• Dental Phobia Support

    Welcome! This is an online support group for anyone who is has a severe fear of the dentist or dental treatment. Please note that this is NOT a general dental problems or health anxiety forum! You can find a list of them here.

    Register now to access all the features of the forum.

Terrified

S

Southie

Junior member
Joined
Nov 16, 2017
Messages
1
Hi all, I have had a day from hell, I had my first periodontist appointment and it was even worse than I expected. Bit of background first I haven't been to a dentist in 8 years. Last month I felt pain in my bottom front tooth the one right in the middle. Bit the bullet as I knew I needed a dentist but was always putting it off. Anyways I went to dentist who I could tell straight away was horrified by the level of gum disease.
She referred me to a periodontist and finally today after 2 sleepless weeks I got to meet him. Several x rays later the awful news hardly any if my teeth are salvageable. I have moderately severe periodontal disease and I need to make an appointment straight away to remove teeth I think he said Two bottom ones and one top front one. I am in bits from the outside my teeth look perfect I always brushed twice a day but always had ugly shaped teeth. I don't know what to do. I am a mom and on a budget and right now desperate. I will ring tomorrow to get appointment with dentist now again and see where to go from there. It's all so expensive my next periodontist visit us 500 € and another one two weeks later also 500 and then dentist costs, and that's not even going into the horror of loosing teeth and what do I replace them with..? Sorry for been a raving g lunatic I am frightened
 
You don't have to have the teeth removed until you've figured out what will be put in their place. A bridge maybe, or a little partial denture. My grandmother got a small partial when she had a front tooth removed and she adjusted to it very quickly, and it looks very natural.

It might not feel like it now, but you will survive this. I don't think you'll be expected to roam around with a gap in your smile, so don't worry about that. Losing teeth can be very upsetting. Take some time to come to terms with it. It's good that now you know the situation and you can begin getting treatment.

I lost all my teeth at a young age. I had seen it coming, so it was less of a shock, and I was more relieved to have it over with. It's a nasty surprise for someone like you whose teeth looked healthy, but all I can say is, it's not the end of the world, and life will go on. Lots of people lose at least a few teeth - there are more people than you would guess going about with bridges and partials to replace some missing teeth.

Definitely ask the dentist to explain all your options.

Hang in there :hug4:
 
Hi,

I’ve just been diagnosed with periodontal disease and I’m in my mid thirties. My two bottom teeth are ever so slightly loose. I have beautiful teeth and have been to the dentist every 6 months for the past 15 years. I understand the shock and horror you must be feeling.

I just want to offer you some options before you have any teeth removed. There are lots of things that can be done.

A new thing periodontist can do is laser therapy. It’s called LANAP - google it, you’ll be pleased. I had it done in November on my back molar (the pocket was a 9) So far, so good. Recovery was a piece of cake. I don’t know how much it has reduced the pocket yet, but from my internet research it’s possible for a pocket of 9+ to go down to a 3 or less. I believe they charge by quadrant. If I didn’t have insurance it would have been $450, which is costly, but in my opinion totally worth it.

I’m having a scaling and planing done soon to address a few 4 pockets. I’ve also been given Periostat to try to stop the production of the enzyme that breaks down the bone. I got the generic version 180 pills for $30.

There are options out there. Good luck to you.
 
Back
Top