A question about paying

[zelbic]

Hey everyone,

I am new to this site and I must say I am so relieved to find I am not the only one with such a huge fear of the dentist!! I am 27 years old and I have not been to the dentist in probably 10 years. Now I am starting to live up to my fear and realize I need to go. I have two broken teeth (in the back) that I know will need some kind of work done and I am sure I have more teeth that will need fillings and work. Not to mention I am sure I have gum disease which I have been trying to manage on my own with Anti bacterial wash. Who knows what will need to be done with that.

Now onto my questions as I have never really dealt with a dentist on my own. I am currently in between teaching jobs (I am a elementary teacher) and I won't have dental insurance kick in for a while (probably around November). From the looks of this insurance plan for the new job it won't cover very much. I was wondering if (and when, yes I will brave this fear and go) I get work done, how would I deal with paying whatever my insurance doesn't cover. Would I be required to pay up front or do dentists set up some sort of payment plan? I will be relocating to a new state for this new job and a lot of my money will be going to the big move.

Thanks for your help in advance!!

 

[kitkat]

Hi zelbic,
I am not too experienced with this sort of thing but here are my 2 cents:
The answer is it depends on the dentist. Some offer payment plans through their offices and others take what is called CareCredit...basically a credit line specifically designed for dental care from what I understand. I'm not sure if this is something you have to initiate externally or if the office sets you up with it. You would have to do some research there but others may have more info for you. Hope that helps some. Best of luck with everything.

 

[franklinm]

You usually don't have to pay it all up front. You can generally make a payment plan to pay the rest of it off. Just remember you're not alone and we're all here to help you overcome your fear of the dentist along with a caring and trustworthy dentist of course. If it turns out that you do have gum disease than you'll probably have a deep cleaning. Good luck finding a dentist and making an appointment.

 

[zelbic]

That's what I figured!! Thank you so much for the support!! It's been very difficult to deal with, and it's felt nice just getting it out in the open. I am still extremely scared and it will be even tougher getting it done in a brand new state and city. But I can tell my teeth are starting to get bad. I realize that I will need to get it done soon so that I can feel more confident about myself.

I am certain I have gum disease as my gums have receded a bit. But I have been slowing down my brushing, using Anti-Bacterial mouthwash and it seems to have helped tremendously. There is not really any pain unless I brush, and it's very minor pain. But I do know that I won't be able to put it off much longer and fully intend on finding a dentist that can work with me to overcome this fear once I can get settled in the new state!

In the meantime I will continue to visit here and update everyone and vent if I need to. Like I said before I have extreme anxiety about it still, but with everyone's support here, I know I can get through it!