Haven't been in years, appt in two months! Still a lot of time to sit with my fears!

[GalacticGlitter]

Sorry if this is rambly!!!

So after not going to a dentist since my parents used to take me yeeears ago - think over a decade (and I stopped largely because that dentist started treating me rudely in my teenage years resulting in at least one visit where he performed the anasthesia poorly also I had braces - from a chain dentist and I think they are an AWFUL chain - and that made dental stuff traumatic during my teens) I finally, after my latest far back tooth lost the last of its filling (and feels like its mostly gone too, but it might also have grown in wrong and no one told me or my mom?), got my partner (I also have severe phone anxiety mostly wrt appointments and strangers) to call a dentist that I found that thankfully takes my state insurance to schedule me an appointment.

However despite reading about how nice this dentist is and all, the fact that its two months away makes me just... hope this tooth doesn't get any worse problems. It doesnt really hurt so knock on wood! The others that I have problems with, two furthest back as well that have only partially lost fillings, haven't given me trouble either for years but I do need them fixed too. Also I'm hoping it isn't as extensive or if it is that somehow we'll be able to handle the cost (because my state insurance will probably handle it to an extent, and that's great! But I'm worried it wont be enough). I've considered asking my family for financial help but only because I like to think they care about my health and have helped another of my siblings with dental cost in the past. But I'm not sure that I will as I'm already afraid to share this stuff with them in the first place for fear of judgment. I was also just a touch scared of the dentist judging me but this site helped alleviate that by reassuring me that my teeth are probably not as bad as they could be!

I'm really still in the end happy that I'm starting this "journey" of sorts, that my partner is supportive as heck and knows all of my fears and why and also at least wasn't as judgmental of my teeth as I was worried they'd be and gave me the push to do this. But I also still have this gap of time and need to distract myself from thinking about it!

I'm just happy to have somewhere to share this because I usually bottle this stuff up and kinda shut myself away from outside support and its not good for my mental health (I have general and social anxiety as it is lol). Thank you for reading!

 

[Dr. Daniel]

Dear GalacticGlitter,

Welcome to this forum and thank you for sharing your story with us. I guess that writing down your thread helped a bit to ventilate.
This waiting/anticipating period is not easy. I think there are two (opposite) approaches to deal with the stress:
1) distract your mind from thinking about it. That helps when dealing with low/medium levels of anxiety.
2) the exact opposite: actively do whatever can make your visit to the practice successful stress-wise. I would suggest visiting the dental practice several times without an appointment just to get used to the office and the waiting room, meeting the dentist in person outside the treatment room. It Must sound very challenging but if you do that your fear of getting into a new place and meeting new people will be lessened till your dental appointment.

Hope it makes sense.

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Hi Galacticglitter,

We are so glad you are hear to share your story and journey with us.. Sorry you went through that as a teen.. I myself had a horrific/childhood teen dental experiences. It is really hard to press through and try again after having bad childhood experiences.

Glad you are really supported by your partner, they sound great! and you will have support here too .. and lots of people who understand what you are going through you can vent to.

So glad you found a dentist and made the appt , that is a huge first step!!! The inbetween wait time can be hard.. Glad you have a good partner to lean on and listen and also us.. vent as much as you want and as many times as you get nervous, somedays are harder than others..

We are here for you!

 

[Dg6300]

Good luck! You’re going to make it. Post here as much as you like. Get it all out.

 

[thread]

Also sending you the best of luck and congratulations on having the courage to make the appointment and get the ball rolling toward getting things sorted out!

 

[Enarete]

Hi GalacticGlitter,

first of all, yes, your post is totally rambly - and gues what: this is what we all do here on the forum, we simply ramble about the stuff that worries us, because seeing a dentist is such a scary stressful thing!!! So feel free to write and vent as much as you can (btw. there was a time I thought I would get kicked out of this forum for writing long posts, lol)

I was sorry to read about your teen experiences. Having a rude dentist that causes you pain sounds nightmarish give yourself a pat on the back for your bravery so far and moving forward despite your fears. I loved the part about your partner being so understanding. Sharing about dental fear can be such a vulnerable place to be and being met with compassion, understanding and unconditional acceptance after disclosing such a personal thing is revealing and reassuring. Will your partner accompany you to your appointment?

Two months is a long time and it is normal to have all sorts of worries such as cost, or whether they will be nice. You are stepping into an unknown area and that can be scary. When it comes to cost, the best thing is to get an assessment first and plan things from there (I know, harder said than done).

All the best wishes, keep us posted and again, remember to celebrate all your achievements along the way (and scheduling is a huge one)