I have an upcoming appointment thanks to your stories and encouragement

[lawlcano]

Hi everyone. First off, I'm brand spanking new here. I haven't been to the dentist in 17 years, and was avoiding going at all costs. I didn't have the best dental hygiene growing up, but it's gotten better and better as time has gone on and my teeth have gotten worse and worse. To the point that I brush after every time I eat anything now.

I went to the dentist plenty growing up. My parents had me at 6 month cleanings like clockwork. But even then I wasn't the most thorough with my brushing. I had frequent cavities and fillings as a child and teen. I always dreaded the dentist as a kid, but never panicked or anything when I was there. It was just unpleasant.

In 1997 when I was 15, I moved across the country. Somehow, along the way, my parents forgot to schedule a dentist appointment for me. Being a 15-year-old, I sure as hell wasn't going to remind them! So I went without seeing the dentist for 5 years. Then my mother died suddenly in 2002. She was the one who dealt with all the doctor/dentist appointments, so that was the last hope in someone actually pressuring me to see a dentist. That was 2002, and I still haven't seen a dentist in 2014. A few years ago I was eating a pack of combos at work on break, and one of them broke my back molar apart. Over subsequent days, pieces of the tooth kept breaking apart until there was none of it left above the gum line. But it never hurt or caused me any physical discomfort, so I decided to ignore it out of my general phobia of seeing the dentist.

I have a few visible signs of tooth decay, and can feel several cavities with my tongue. I have visible tooth decay at the base of one of my lateral incisors and a large cavity in the other, making smiling fully extremely embarrassing. I also noticed a line of decay across the gum line of one of my other molars recently. That's when I started brushing after every meal.

A few months ago I was eating some crunchy chips and a tiny piece of one of my molars chipped away. I was immediately petrified with fear, and didn't know what to do. I eventually calmed down, and decided it wasn't bad enough, so I would see a dentist soon, but not just yet.

Cut to a week ago, and I was chewing a piece of gum. It went to the "bad" side of my mouth with the chipped molar without me thinking about it, and the next thing I know I feel myself chewing on pieces of tooth. The gum had been sticky enough to pull out a part of my chipped tooth! Yet another wave of panic went through me, and this time I decided enough was enough. I just signed up with the Affordable Care Act recently, and my insurance went live May 1st. So I've made a dentist appointment for tomorrow (Tuesday, May 6th), and I'm dreading it. I never was one for sedation dentistry. I've never been knocked out and am freaked out by the idea. The same with nitrous. I was always simply numbed for all my dental work, so that's what I'll be opting for this time as well. But it's been 17 years and I'm not looking forward to having people prodding in my mouth after so much time.

I'm extremely nervous, but also fed up with everything to the point that I keep thinking about once I get work done and everything filled, how much better I'll feel. And that has me almost looking forward to it. Almost. I'm looking forward to the work being done I guess. But I'm not so much looking forward to the process of having it done!

Reading everything on these forums has helped me tremendously. I had been reading here off and on for a few months prior to my major tooth problems that resulted in my dentist appointment. And you all have done more than you can know. I'll come to visit the forums and see there are over 50 people viewing the forum at the same time as me. Aside from the actual posts themselves, seeing those numbers helps. Just knowing you're not alone. Knowing other people feel the same way that you do. Knowing you can get through it pretty much pain-free. Having it reinforced over and over that the fear is worse than the pain itself (we all know it to be true but never think of it that way moments prior to being called back to the dreaded chair). Thank you all so much.

I'm still going to be nervous, but I'll be channeling all you other nervous people while I'm there. Strength in numbers!

 

[carole]

Hi WELCOME to the forum

I know I am a bit late with the welcome here but I just wanted to give you the welcome.

Now I will stop babbling on, I am wishing you GOOD LUCK

You will find that dentistry has changed since you last made a visit, I am sat here with bated breath waiting to read how well things went for you.

All the best to you

 

[lawlcano]

Thanks so much, Carole! My appointment is in an hour and a half! Nervous and looking forward to having it over lol I'll let you know how things go!

 

[carole]

How did it go?

 

[lawlcano]

Well, I'm back from my first appointment! Had to stand at a machine that spun around my head for a full Xray, then go into a separate room to do individual Xrays. Then it was on to the chair to wait...the dentist chair has an LCD TV with DirecTV going and they give you a remote! I can handle this, I thought lol

The Xray tech brought my Xrays up on the TV and showed me different things.

I have 3 wisdom teeth! The top tooth that broke apart years ago was a wisdom tooth. They need to extract the rest of it. The other two wisdom teeth are on the bottom, sideways and impacted, but not causing any pain. He said I really needed to be put to sleep to have them out. I told him I was freaked out by the idea of being put out, and he said the teeth weren't rotting or anything so extraction wasn't necessary if I didn't want to do them.

Other than that, 9 cavities. He said he was quite surprised my teeth were in such good shape after 17 years of no dental work.

I made all my other appointments. I have two hygiene appointments first. One next week, the other the week after. Then I have 3 filling appointments. Then the extraction last. 6 more appointments total. And they're all around a week apart. I'm not looking forward to the rest of May going into June, but once this work is done I'll have it behind me and a new lease on the life of my teeth!

All-in-all, everyone was very friendly and helpful. No one judged me by my lack of visiting a dentist in 17 years. They were slightly surprised at the fact. But I asked them out of curiosity if they get that a lot. And they said they get people who haven't been in 20 or 30 years fairly frequently, it's a common occurrence.

Thank you everyone for all the great stories and words of encouragement. This is a great resource.

 

[lawlcano]

Thank you for your words of support and encouragement, Carole! I sincerely appreciate it What kind of work have you had done? Sorry if I'm prying too much, I don't know the etiquette is here. I'm just curious what you've gone through. Have you beaten the fear of dentistry?

 

[carole]

Hi I am glad your appointment went so well for you, it sounds like you have found a really good dentist and practice. When you go to your appointments ask them if you could arrange a stop signal before they start in case you need a break for a couple of minutes. I am sure they will oblige.

Your teeth will feel so much better after the first appointment you will be surprised, and you will be like a little kid again inside and feel so proud of yourself. I give myself a badge, a lolly and a gold star and a massive pat on the back of my head even now.

You can ask me anything, there are no hard and set rules as such other than to be civil to each other on here and not judge others, that is about it.

The treatment I have had in just over the last couple of years is a broken tooth removed, two RCT's and a re-treat of one of the root canals. Also had a crown placed on one of the RCT's and a bridge put on the other one to cover the gap left my the extraction.
I was at the dentist every month for most of last year getting the work done and corrected from a previous dentist that neglected my teeth. I am on a 'see you in 6 months' break at the moment and return in September for a check-up appointment. I had infections to deal with one which was left for over 20 months by a previous dentist, this is what caused my tooth to break.

I am 56 and have had a phobia of the dentist all my life, I have found dentists and have settled down to just feeling terror and fear at the thought of going, then they have left and I have had to find another one. I just accepted that this was the normal pattern of things and that I would never get over the fear of going. I have with the help of three very nice and good dentists now got over the fear of having work done. The dentist I see now I am very happy with and can go to appointments without losing sleep or being crippled with fear to see her. I have no worries about her doing any treatment on me because everything I have had done has been totally pain-free. The three dentists I have seen over the last couple of years have all said my comfort is the most important thing and that if I need them to stop they will, and they have been good to their word. So I now go quite relaxed, a new experience for me and I like it

I do have a thread for you to have a look if you wish, there is a lot of silly things in there because sometimes I and some others on here have had silly half hours or hours, so you might want to skip a lot of it.

I wish you GOOD LUCK for your next appointment

I am sure you will be fine now and try not to stress as much now, but I know you will. Things are strange and unknown at the moment but you will gain strength and courage as you go along with your treatment. Well done for making it to your first appointment


If I can do this anyone can all the best to you