S
Seaside
Junior member
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2019
- Messages
- 16
- Location
- Bexhill
After going round in circles getting worked up with anxiety over the state of my teeth for too long now I thought it might help to start a journal of what im experiencing.
The start of my dental phobia comes from a couple of seperate accidents at school between age 8 - 11 where i broke 2 upper front teeth.
The schools werent particularly sympathetic in either of these 2 strangely similar accidents considering i had just fallen over face forwards and smashed my teeth on the ground.
After the first accident my mum was called to the school and we were taken straight to a local dentist for the tooth to be looked at.
The dentist was very unsympathetic and quite agressive.
I think i was then referred to another dentist for treatment, not sure why.
Eventially I ended up having the broken tooth capped.
This was the start of the cap repeatedly breaking and having to go and get it replaced.
Then several years later the 2nd accident happened so now i had 2 broken front teeth.
Again i was rushed to a local dentist and received similarly poor treatment as after the first accident.
I was referered to a clinic that used gas and air sedation.
To start with this was alright but then i think i must have panicked about something, i cant remember what now.
Anyway it was decided that the treatment i needed would be too difficult and take too long. Not that i new what the treatment was, i thought i was having my broken teeth sorted out but the dentists seemed to have added other things on to this.
I was reffered to our local hospital for treatment under anaesthetic.
This went ahead and i had my 2 front teeth removed and impressions taken for a partial denture.
After that i went a few years without visiting a dentist.
I think my parents were both frightened to go to the dentist themselves as they didnt take me apart from for the treatment related to these accidents.
My next encounter at about 15 was when the partial denture broke and i had a choice of having 2 missing teeth or get a new impression done for a replacement to be made.
I went to the dentist despite having developed anxiety and fear from previous treatment.
This seemed to make things worse as they didnt have the correct size casts and i couldnt get them in my mouth.
So i ended up with no front teeth for the remainder of school and college etc into adulthood.
I have tried to go to dentists a few times in the years since but havent been able to go through with it.
Now some 30 years on at 45 i have got to the point where i really need to get some treatment.
I have an abscess on my top gum above a front tooth. It came up just over 6 weeks ago. Initially this was painful and i went to my doctors surgery and was prescribed a weeks course of amoxicillin.
This took away the pain and seemed to clear up the abscess.
I have been using diluted oregano oil on my gum where the abscess was and doing salt water rinses.
Today the abscess has reappeared with puss coming out.
My health anxiety has gone through the roof and im scared i have a bad infection going on in my gum.
I have called local dentists around the area to try and get an appointment with no luck.
Because i'm not registered with a dentist they wont give me an emergency appointment.
I went back to my doctors surgery to see if they thought i needed more antibiotics.
The doctor checked inside my mouth and said that the abscess didnt look bad at the moment and because i dont have any pain with it she didnt think it was an emergency and wouldnt be able to prescribe more antibiotics.
She advised to try and find a dentist and get an appointment next week.
I explained that i have a terrible dental phobia and havent been to a dentist since childhood.
She said not to rush and try to get an emergency appointment but find a dentist who is experienced with anxious patients and who will really look after me from now on.
So now all i have to do is get through the weekend trying not to worry, then look for a dentist and take the plunge with going to see them.
Im going to end this extremely long rant now and congratulations to anyone who has read through to the end.
The start of my dental phobia comes from a couple of seperate accidents at school between age 8 - 11 where i broke 2 upper front teeth.
The schools werent particularly sympathetic in either of these 2 strangely similar accidents considering i had just fallen over face forwards and smashed my teeth on the ground.
After the first accident my mum was called to the school and we were taken straight to a local dentist for the tooth to be looked at.
The dentist was very unsympathetic and quite agressive.
I think i was then referred to another dentist for treatment, not sure why.
Eventially I ended up having the broken tooth capped.
This was the start of the cap repeatedly breaking and having to go and get it replaced.
Then several years later the 2nd accident happened so now i had 2 broken front teeth.
Again i was rushed to a local dentist and received similarly poor treatment as after the first accident.
I was referered to a clinic that used gas and air sedation.
To start with this was alright but then i think i must have panicked about something, i cant remember what now.
Anyway it was decided that the treatment i needed would be too difficult and take too long. Not that i new what the treatment was, i thought i was having my broken teeth sorted out but the dentists seemed to have added other things on to this.
I was reffered to our local hospital for treatment under anaesthetic.
This went ahead and i had my 2 front teeth removed and impressions taken for a partial denture.
After that i went a few years without visiting a dentist.
I think my parents were both frightened to go to the dentist themselves as they didnt take me apart from for the treatment related to these accidents.
My next encounter at about 15 was when the partial denture broke and i had a choice of having 2 missing teeth or get a new impression done for a replacement to be made.
I went to the dentist despite having developed anxiety and fear from previous treatment.
This seemed to make things worse as they didnt have the correct size casts and i couldnt get them in my mouth.
So i ended up with no front teeth for the remainder of school and college etc into adulthood.
I have tried to go to dentists a few times in the years since but havent been able to go through with it.
Now some 30 years on at 45 i have got to the point where i really need to get some treatment.
I have an abscess on my top gum above a front tooth. It came up just over 6 weeks ago. Initially this was painful and i went to my doctors surgery and was prescribed a weeks course of amoxicillin.
This took away the pain and seemed to clear up the abscess.
I have been using diluted oregano oil on my gum where the abscess was and doing salt water rinses.
Today the abscess has reappeared with puss coming out.
My health anxiety has gone through the roof and im scared i have a bad infection going on in my gum.
I have called local dentists around the area to try and get an appointment with no luck.
Because i'm not registered with a dentist they wont give me an emergency appointment.
I went back to my doctors surgery to see if they thought i needed more antibiotics.
The doctor checked inside my mouth and said that the abscess didnt look bad at the moment and because i dont have any pain with it she didnt think it was an emergency and wouldnt be able to prescribe more antibiotics.
She advised to try and find a dentist and get an appointment next week.
I explained that i have a terrible dental phobia and havent been to a dentist since childhood.
She said not to rush and try to get an emergency appointment but find a dentist who is experienced with anxious patients and who will really look after me from now on.
So now all i have to do is get through the weekend trying not to worry, then look for a dentist and take the plunge with going to see them.
Im going to end this extremely long rant now and congratulations to anyone who has read through to the end.