.
Regards
John