I Can Handle Hours Of Tattoo Work But Im Terrified Of Going Back And Afraid Of Dying

[HELPME]

I Can Handle Hours Of Tattoo Work But Im Terrified Of Going Back And Afraid Of Dying

Im 32 years old, I am healthy in every which way, I work out every day, Im very good looking everything else is at its best but I have let my teeth go to crap! This hidden devil haunts me every night, I have 6 broken teeth, I havent been too the dentist in years. I fall asleep at night only to wake up with a bloody mouth and have to rinse with scope too kill my breath. I chew gum constantly because my breath is so bad. Its killing my confidence because I never had braces and now want to get them cause I can afford them, my teeth are getting yellow but worse, I have the fear of dying. My dad and my good friend got infected from their teeth and had to have open heart surgery, I am afraid the same will happen from the neglect, I dont like too take meds or go under, I can handle getting novicane but its the feeling that makes me cause a panic attack. I can sit through hours of Tattoo work getting done on my sleeve but I cannot get myself to go to the dentist. I want to soo bad but I cannot. What do I do?

 

[brit]

Read the Common Fears section and try to identify what exactly you are afraid of as once you know this, it throws up possible solutions.

Despite not minding tattoo work which I couldn't do in a million years by the way...maybe it is the nature of dental work being in the mouth which means that you do fear pain in that area (dental pain during treatment can be avoided though). Maybe it's an invasion of space thing and the fact that your oral cavity is blocked makes it harder to communicate.

 

[mghstl]

Re: I Can Handle Hours Of Tattoo Work But Im Terrified Of Going Back And Afraid Of Dying

Breathe deep. Then read what others here have to say. You have a fear shared by TONS of folks. It is OK...if you can handle tattoos, you can handle your issues with your teeth. I'll bet you trust your tattoo artist completely; you just need to find a dentist/oral artist that you trust in the same way. Search the internet in your area, find a few that sound like they can address your issues, contact them (I did everything via email...couldn't even make a phone call!), then meet with them. Most oral artists will happily do nothing but talk to you at first. When you find the one you trust, then you can decide when to open your mouth. You can do this...maybe not tomorrow, but sooner than you imagine. Everyone is here for you...if I could do it, you can too!

 

[TerrifiedWoman]

Re: I Can Handle Hours Of Tattoo Work But Im Terrified Of Going Back And Afraid Of Dying

I got a tattoo in May. Rather have dental work. LOL! Seriously, things have improved so much over the years. I avoided the dentist for decades..until my only alternative was dentures. Don't make my mistake. Dentures are FAR better than the awful teeth I had..but believe me when I say I wish I had gone to the dentist while my teeth were still fixable.

 

[ButterfliesInHerEyes]

Re: I Can Handle Hours Of Tattoo Work But Im Terrified Of Going Back And Afraid Of Dying

I can relate and I feel your frustration. I was in labour for 4 days (yes 4!), and I'd rather do that again than go to the dentist... which is why I'm having such a hell of a time getting through each step necessary to get a whole mouth of implants.

What might help you is what I'm doing.... taking it VERY slowly, desensitizing myself at the dental office so that I can get more comfortable with everything there: sights, sounds, smells, etc.

I wish I had "The Answer" for you, but if I had THAT, I'd use it myself!

Good luck.

 

[kitkat]

Re: I Can Handle Hours Of Tattoo Work But Im Terrified Of Going Back And Afraid Of Dying

Interesting point HELPME! I have also sat through tattoo work and found the process much less stressful than dental work and would feel much less nervous about getting another one than I do about dental work. Although, the process of receiving a tattoo was actually much more painful/uncomfortable than dental work and a dentist is far more concerned with my comfort level than a tattoo artist lol. Like the others have said, I would focus on what it is that you fear, perhaps it's not that you aren't concerned about pain but rather the type of pain, location of pain, etc, invasion of personal space, maybe it's loss of control (this is more the case with me). Once you identify exactly what it is you fear the easier it will be to seek out what qualities you want in a dental office and staff to make your experience more comfortable. For instance, since I have trouble with lack of control, having a stop signal and having the dentist explain what is happening and what to expect throughout the procedure helps me tremendously. Best of Luck!

Kitkat