M
merlin
Member
- Joined
- Oct 6, 2010
- Messages
- 29
- Location
- UK
Hi there,
When i was aged between 9 and 11 years I required a filling in one of my molars. As a child (and now) I have been totally fine with needles for vaccinations etc. I usually just relax, think about something else, look away and it's done. However I remember being a little nervous about this filling. In the surgery the dentist approached me with a very long needle, and I recall being startled at the size. I was told to open my mouth and the needle was thrust into my cheek without warning. It took about 2-3 seconds and all the anaesthetic had been injected into my cheek, but not without me screaming my head off and even jerking my head. I didn't cry but I remember being completely shocked and trembling afterwards. My cheek swelled up a lot so I was told to sit in the waiting room for some time. After that the filling procedure continued normally. My cheek was swollen and bruised for about 3 days afterwards (so much so that my school teachers thought I had been in a fight).
I know this was a long time ago so my recollection of what I was thinking might be slightly off, but my parents were in the surgery with me and have confirmed the details about how the injection was given. No topical anaesthetic gel was used BTW.
This has left me with a big fear of dental injections. The pain was worse than a wasp sting (and I react badly to insect stings). I'm not afraid of normal injections, I maybe get a little bit apprehensive just prior to a vaccination or giving blood but it's fine. It's not only the pain of an injection which I fear it's the idea of that pain being in the mouth. Other painful injections elsewhere don't bother me much (I give blood and sometimes yelp/wince when they put the needle in).
I do actually go to the dentist for checkups even though it scares me, and other than having a brace and a few scales-and-polishes I haven't had any further treatment to my teeth. It has been about 18 months since my last appointment and I'm extremely nervous about the next one in a few weeks time. I have the feeling they may want to do some work (black/brown stain-like spot on canine), I'm even worried that they'll want to take my wisdom teeth out. Actually it's difficult to put the nervousness out of my mind and just function normally just now. I've already told the nurse at my dentists about my fear and she said they're pretty good with injections, they use topical gel and one of the surgeons is trained to deal with nervous patients (and sometimes uses sedation).
I'm obviously going to go to the appointment but I want to know if others here have had a similar experience to mine? Is the injection always that painful? How does it compare to - e.g. a wasp sting? I'm also a little scared of jerking my head and making it worse (though if I'm expecting it to be painful I would try and control this)...
...quite worried.
When i was aged between 9 and 11 years I required a filling in one of my molars. As a child (and now) I have been totally fine with needles for vaccinations etc. I usually just relax, think about something else, look away and it's done. However I remember being a little nervous about this filling. In the surgery the dentist approached me with a very long needle, and I recall being startled at the size. I was told to open my mouth and the needle was thrust into my cheek without warning. It took about 2-3 seconds and all the anaesthetic had been injected into my cheek, but not without me screaming my head off and even jerking my head. I didn't cry but I remember being completely shocked and trembling afterwards. My cheek swelled up a lot so I was told to sit in the waiting room for some time. After that the filling procedure continued normally. My cheek was swollen and bruised for about 3 days afterwards (so much so that my school teachers thought I had been in a fight).
I know this was a long time ago so my recollection of what I was thinking might be slightly off, but my parents were in the surgery with me and have confirmed the details about how the injection was given. No topical anaesthetic gel was used BTW.
This has left me with a big fear of dental injections. The pain was worse than a wasp sting (and I react badly to insect stings). I'm not afraid of normal injections, I maybe get a little bit apprehensive just prior to a vaccination or giving blood but it's fine. It's not only the pain of an injection which I fear it's the idea of that pain being in the mouth. Other painful injections elsewhere don't bother me much (I give blood and sometimes yelp/wince when they put the needle in).
I do actually go to the dentist for checkups even though it scares me, and other than having a brace and a few scales-and-polishes I haven't had any further treatment to my teeth. It has been about 18 months since my last appointment and I'm extremely nervous about the next one in a few weeks time. I have the feeling they may want to do some work (black/brown stain-like spot on canine), I'm even worried that they'll want to take my wisdom teeth out. Actually it's difficult to put the nervousness out of my mind and just function normally just now. I've already told the nurse at my dentists about my fear and she said they're pretty good with injections, they use topical gel and one of the surgeons is trained to deal with nervous patients (and sometimes uses sedation).
I'm obviously going to go to the appointment but I want to know if others here have had a similar experience to mine? Is the injection always that painful? How does it compare to - e.g. a wasp sting? I'm also a little scared of jerking my head and making it worse (though if I'm expecting it to be painful I would try and control this)...
...quite worried.