Does anxiety cause “reactions” to the anesthetic?

[Alexi25]

I recently visited the dentist to repair a damaged filling. To my surprise, I was rather anxious. I’ve had my first fillings in the last few years, no problem.

This time, I could not open my mouth after receiving the anesthetic. My jaw muscles were seemingly in spasm or something. It was painful. The dentist gave Tylenol and 30 minutes later, checked again. No luck.

Her explanation was confusing. I’ve asked for clarification and it’s still unclear. She told me that I had a reaction to the anesthetic and that I needed to do sedation dentistry (she doesn’t offer this and did not offer a referral). In a very roundabout way, she seemed to be blaming it on anxiety. Ok, fair.

Not wanting to immediately jump to sedation dentistry, my PCP prescribed me 1 Xanax. I let my dentist know, but she declined to attempt the procedures again. She said I was too likely to have another “reaction.”

Which is it - am I having a physical reaction, or psychological? If it’s anxiety, is there anything else to try before utilizing sedation?

I’m just feeling a bit lost on what happened and what reasonable next steps are.

 

[geos]

I’m not a dentist, but I wonder if it would be an idea to visit a different dentist, explain them your previous experience that you couldn’t open your mouth and ask them what they would recommend.

 

[Gordon]

Which is it - am I having a physical reaction, or psychological? If it’s anxiety, is there anything else to try before utilizing sedation?

Definitely not physical. A different dentist would be a good idea.