How many different dentists have you seen?

[Nicci]

I just looked on my dentists website and I guess my dentist (who I've built trust with over the last 2 years) has gone.

No one told me so I've just emailed to see who they've put me with now.. (presumably her replacement - who doesn't seem that experienced)


Ive worked out that in the last 16 years or so I've tried to get my teeth right I've seen 10 dentists, in 6 different practices.

Dentist #1 Great, built trust.. they left
Dentist #2 harshly told me off when I felt pain;
Dentist #3 was subsequently founds - she also couldn't get me numb.
Dentist #4 -I was referred to
Great fella. Got me numb. I built up trust. Then the practise decided he would only work on complex cases so I got passed on, only finding out I had a new dentist on the day of my appointment (that did wonders for my nerves and anxiety....)
Dentist #5. Built up trust. She left for maternity leave and never came back. Again, only found out on the day of my appointment.
Dentist #6, he had no patience and damaged some teeth.
Dentist #7. Great - built up trust. She left. Again, only found out on the day of my appointment. This time I followed to her new practice. Eventually she then only did management..
Dentist #8, her replacement. I trusted him, but then he left decay behind during a filling..

Dentist #9 (Private). Found in the hopes they would have more time for me and would discuss replacing missing teeth. Except he didn't listen one bit. He was only interested in pushing aesthetic treatments.
Dentist #10 (Also private). Current dentist. Apparently gone.

I mean seriously. I appreciate people have lives, but why doesn't the practice at least let patients know you've been passed on.


I've no idea who my dentist is anymore.

I'm so worn down by seeing so many different people, it's hard enough to cope with the anxiety as it is.

 

[LittleLynnie]

I had one dentist from the ages of 15 - 55, and another one since then (10 years now).

I can't imagine having the experience that you've had!

 

[Thephilsblogbar]

Let see, because I been under NHS dentist, I have kept the dental practice, must have seen at least 20 dentists, current one around 10 years , I am included the one which I saw when I had braces and emergencies, plus when my dentist been unavailable like on holiday or illness, I don't like cancelling appointments.

 

[Anne2021]

@Nicci This is an interesting question. Let's see...not counting dentists where I just went for a consult or a second opinion but didn't go back, because I did that a LOT...

Dentist #1: childhood dentist, no phobia yet, trusted him, liked him, had a lot of fillings and wisdom teeth extracted and don't remember any problems with him

Dentist #2: saw for a couple of years, only work he did for me was one crown; other than that he always said my teeth were in great shape; then I realized the crown he did was too tight on one side and loose on the other

Dentist #3: went to him to get an opinion about the crown and he said previous dentist needed to redo it; he called that dentist and told him so and the previous dentist re-did the crown; after he advocated for me like that, I stayed with him, but then he found 3-4 fillings needed every time I went-11 fillings in 2.5 years; also odd that the assistant would constantly be praising him during appointments like a commercial; this is when I first started getting scared in the chair and feeling like the numbing was suffocating me-other traumatic things were also going on in my life in general however; I still wonder if he did fillings I didn't need

Dentist #4: biological dentist (who was also a naturopath); I went here when I was experiencing mysterious unsolvable health issues and read something about amalgam fillings being bad for your health; went to him to have all of my old dental work redone due to desperation-many fillings and ended up with five crowns, including redoing the one from before because he used different materials - It did NOT solve my health problems and I strongly WISH I HAD NOT DONE IT; he was an hour away so after that I started looking for a new dentist again in my city

Dentist #5: decent guy, nice, but I left when I had a tooth that he thought needed a root canal because it was so deep; I shopped around and found a couple of dentists that agreed with him and a couple of dentists who were willing to try the deep filling; I picked one of those who would do the filling and stayed with him

Dentist #6: my favorite one besides my childhood dentist-was with him for five years (he bought me two more years with the deep filling before that tooth abscessed and I had it extracted); everyone in the community who knows him says he was the best; knowledgeable, kind, skilled, and part-time faculty at the dental college; he retired 15 months ago and now I'm flailing trying to figure out who to work with; I am shopping for a new one and have mostly settled on one who shared an office with him, but I don't trust her like I trusted him and I'm not sure she doesn't think I'm ridiculous

I've really seen a lot more than that, but I haven't stayed more than a visit or two and wouldn't let any of the others do any work. I have lost eight teeth besides my wisdom teeth and used two oral surgeons for seven of those.

 

[anxiousann]

Oh my goodness, this is my experience too!
In the Uk, north Scotland.
I swear this practice changes out their entire rota of dentists every couple of years, I've been registered with them for over 15 years now, but have gone through several dentists with no prior warning to them leaving.

Initially it was the practice owner who I never saw again (but that might have been just as well as he was up on a Medical Malpractice charge as it turned out), then passed to another dentist who was indifferent to my fears. But she was proficient and a decent dentist. Saw her for around 3 years, when she left I wasn't informed.
Then passed to a Greek dentist, and I kid you not, he had faked his death for insurance purposes in England and goodness only knows what background checking was done but I still have a copy of the apology letter the practice sent saying "this in no way affected the treatment given", how could they say that, they didn't even know who he was!

Suddenly all the dentists left the practice and the replacement I got was Russian, she was fantastic. Very kind and gentle. I was for the first time relaxed in the dental chair and kept up regular appointments.
Sadly she left the practice and probably the country. Not informed, only found out when I went for a check up.
The latest batch at this practice are all Nigerian. Again I was not notified my dentist had left. So far it has been a disaster as I wrote in another thread.
It's a constant revolving door and does nothing for your anxiety when without warning the person you were used to is replaced. This might sound bad but when the person you are trying to communicate with does not have English as their first language that can also cause issues, the nurse at my last appointment was struggling to understand the dentists instructions and I'm sure that's why the end colour of my filling was off by several shades.

Such is the state of NHS dentistry I've resorted to paying for treatment instead but that was no guarantee of a better job, in fact this latest treatment has been a colossal mess. I just want to find a nice dentist who is skilled and who doesn't vanish after 2 years.

 

[Featherblade2007]

I’ve seen too many to name and I think it might re traumatise me trying to list them all! I’ve seen a few recently because one second opinion led me down a different path which cascaded into a whole string of different opinions. At a guess, I’d say 12, both NHS and privately. My latest endontist even said to me that it would be helpful for me to have one dentist that I trusted (in what I felt was a rather condescending manner). YES I agree - if only I think the profession doesn’t realise that we dental phobes are often excellent repeat customers because once we build trust we stick with the same person!

 

[krlovesherkids777]

@Nicci ,, agh. I'm so sorry you got such a bad stretch of as I call it "switcheroos".. its happened to me too much and usually never ended great..though sometimes surprised me. But Its so hard when you have someone you are just gaining trust with you like, they are great, then no notice and they are gone or they switch it up.. Well... I encourage you , you have a choice.. the 2nd to last switcheroo I had , I was seeing my angel dentist I call him loved him so much ,, very dear, no pain, funny,, just a lovely guy. anyways,, all the sudden the place calls me telling me my appt was with another dentist ( one I previously had awful experience with ) nope.. I asked for my records and went on my way. ended up finding my favorite dentist that left and went somewhere else. eventually he did move on again and put me with the owner of the practice he was with... I was so afraid to switch but I did see this dentist in and around the office and he was always friendly and kind. and seemed very unintimidating.. so I gave him a shot and , he is also a very dear dentist to me. totally different personality and way of doing things. but it helped me grow to learn the switch to someone safe.. not that I wanted to.. I still miss my angel dentist .. Is there a way you might find some of the ones you liked?

I too have had multiple dentists.. too many to count.. A few I didn't last past the first appt and some escaped using the bathroom trick.. several very abusive in many ways. I didn't realize yet how bad they were. until I finally found one at 30 that was kind and compassionate.. I only could see her for less than a year and my abusive ex made me change.. I ended up having 3 other wonderful life changing dentists along the way. and due to moving just starting with another a year ago who seems very kind and non shaming. It really would be nice if the good ones could stay in one place so you could keep them

 

[qb2023]

I've had 4. One was private as I had to sign up during covid (I also saw hygienist at that practice). Left there because I couldn't afford it and the hygienist was missing bits on my clean. Second dentist NHS tried to pull my filling out by hand as refused to put the drill on (post covid). A third dentist NHS didn't understand English unfortunately and messed my filling up. Her biggest concern was how pretty I could be if I had white straight teeth. The next NHS dentist couldn't speak very good English and filled a very big filling that should have just been an extraction. The current dentist treats me like a child. I'm only 37 and that is between the ages of I'd say 30 and now.

 

[letsconnect]

@anxiousann just saw this:

Such is the state of NHS dentistry I've resorted to paying for treatment instead but that was no guarantee of a better job, in fact this latest treatment has been a colossal mess. I just want to find a nice dentist who is skilled and who doesn't vanish after 2 years.

We've put together some tips for finding a nice and skilled dentist on these pages, hopefully, they're helpful:

How to find a dentist for nervous patients

Discover how to find a dentist who is good with nervous, scared or phobic patients - and who to avoid!

www.dentalfearcentral.org

How to find a high-quality dentist

How do you know if a dentist really cares about the quality of their work? Here is what to look for and expect from a high-quality dentist.

www.dentalfearcentral.org

 

[la_vie_en_rose]

I honestly don't even KNOW. I had a childhood dentist who made me a phonic, then I was taken to so many from about age 7 to age 10/11. But they all kind of blend together. Then I ended to trying out a few dentists every time I felt like I had a cavity or was in pain. I want to say 15 to 20, honestly. I have spent my life wondering whether the dentist here are just awful or if I'm the awful one.

 

[Latwigg]

This is such a familiar story to mine.

dentist 1: childhood dentist. He was okay but his staff were awful and he did overlook some injury related damage to my teeth for many years until it was a big problem and then he attempted a root canal and botched it. The specialist I saw after said there was no way he should have missed the damage. The botched root canal failed, lost that tooth and the one next to it and a ton of my dental phobia comes from that. Oh and thanks in part to that dentist I’ve had a flipper since my twenties that I am super ashamed of.

Dentist 2. Same office different dentist. She was AWFUL. Super condescending and shamey. So much so that I didn’t go back to the dentist for 3 years.

Dentist 3 was amazing. I saw him after that three year gap because I had terrible pain in my gums behind my back molar. I went in determined not to have a full check up but he was so kind and understanding that he convinced me to get treatment. Took a few tries to get a good hygienist there but the dentist made me keep going back. Then he left and I kept having a new dentist every visit and I hated that. I don’t like having to relive all the past trauma every time.

Dentist 4 had a 2 or so year gap after that until I was pregnant and developed severe swelling in my gums that scared the crap out of me. He was also very kind and his hygienist was great and they had massage chairs. But his office staff weren’t great and messed up some billing and then I didn’t go for so long I was too ashamed to go back.

Dentist 5 finally worked up the courage to go after a gap but they were terrible all around.

Dentist 6 went after finding a hold in a tooth. She was kind but also kind of old school and then she retired. Was turned off the new dentist by condescending office staff

Dentist 7 another gap. Was also kind and understanding. Totally fell apart in our first meeting. Possibly the first dentist and office to fully get the level of anxiety but then I had a filling appointment that took a seriously long time and I started to feel like I couldn’t breathe. Then Covid happened. Went back one more time but now it’s been so long I am again too ashamed to go back.

Dentist 8 will be today. I have a broken corner on my molar and I’m freaking out. My heart is racing right now. Dentist comes recommended and I already let them know about the anxiety. Expecting again to bawl at the appointment. I hope it goes okay. I’m so tired of this cycle.

 

[MountainMama]

I don’t know how many I have had. Most of mine have been different due to me moving around, though. I did switch dentists a few times due to them not understanding my fear or difficulty getting numb.
My childhood dentist was the one that caused most of my fears. The one I had as my first on my own insurance did an even worse job and seriously messed up several teeth.
I had one that I really liked and she left to start her own practice too far away for me to drive. Her partner at the office that stayed was not sympathetic at all.
I was very lucky to have a great dentist at my last home. I hated to leave him, but my new one seems great also. I haven’t had to have serious work done yet, thankfully, but he filled cavities on my kids and was so kind and patient with them. He even did breathing exercises with them first to calm them down. He volunteers as a dentist to patients with special needs. He is older and told us that he wants to retire but can’t find anyone suitable to take over his practice.