What's the best thing to do for a bad tooth ache?

yeah, chew guava leaves , let it stay in your mouth for 30 minutes. try it now.

You may have an abscessed tooth which can be deadly if it's not taken care of so I would get to a dentist pronto. Some dentists will let you pay in payments, if needed. If it is an abscess, all it will probably need is a root canal, which now days a dentist can complete in less than 30 mins with minimal pain or discomfort. I had one done back in the 80's when I was a sophmore in college and it took 3 visits to complete it and I couldn't eat anything other than soup and applesauce for 3 days after my last visit. I had another one done last summer and I was in and out in less than an hour and I went out for italian that night.Technology has advanced to the point now where a root canal proceedure is nothing. Or, it could just be that you need a filling, again, that is nothing as well. Seriously, get it taken care of, whatever it is, you'll be glad you did. It's most likely not going to get any better without a trip to the dentist.

If it is an absess, which is an infection, btw -(does is smell and taste like crap?) with an absess, even if you were able to get into the dentist right away, they wouldn't even touch it with a festering infection in your mouth. If you have any antibiotics laying around, start taking them NOW. Also, you DON'T want to take aspirin - it thins your blood, so if it's bleeding, it'll make it worse. If you're using mouth wash, STOP! Warm salt water is best. You want to start taking Advil, or any other brand of ibuprophen.... KEEP TAKING IT - ..You may need to take ibuprofen for 2 to 3 days before you get the most pain relief - it's an anti-anflamitory/it makes the swelling lessen.

Be prepared for a dentist sending you on your way with prescription for pain meds and anti-biotics before they'll actually treat you.

If you have some aspirin, might help.