crack in tooth worrying me

[nutzforcats]

my dental appt. did not go smoothly last thursday, was supposed to get a new crown but found out wed. i had to have a new impression done, but after they did the gum prep., my dentist finds a crack in this molar(shaved down) and took an xray and had to make an appt. for an endodontist ($200 for 3D scan!) to see if it's fixable or has to be extracted. I'm annoyed with my dentist and now have at least 3 more dental visits- she said she could fix it by shaving it but that's only if it's not bad- she led me to believe she could do this but then decides to send me to a specialist, even after saying I get a small amt. of money from the gov't and may not be able to handle more time in the dental chair, ugh, but if it's fixable i will just have to find a way through. I'm not in a good place mentally as i have a cat who is stable but has stage 4 kidney disease so dealing with this alone is hard, i didn't need a dental issue right now! I will do it as long as she is stable but may have to change my mind if things change with her, my cat is first, then me. This year has been hard but i am thankful it is only one tooth i'm dealing with and my dental office said they will be able to get me in quickly so hope they can, want to get it over and done with very soon. Is it normal to take a half hour to do gum prep. for a crown? It seemed to take forever and i thought my last two times did not take this long, i had other dentists' do the other two. I am hoping my appt. will go well on Friday and trying to stay positive but seems nothing is going right, i am already picturing all can go wrong and it will take longer or i will get bad news.

 

[Whyohwhy12]

I feel your pain. I'm in the same boat, albeit I have lots more to do right now (didn't go in 14 years, so I have 13 fillings to do and one extraction, suppose one a year is fair).

But I have a molar that lost a pretty huge filling at the end of April and I made an appointment to finally go, and the dentist said that wasn't the tooth for extraction, it was an upper one that you can't see. She didn't even sweat it when I asked specifically if it was this molar for extraction and she just said no, it's another. They even did 2 X-Rays that side, I assume to confirm the extraction but it's the same side as this molar, so they've had a good look.

Problem is my first appointment isn't until June 18th, and that's just 1 of 4. So I've got this huge damaged molar - and I mean huge, it's like the entire back side of it is gone with remnants of the old filling around the gumline i think - which is down on paper for just a large white replacement filling.

But I'm so paranoid about it because I don't want to lose another tooth, and I can't afford any more "technical" stuff on it. I've already took out finance to pay the 2.5k to get everything done on paper. And because it's kind of a new issue my mouth just feels really irritated by it. My tongue and cheek is irritated by it I think too, which just adds to the general feeling of it being weak. Every time I eat, drink, brush, floss - hell even SNEEZE it worries me that somehow I'm gonna damage whatever is ''inside'' the tooth and exposed, and then I'll have to pay out of pocket for yet another extraction or things like RCT/Crown if it's even possible (idk actually how the finance works if I've already ''paid'' for the filling). I've also got just a dull ache around there, it's not painful, like a 1/10, but I feel like that isn't a good sign.

So I totally get you. I have this to nurse and worry about for another month yet. Hang in there.

 

[nutzforcats]

sorry to hear about all your work you need doing and have to wait to get started. Stay strong and just have to find a way through it. I go friday 11am for my consult, was lucky they had one or else i would've had to wait 2 weeks so at least i will get the news and then decide what i can do or needs to be done.

 

[Whyohwhy12]

I know, I was super adrenaline filled once I got out of my appointment, like I can finally get started after worrying for so long and always putting it off, like I’d struggled and finally got to the top of Mt Everest…and they rang me a couple days later like “so, we can get you in the 18th…of June” and I’m sure I even said “June??” before composing myself quick.

June. I’m sure in other situations this would be considered an emergency to sort this out, but I’ve got to wait over a month for it, desperately hoping I can somehow stop any further damage and needing another tooth extracted on the same side that could have been saved.

Either my dentist is supremely confident that it will hold up, or she doesn’t deal with scheduling much and figured I’d make it in sooner. I’m hoping it’s the former…

Anyway hope all goes well with you. It’s comforting to know all over people are dealing with similar situations getting by in life in their own way.

 

[nutzforcats]

could you call back to see if they have cancellations to get in sooner? I guess you don't want to go to another dentist as that would cost extra money? I would just brush/floss well and try to forget about it(easier said than done, i know). Fingers crossed your tooth will hold up until next month, decay can happen slowly, i've had cavities on watch and didn't even need them filled the next year.

 

[nutzforcats]

i went for the CT scan and also had another Xray- saw the most experienced endo dentist at this practice and he said it needs extracting and showed me where it has cracked, bottom near roots. He said i could leave it with no tooth, he has done this himself and said it is fine unless it causes me issues, then i could decide to get an implant later. I'd have to do that to save money to pay for that. I have to wait until next week for my dentist to call to see if they can extract it or want to refer me to a specialist, i hope they can do it as it will be quicker and cheaper but will do what i need to. I fear more the recovery but at least that shouldn't be too long, i remember my wisdom tooth felt weird for a week or two so felt i couldn't eat right for 2 weeks but will stock up on food i can that is soft. Bad news for my tooth but will save money so that makes me happy as I am all about saving instead of spending these days. Now i can take a break, get out in nature tomorrow to forget about all this until i have to deal with it. I will definately treat myself to something special once i'm done and know how much it's going to cost me, this has been too much but am coping the best i can.

 

[nutzforcats]

now i need to see an oral surgeon to get this cracked tooth out, more waiting, more stress and now i'm depressed i will lose this tooth,ugh, can't get any worse.