M
milkbottles9
Junior member
- Joined
- Dec 21, 2021
- Messages
- 1
- Location
- UK
Hi all
All my life I’ve had reasonably good teeth. A couple of fillings here and there but nothing too serious.
A few years back whilst at university I definitely neglected my teeth and as a result, I had a pretty large cavity on one of my back molars. Being the irresponsible young adult, I ignored it until the pain was unbearable. I went to the dentist who I believe put in a temporary dressing - he said a root canal wasn’t necessary at the time.
Fast forward a few years later, the temporary dressing had fallen out once or twice and I had gone back to the dentist to have it repaired but again the dentist held off on completing the procedure.
Just before COVID hit, I went back to the dentist again. He referred me to an endodontist but due to the pandemic, I never heard back. I had no issues with the tooth other than some sensitivity, so it wasn’t a priority for me so I never followed up.
A few months ago I started having flare ups with the tooth. Periods of intense pain which have increased in frequency over time. I finally plucked up the courage this morning to ring the dentist to book a check up.
I was triaged and she said to come in for a review and we can take it from there. She said it’s likely to have deteriorated quite significantly which could result in extraction. I am absolutely petrified of this - of both the pain and the inevitable cost with an implant (I’m only 25 and don’t want a gaping hole in my mouth).
It’s really frustrating as on the whole I take really good care of my teeth but this is the one issue they never seems to be resolved. I am anxious about the appointment in a few days time as I’m worried about the embarrassment too.
Please could someone provide some reassurance - I would really appreciate it!
All my life I’ve had reasonably good teeth. A couple of fillings here and there but nothing too serious.
A few years back whilst at university I definitely neglected my teeth and as a result, I had a pretty large cavity on one of my back molars. Being the irresponsible young adult, I ignored it until the pain was unbearable. I went to the dentist who I believe put in a temporary dressing - he said a root canal wasn’t necessary at the time.
Fast forward a few years later, the temporary dressing had fallen out once or twice and I had gone back to the dentist to have it repaired but again the dentist held off on completing the procedure.
Just before COVID hit, I went back to the dentist again. He referred me to an endodontist but due to the pandemic, I never heard back. I had no issues with the tooth other than some sensitivity, so it wasn’t a priority for me so I never followed up.
A few months ago I started having flare ups with the tooth. Periods of intense pain which have increased in frequency over time. I finally plucked up the courage this morning to ring the dentist to book a check up.
I was triaged and she said to come in for a review and we can take it from there. She said it’s likely to have deteriorated quite significantly which could result in extraction. I am absolutely petrified of this - of both the pain and the inevitable cost with an implant (I’m only 25 and don’t want a gaping hole in my mouth).
It’s really frustrating as on the whole I take really good care of my teeth but this is the one issue they never seems to be resolved. I am anxious about the appointment in a few days time as I’m worried about the embarrassment too.
Please could someone provide some reassurance - I would really appreciate it!
