I’m having a hard time

[CatLi]

Hey,

I’m having a really hard time. I need to see a dentist and I know that, I’ve just synced myself out so much. I had an adverse reaction to something completely unrelated years ago (Compazine/Benadryl) and now I’m scared of all medication. When I get the lidocaine shot, I have a panic attack, and sometimes I feel sleepy which makes me panic worse because I’m worried it means I’m on my way out.

So I’ve been supposed to go since July but cancelled and then decided I’d reevaluate during my cleaning in December but now I’m freaking out.

I’ve had pain in an old root canal for a long time. I’ve talked about it here before I think. Dentist told me it can’t be that tooth because I had a root canal there (never had the crown placed just a permanent filling on top). He also is nice enough, but laughs when he leaves to let me numb and comes back to find me sitting on the floor having a panic attack after the lidocaine injection. I guess he thinks it’s goofy and then I feel like a baby. I’m debating switching dentists as I think having to drive a hour is scaring myself, but I also worry the time it’ll take dentists will kill me.

The last two days I’ve felt off and today I feel sick. I have a headache. I’m nauseous. My nose feels stuffy and my throat hurts.
I don’t have a fever. I don’t think my limphnodes are swollen but I’m not sure. I don’t think my mouth is swollen on either side.

My jaw does hurt in a few places. My teeth hurt. If something presses on my cheek where the tooth is it hurts. I’ve noticed a few white bumps on my gums where it hurts but I can’t tell if they’re like canker sores because I keep touching them (one of the white spots looked like a red cut like thing earlier this week) or fistulas/abscesses. They’re not significantly raised up or anything. They’re kind of hard and they hurt to touch, but only the gum above my root canal hurts the rest of the time.
I can still eat on that spot though I prefer not to.

I feel stupid writing about it because I’ve seen dentists on here talk about how an abscess isn’t going to kill me even if it is one, but I’m scared my diabetes (which I’m not going to lie, is poorly managed right now because of my anxiety around the condition) means my immune system is shot. I also had COVID about a month ago so I worry that means something too. I’m just scared that if I start trying to switch dentists I’ll have no time and die.

I guess to summarize I’m worried that because I’m feeling sick it means there is an infection, that is spreading into sepsis or my brain and I’m going to die.

(I thought about trying to get a picture but I can’t even get a good look at it myself and sometimes can’t find it. The white spot on the root canal is closer to the part where the gum gives way to cheek and folds even though the gum hurts).

 

[Gordon]

I guess to summarize I’m worried that because I’m feeling sick it means there is an infection, that is spreading into sepsis or my brain and I’m going to die.

I'm almost getting fed up with saying this.

Oral bacteria are almost always fairly delicate wee beasties and are easy meat for any functioning immune system. If your immune system is so badly weakened that they are a problem, then a dental infection is the least of your worries, you're going to be desperately sick anyway.

In other words, no you don't have a spreading infection, it isn't going to turn into sepsis and you're not going to die from it.

Your issues really sound like they're outside of the scope of a dentist to help you with, perhaps a good therapist would be beneficial to help you get to the bottom of things and move on?