Brand new here! long time dental phobic - introduction

[JayDee7]

So, hello!

I'm dental phobic and have been since I was young, after years of being shamed by the hygienists as well as the dentist himself during every single visit. Was constantly told if my mouth wasn't so crowded the appts would be a whole lot easier, how my mouth is so small its hard for the hygienists to do their work thoroughly. Also made my Mom feel bad for not being able to afford braces for her 3 kids. So, because of how bad I always felt after seeing the dentists I stopped going at 16. The last time I was at the dentist was roughly 10 years ago when I had to have my wisdom teeth removed, and surprisingly that gave me less anxiety than a regular dentist visit.

I don't have "bad" teeth but I do have a bit of crowding, 1 silver filling, a small chip in one. No plaque/tartar build up except for the bottom front 4 teeth. I brush 2x a day, floss often, I dont drink pops or consume sugar. But the past experiences had made me far more self concious than I should be and caused me to stop seeing the dentist for regular check ups.

Flash foward, I'm now 36. For a few years I've had 1 loose tooth- right at the front bottom. This was due to many years of wearing a tongue ring. The ball wore down the gum line at the front. I removed the ring several years ago but the damage was done. 2 weeks ago I woke up with that 'loose' tooth floating around in my mouth... I spat out a fully intact tooth. I was petrified and shaking. I woke up my partner and said I have to go to a dentist. So that I did.

I had major anxiety going into the office and felt myself welling up with tears and sweating even waiting in the waiting room. I stressed to them that I am very dental phobic and what happened to me in younger years with the dentist. The dentist and hygienist I saw were super comforting and let me bawl my eyes out. I was told that unfortunately losing a bottom front tooth is always the worst kind of loss, but it's not the end of the world and even though through years of neglect they can fix it. I was sent away with antibiotics and mouth rinse and now I go back tomorrow for an 80 mins exam (no cleaning but can have that after if I have time in my schedule they said) I also see the gum/bone specialist in the ending of June.

Here are my questions, what can I expect in a full exam? how am I going to be able to not lose my cool for that long and have a panic attack? I was told by the dentist that there is a very strong chance I will lose the other front bottom teeth as the remaining teeth tend to shift after loss. I'm already speaking with a lisp from 1 missing tooth... how can I go weeks on end with more missing? I'm a telephone operator and speak on the phone for hours on end.

thanks for reading

 

[Lexie35]

Hello. I can't tell you exactly what will happen at your exam because I'm assuming it varies from office to office. I was super scared when I went for a consultation last January. Since then, I've had a full tooth cleaning, 2 fillings & 6 teeth pulled. I had my bottom 4 front teeth pulled a couple months ago. I was super scared. I actually got all 6 teeth pulled (2 were bottom wisdoms). I understand the lisp. I got my extractions on a Friday & by Monday I called to schedule an impression appointment for a partial denture. I hated it. I tried my hardest to enunciate. Since you need to be able to talk clearly, if you do end up losing more teeth, I would ask for an immediate denture. I was offered that but didn't take it due to insurance but I've heard about them. I did a lot of research to see what route I wanted to go (partial denture, bridge, dental implants). Just a suggestion. Good luck.

 

[JayDee7]

Thank you so much for your help!

I had my Appt on Thursday, was 80 mins and consisted of panoramic xray as well as more x-rays. It obviously showed bone loss to the front bottom of my mouth, and the other 3 front teeth are barely hanging on. In the hygienists opinion they will need to be removed I have slight minimal tartar build up under the gums but generally in good condition considering the last time I had them cleaned professionally.

I only have one cavity to fill, which again she said is good news. As for the cleanings she said based on my phobia and anxiety they'll split it into quads but I'll feel much better and my mouth will begin to heal somewhat.

I had a mild panic attack once the dentist came in to do her assessment, and I'm still very upset by it, she did not at all look at my chart that clearly indicated severe dental phobia. She asked to look in my mouth but then took an instrumental and touched my loose front teeth. I had to put my hands up and cried to stop immediately. She asked the hygienist in front of me if this patient is phobic... Something I had thought she'd read before hand. I had to take 10 mins to calm down and gather myself.

Aside from that incident I felt a bit relieved that I was finally sitting in the dental chair. Very nervous though. The hygienist was super caring and understanding and took things at an appropriate pace. She said given my age they'd rather not recommend dentures, a bridge would be the second option because over time they'd have to keep going in and preparing the teeth for crowns eventually creating more work on the surviving teeth. She said 4 implants would be the more logical option to save more natural teeth.

I have a consult about the options next Friday and then once it's determined if my insurance will cover laughing gas is when I'll book some cleanings. Was also given a Rx for valium to take before each dental procedure. An immediate denture/flipper option will be discussed in the consult because I cannot go weeks/months without some front teeth

I'm glad I made the first steps to overcome this phobia, and hopefully the next dentist I see will be specialised in phobic patients. I have the option of requesting the same dentist for all work, since its a practice that has over 10 dentists in the team.

Thanks again for your experience and I hope you're healing well!

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Jaydee.

Wow.. it sounds like even though the dentist did a few things to not exactly make an anxious person feel safe, you really did amazing in handling yourself despite the anxiety! And the hygenist sounds really good too! I hope you get a dentist next time that is a bit more sensitive to anxiety . I am a bit curious as to how much the dentists actually do read our charts. I'm sure it varies by person/day.. anys great job going through that! I hope it all goes great for you and that you get your laughing gas covered by insurance

 

[Enarete]

I had a mild panic attack once the dentist came in to do her assessment, and I'm still very upset by it, she did not at all look at my chart that clearly indicated severe dental phobia. She asked to look in my mouth but then took an instrumental and touched my loose front teeth. I had to put my hands up and cried to stop immediately. She asked the hygienist in front of me if this patient is phobic...

Well, this could have gone a bit better.. sorry to hear that. Besides of what is in your chart or not, I am sure that with a little bit of paying attention, the dentist must have perceived enough signs that show that you are nervous. Hopefully they will be more ready to put you at ease next time.