• Dental Phobia Support

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I made an appt.

A

aholt23

Junior member
Joined
Jul 29, 2008
Messages
4
Hi everyone,

I'm new here. A little history? I'm like all of you, extremely terrified of the dentist. I have panic attacks, I cry, I do the nausea thing when I think about it...all of it. About four years ago I was told I needed my wisdoms out and if I went two years, I'd need a root canal. Now, I have two back teeth on the top which have broken, and wisdoms that are a pain in the butt.

I just had a baby in May and had a C-section. So now I've decided I have to make the call and see a dentist. Unfortunately, my insurance doesn't cover any dentist that deals with phobia, so I am going to see a regular dentist. However, I am inquisitive and direct in nature, and fully intend to express all of my concerns, whether he wants to hear them or not.

My appt is in two days. My biggest fear is horrible news that I'll have to have ridiculous, outrageous work done. I pray it's only a few fillings and the extraction of my two bad teeth and my wisdoms. Everyone says "if you can have a baby, you can go to the dentist." Um hello, no. I'd have 10 babies, be cut open like a fish on an operating table alert as day, WAY before I'd voluntarily go to the dentist.

Needless to say, this is a HUGE step for me and I could really use some support. I'm sure I'll freak out and cry, as I've already done that today just making the appt and plans. Hopefully I can do this.

Thanks for listening.
 
Hi and :welcome: to the board!

Well done for taking the first step and making the appointment!

I am a (recovering?) dental phobic too and always used to say I'd rather have my appendix or tonsils out again before going to the dentist(haven't got any experience with childbirth, so can't comment on that).

Last November an abscessed back molar gave me so much pain, that I finally gave in to my husband and let him take me to the dentist after four days. I was told I needed a root canal :scared: , and after some searching on the internet, I found this board.

I am so glad I did; the wonderful people and dentists on here have helped me so much!

I have since been through two root canals and wisdom teeth surgery.

You will be fine. You have already taken the first step by making the appointment, and we will be with you every step of the way for support.

Just think how proud you will be of yourself when it's all done!

Thinking of you:grouphug:

Katx
 
I'd like to add my :welcome: and congratulate you on the new baby!! (And of course for getting to this point!) You sound ready to get this taken care of and you've come to the right place to help get you though it. I can honestly say I don't think I would have made that appt. if I hadn't spent weeks and weeks lurking on this site trying to gather up the courage. After I did it was wonderful to come back here and have my new friends encourage me through each new step. I hope that we can make the difference for you too!!

I'm sorry to hear that you are going through the crying and "freaking out," since I've been there too I know it's not much fun. Sometimes I think it's better to let it all out though, it's difficult to hold in your emotions and can sometimes lead to an even bigger reaction down the road.

I like the fact that you are direct and are ready to talk to the dentist about your concerns. I wasn't able to and I think that might have made things harder. Because you know what you want and can communicate it easily I'm sure that you will know whether or not the dentist you chose is the right person. A dentist doesn't necessarily have to deal with phobics to be a kind, compassionate individual and I hope :thumbsup: that you find someone who meets your needs.

Good luck as you move forward and please let us know how you are doing!!

:cheers:
 
Oh! Very nice! Gratz!

I feel just like you! I've also just made my first appointment and I'm going next week! I also have panic attacks, cries etc.

Glad that you have a husband there to help you! My fiancé helps me lots even though I can tell he is really tired of me just falling down crying helplessly - he can't really do anything but to hold me. But it do helps to be held for a while... Is your husband following you to the first appointment?

Lots of hugs!
 
Everyone says "if you can have a baby, you can go to the dentist." Um hello, no. I'd have 10 babies, be cut open like a fish on an operating table alert as day, WAY before I'd voluntarily go to the dentist.

Needless to say, this is a HUGE step for me and I could really use some support. I'm sure I'll freak out and cry, as I've already done that today just making the appt and plans. Hopefully I can do this.

Well done on making the appointment - I'm in the same kind of boat as you are, I guess - couple of broken teeth, wisdoms need removing, couple of fillings etc... so I do sympathise! I also have a baby - but she's nearly 8 months old! Seriously though, making an appointment is a huuuuuuge step and you've done well to get there - I cried while I was on the phone making my appointments, so I understand that too... as for the "if you can have a baby.." comment, boy do I hate that. I've had 2 natural births, with only a couple of puffs of gas and air, and trust me, I would rather go without any pain relief and give birth to 10 more babies (my second was 8lb 14oz, too - not small!) than go to the dentist. It's a daft comment to make, and big raspberries to anyone who thinks otherwise :p

In 2 days time, this step will be over, and you'll not be worrying about the what-if's; you'll know what work needs to be done, and hopefully that'll ease some of the anxiety, it might not be as bad as you imagine :) I have to wait 8 days for my "what work needs to be done" appointment, so I'll be interested in what experience you have... good luck :grouphug:
 
Thanks so much to everyone who has offered their support. I really do greatly appreciate it.

As it is the day before my appt, I am starting to get a little nervous. But, too, the pain is more apparent now that I'm not trying to avoid it. It's constant and made it's presence known.

I kick myself for not having these things taken care of sooner, but I suppose we all do that. And I guess that's why I've made the first step to having the situation fixed. I'd rather have whatever done now, versus waiting MORE time and having to have even WORSE procedures done.

I pray that my news tomorrow will be somewhat good. As for my husband being there, no he can not attend this appt with me. With a new baby, we're working as much as possible to afford the expenses. He, too, has my phobia though, so I don't know how much help he could really be. He's next on the list of facing the fear. I can only hope that our daughter will not be plagued with such paralyzing fear of the dentist. I hope I can be strong enough to start setting a good example for oral hygeine.

Thanks again. I look forward to having you all for support, and supporting everyone else, through our road to recovery.
 
Just wanted to wish you good luck for tomorrow!:thumbsup:

It's totally normal to be nervous; I felt really sick the day before my appointment. I even thought about cancelling, but I knew I would only be delaying the inevitable and it would be even worse in the long run.

You can do it!

Best of luck

Katx
 
Best of luck tomorrow! Will be thinking of you and sending positive thoughts your way!!

:grouphug:
 
Thanks for all the support! I am SO happy to report that I got GREAT news (for the situation)!

First, the dentist and the assistant and EVERYONE in the office was SUPER nice! :) They knew I was terrified. I filled out my papers, and someone came out and said "when you're ready, so am I!" She took me back and as soon as we got in the room she said "I know you're scared, it's ok, I promise, we're just doing x-rays today." Then we started chatting about my fears, she wanted to know what got me to this point and what not. She sympathized with me and told me she had a bunch of gynecological surgeries in her life and is terrified to go to the gyno each year because it's the fear of "What will they find this time!" It was SOOO comforting to have someone really talk to me and understand. She did the x-rays and said she'd get the dentist.

He came in and introduced himself and was extremely nice. He looked me right in the eye and comforted me. After the exam, and during, they explained all the technical terms so that I wasn't in the chair hearing "bonding, occlusion" etc, and freaking out due to the unknown. I'm happy to report I only cried while telling the assistant my previous experiences. Then, by the time I talked to the dentist I was calm and able to explicitly voice my concerns.

So the news is that I have to get my wisdom teeth removed (which I already knew). And also, while at the oral surgeon for that procedure, they will remove my two broken bad teeth. They are luckily the last teeth on each side of the top row. Therefore, I won't really need impants or anything. So for extractions, I'll need my four wisdoms removed (three of which are impacted) and the two bad teeth. In total, 6 extractions, 4 being wisdoms. That's great news!!! I will be under GA so I won't even know. Then, I will need to get a DEEP cleaning for the tartar build up. He noticed the tartar and then the assistant and I informed him that I just had my baby in May. He said the tartar is a natural occurence in pregnancy as your mouth's PH changes and causes problems. That made me feel better. Then, I will need quite a few minor fillings. And that's ALL!!! :jump:

Though he doesn't do sedation procedures, he is willing to give me Valum (sp?) for the anxiety.

I am so happy and walked out with a great big smile on my face. Hopefully, I will be able to keep up with regular appts after having these procedures done and be on a road to a FULL dental recovery, which will cure my phobia!!!

I couldn't be happier. Thank you so much for the support! Though I got GREAT news, I am still sticking around to keep you guys company on the forum. You have all been a TREMENDOUS help just over a couple of days.

Thank you so much! :):):):):)
 
That is GREAT news!!!! :jump: :jump: How wonderful for you that all of the staff was so kind and supportive. It really makes a difference doesn't it? :) Give yourself a huge pat on the back for getting through it!!

I had all my work done under GA and it really was a piece of cake! I was worried about it tremendously beforehand but it was pretty amazing to be talking one minute and the next you are waking up to the words, "you did great, everything is finished." That's the best feeling in the world! ;D

Glad to hear you plan on sticking around. I look forward to hearing updates on how everything is going!

:cheers: :party:
Pam
 
Great news! Congratulations! So you'll have GA for the extractions and Valium for the easier stuff? Trust me, Valium is great! You'll be fine with that.
 

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