worked up the courage to schedule a dentist appointment

I haven't been to a dentist in a few years, and was under the impression that brushing once at night and maybe once in the morning was enough to prevent any dental problems... problem being that I just finished my first quarter of college, and drank energy drinks/fast food (really sugar-y muffins for breakfast) on a regular basis.. and now I'm in trouble.

I've got a pimple-type-thing on the inside of my mouth, behind a tooth, which I read is caused by abscess... I've never been worried about the dentist before (I've even looked forward to having squeaky teeth and biting on the bubble-gum flavoured trays), but this sent me into a flurry of reading and dental inspections.. my gums look good, my teeth are all a good shade of white, but I have holes on my molars D:

I just scheduled a dentist appointment, and I'm really nervous.. does anyone have any recommendations? I'm freaking out pretty bad, especially because I've never had cavities (or gum problems) before...

I'm half-hoping that I'm mistaken (kind of like if you ever go on the e-health websites and read the symptoms for various diseases, and end up thinking you have some life-threatening illness, or is that just me?)..

hey there! I just read your post. It sounds similar to my situation. I know all situations are different, but let me tell you about mine. I went six or seven years without seeing the dentist (went away to school.....didn;t care....eventually got scared and embarassed) this was six years of eating like crap, smoking a lot and frequently forgetting to brush. My dentist would actually call, id see his name on call display and ignore it.
Then I went when i was like 26 (my mom scheduled an appointment with her dentist.) I went once, had to get all my fillings redone (but I got my fillings in the 80;s) which kinda hurt...I wasn;t sure how to make the insurance claim with my new job, skipped my next appointment, the one after that.....and so forth. So there I was having been once in 12 years, having flossed maybe 5 times in my life.
I couldn;t stand toothpaste commercials, or driving by a dentist office. Like you, I went on the internet and started looking stuff up, gum disease, tooth decay, teeth flling out....and how its CRUCIAL for everyone to see their dentist twice a year. Also like you, I made the massive step of making an appointment. I`m POSSITIVE I was in worse shape than you are, and i had no problems. I think you may be surprised with how little work you need done, My dentist told me that if it were a serious problem (like abcess (spÉ) ) I`d be in terrible pain. Also, toothpastes and mouthwashes are so much more effective than they used to be. My imagination ran away with me, yours probably is too. At any rate, conrats, nice work, good luck and happy new year!

PS; everyone has holes in their molars

Firstly, congratulations on working up the courage! I'm 30 years old and went to the dentist for the first time in over 10 years recently, and only because my boyfriend kept nagging me and eventually made the appointment for me. In hindsight I feel pretty disappointed in myself for that, but I must say I'm hugely relieved at having had the full check up with x-rays and was very happy and surprised to discover that I had no cavities (though I do require three preventative fillings for teeth with ill-formed enamel), and that the state of my gums wasn't as bad as I had feared and should recover well after a good cleaning.

I must say I was pleasantly surprised with my dental visit. The best thing I did was email the dental surgery beforehand (I found this a lot less confronting than ringing them) to advise that I was very nervous and had not been for a long time. In response to this, all the staff at the surgery were extremely caring and helpful and not patronising, nor did they lecture me about not having come in for such a long time. Whilst I never would have thought this could be the case before, the more I read on the topic I now realise that GOOD dental professionals will respect you for doing something about your dental health, rather than judge you for what you have or haven't done in the past.

Whilst I'm a little nervous about the next two visits for cleaning and treatment, I'm so relieved to know exactly what the situation is and not be inventing problems in my head every single day which is what I was doing before I went and got everything checked out. My very positive first appointment also makes me feel less nervous about the upcoming visit because I am already feeling a great sense of trust with the dental practice and know that they will look after me and make me feel as relaxed as possible.

Good luck with your appointment, I really hope you feel like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders once it is over!