• Dental Phobia Support

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I will either be an inspiration or a cautionary tale

I have read this every day with bated breath, I am exhausted just from reading this. I am so pleased that you have got yourself out of pain and away from the idiot dentists that put you through this. I would have made the same decision that you made under these circumstances. I had a partial a while back at the lower front of my mouth and I have read on here that the bottom is a nightmare. I was really impressed with mine, I expected the worst from it but it was comfortable once I got the sore spots sorted which took a few appointments as they keep coming in different places. The dentist very easily removes the bit that is causing them from the plate. I could talk and eat as normal which surprised me too. I only had mine for 6 months while I healed before having a bridge put on to cover the gap. Sorry for mentioning the B word but some do work. I do sometimes get a bit of sensitivity and your thread had me wondering if I will have problems somewhere down the line. If I do I have decided that I will not go through what you have, I will just have it removed and live with a partial denture.

I do have two other bridges, one is over thirty years old, the other is a few years old, they have been okay so far and time will tell how much longer I have with them.

I wish you good luck and I hope you get your denture, and that your new dentist is good and looks after you properly.

All the best to you :clover::clover::clover::clover::clover::thumbsup::thumbsup::butterfly:
 
I have read this every day with bated breath, I am exhausted just from reading this. I am so pleased that you have got yourself out of pain and away from the idiot dentists that put you through this. I would have made the same decision that you made under these circumstances. I had a partial a while back at the lower front of my mouth and I have read on here that the bottom is a nightmare. I was really impressed with mine, I expected the worst from it but it was comfortable once I got the sore spots sorted which took a few appointments as they keep coming in different places. The dentist very easily removes the bit that is causing them from the plate. I could talk and eat as normal which surprised me too. I only had mine for 6 months while I healed before having a bridge put on to cover the gap. Sorry for mentioning the B word but some do work. I do sometimes get a bit of sensitivity and your thread had me wondering if I will have problems somewhere down the line. If I do I have decided that I will not go through what you have, I will just have it removed and live with a partial denture.

I do have two other bridges, one is over thirty years old, the other is a few years old, they have been okay so far and time will tell how much longer I have with them.

I wish you good luck and I hope you get your denture, and that your new dentist is good and looks after you properly.

All the best to you :clover::clover::clover::clover::clover::thumbsup::thumbsup::butterfly:


Thank you Carole
I am glad your bridges have worked out for you as intended. They are absolutely meant to last you years and years. Nobody should have to get 4 bridges in a year like was done to me. Sometimes they last a whole lifetime, other times they may need to be replaced once in your lifetime. Nobody should need it 4 times.
Having some minor sensitivity can be normal, it doesn’t mean you will necessarily have problems in the future. It is when the sensitivity is so severe that you can not even take a breath of air in your mouth or tolerate room temperature water that you know something is wrong. So many times I tried to explain that to the dentists I saw. That the word “sensitivity” did not adequately describe the excruciating pain caused by anything that wasn’t warm.
Thank you for telling me your partial worked out ok for you when you had it. I have heard both good and bad. I read on the support board about someone whose dentist wanted to crown her teeth for partials and I had never heard of that before. If they want to do that to me I will say no.
At least I will know that if a partial causes me any pain I can just take it off myself. I won’t have to go begging dentists to cut if off for me. :)
 
Thank you for sharing your story. I'm sorry all those things happened to you, and I send you best wishes for the future.
 
sad to say 2 things happened today and neither of them were good.
I just got my mail and received a letter from the attorney who said he would look into it for me......
He says it is not worth pursuing. Pretty much what the first lawyer said, even though it is malpractice there is not enough money in it to be worth his time.

and 2..
a statement from my insurance that shows they paid the balance of the bridge to that jerk who broke my tooth. Even though I called them over a month ago and told them that I do not have the bridge and that now that he broke my tooth a bridge is not even an option.

So this means that if I go to get a partial denture to replace my extracted teeth my insurance will pay nothing for it and I will be stuck with the entire cost on top of the 1200 I paid for the botched bridge.
 
The system really is very wrong here. It is time that some organisation worked for the good of the patient in these type of cases. I am so sorry that to add insult to injury you are so much out of pocket. In your shoes I don't think I would be able to trust another dentist so easy. You have an uphill struggle here but I really hope that you manage to find a good HONEST dentist to help you in the future.

I don't really know what else to say about all this but it really is a cautionary tale and one that I am glad you have told. It does show that we have instincts and to follow them.

What are you going to do now? :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::butterfly:
 
The system really is very wrong here. It is time that some organisation worked for the good of the patient in these type of cases. I am so sorry that to add insult to injury you are so much out of pocket. In your shoes I don't think I would be able to trust another dentist so easy. You have an uphill struggle here but I really hope that you manage to find a good HONEST dentist to help you in the future.

I don't really know what else to say about all this but it really is a cautionary tale and one that I am glad you have told. It does show that we have instincts and to follow them.

What are you going to do now? :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::butterfly:


I don’t really know what if anything I will do. I am so tired of trying to fight this. It’s exhausting, and depressing. I will still meet with the dentist that the oral surgeon recommended but I just don’t know if I will let him make me a partial or not.
I am really shocked that my insurance paid out on that claim after I told them I only had the bridge 8 days when it cracked and that he broke my tooth getting it off. They know I lost the tooth, they paid part of the cost of the extraction.
 
I would also be looking for another ins company. I don't know what it is like there but here they all seem to communicate with each other and that is something else that has a lot of room for improvement. I really do feel for you.

I hope the dentist the OS recommended works out for you. Something soon has to go right :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::butterfly:
 
Carole - here in the US, most of us who have dental insurance have it through our jobs (or, in rare cases the government) and we don't have much of a choice as to which company we are with. Due to federal laws, the dental insurance companies are not allowed to disclose patient information to another company (there may be exceptions to this, but it's not the rule).
 
It’s hard to explain but we have no choice of insurance available to us. Even if we wanted to pay out of pocket for aditional insurance we are not able to opt out of the insurance through my husband’s work. So they would continue to take money from his pay for the insurance they offer even if we purchased a different plan elsewhere. it is all tied together with health insurance.


I don’t know if the dentist the oral surgeon recommended to me even accepts my insurance but I will still meet with him either way. It’s not like the dentists in my insurance plan have been any prize LOL.

It’s been 4 weeks now since my extractions and I am eating a lot better now although steak is just impossible for me without molars.

I tried to see a doctor for something for the anxiety before my next appointment but they said since I have not been in so long I am no longer her patient. They said I could see a nurse practitioner so I agreed to that but when I went to my appointment I was not very comfortable with her. She looked like she just graduated and she was all gung ho about pap smears and breast exams which is not what I was there for so I refused. She rolled her eyes and was sarcastic with me, which is really hard for me to take at my age when someone who looks like a child is rude to me. I can not take rudeness and sarcasm from someone who looks younger than my son. I googled her when I got home and see she graduated a whole 2 years ago.

It’s a month til my dentist appointment. I will let you know how it goes with him.
 
You are really not having much luck with these care givers :o:o:o are you. I really hope this new dentist works out for you, something has to go right sometime soon :thumbsup:I find as I get older I have no patience for the rude and disrespectful. When they are young it just makes it worse, I feel like telling them off but of course we can't. Do they think we have lived and know nothing, a lot of them just want to read from the script of the day and us to just fall into line with their plans.

Sorry rant over but your experiences really are annoying and getting worse, I really feel for you :grouphug::grouphug::butterfly:
 
Well today was my big day. I went and had a cleaning and a consultation with the dentist that the oral surgeon recommended.

The hygienist was very nice and thank God she didn't look like a 12 year old. I was so relieved I actually said that out loud to her and she laughed. It was the most pain free cleaning I have ever had. But then the xrays were next and I gagged really bad. Instead of getting pissy with me she just did bite wings and said that is good enough for now and that I can have a panorex next time.
Then the dentist came in and I was glad that he didn't just graduate 5 minutes ago either lol. I would say he's in his 50s. He was very nice to me and not judgey or rude. He did not try to talk me into implants or anything that I didn't want. He said he can make me a partial denture without doing anything to my remaining teeth. He said we should wait a little longer for my gums to shrink before taking impressions so it will be a good fit. I have an appointment in January to do the impressions and the panorex xray. I'm only a little scared . I hate impressions so much and I know I'll gag.
I will let you know how it goes. Hopefully I finally have a good dentist.
 
Scaredy - It sounds like it went about as well as if could have gone. I'm so glad for that!!! I'm also so impressed that you've continued to persevere despite awful, awful experiences.
 
Scaredy - It sounds like it went about as well as if could have gone. I'm so glad for that!!! I'm also so impressed that you've continued to persevere despite awful, awful experiences.

Thank you. I am learning finally to speak up for myself. He actually said I could come in next month for the impressions, and I said nope, I want to enjoy the holidays, not spend them worrying about appointments So he said January is fine.
 
Only time will tell, but it sounds like he might be a keeper! Fingers crossed that he is and that you can finally get competent and compassionate dental care.
 
Only time will tell, but it sounds like he might be a keeper! Fingers crossed that he is and that you can finally get competent and compassionate dental care.


Hello fellow phobics. I hope everyone had a good holiday season. It’s been a while since I updated and I have started my denture adventure.
I did go back in January to have my impressions done. And after having been told by this dentist that he could make me a partial without doing ANYTHING at all to my remaining teeth I was not at all happy when he started grinding down 2 of them where the clasps will go. That was a major upset to me. Then he just left me to an assistant to do the impressions. This has worried me also because I am not sure it is legal in my state for an assistant to do impressions for bridges, crowns, or dentures. My top impression went ok, and that is the one I was most worried about because that is the one that can cause me to vomit. It was over quickly and I did not even gag. She had trouble with the bottom, it did not set properly and had to be redone 3 times. Probably because she used ice cold water. I remember thinking Thank God my teeth with the excruciating cold sensitivity are gone. The tray she used way also way too big and cut the corners of my mouth going in and coming out. so that was not fun. Learning what the cost will be was also not fun. I expected a partial would be around a thousand dollars or less and that my insurance would pay half. Well I was correct that my insurance will pay around 500 but the total cost is $1,425 with leaves me paying quite a bit more out of pocket than I expected. It won’t be long now until I go back to get my partial and I am nervous that it won’t fit right, because nothing else has so far. Hopefully I will be able to come back and say that it was worth it.
 
Hey Scaredy! Just stopping by. I'm sorry things are not going as you had hoped (or been told!) the would. Sending good thoughts and keeping fingers crossed that the partial is perfect!
 
It took me about 3 hours to read your entire story, and I have cried at least five times for you. I've had a couple of instances of very shoddy dental work, and refused to go back and changed dentists instead (after years of not going at all because I was afraid of more bad work and knowing that many dentists are just after your $'s), but it now seems like nothing compared to what you have had to endure. You are such an incredibly strong woman and your thread is definitely both an inspiration and a cautionary tale. I can't thank you enough for sharing your story with us all and I hope that you also gained some peace by putting it all down in writing.

I can't find a big enough hug icon here, but please know that I am passing along a HUGE one to you!
 
It took me about 3 hours to read your entire story, and I have cried at least five times for you. I've had a couple of instances of very shoddy dental work, and refused to go back and changed dentists instead (after years of not going at all because I was afraid of more bad work and knowing that many dentists are just after your $'s), but it now seems like nothing compared to what you have had to endure. You are such an incredibly strong woman and your thread is definitely both an inspiration and a cautionary tale. I can't thank you enough for sharing your story with us all and I hope that you also gained some peace by putting it all down in writing.

I can't find a big enough hug icon here, but please know that I am passing along a HUGE one to you!

Thank you very much for the hugs, much appreciated
I did go back and get my handy dandy new partial denture. It looks very much like real teeth. I am still trying to get used to it, but I do love that if it bothers me or gets sore I can take it off, unlike a bridge where I had to go begging dentists to cut it off for me.
It had to be adjusted a bit when I first got it, and the girl who adjusted it forgot to polish it after so that left a rough spot that irritated me and that food stuck to. I did have to go back again for another adjustment because it was hurting me to take it off and put it on where the clasp was so tight. It was also digging into my gums when I bite down hard. This time I saw a different person and she polished it as well so it’s much smoother now.
I am able to eat soft foods with it, harder things are still a pain and make it dig into my gums. I don’t know why because she had me bite down hard on cotton rolls to see if it dug into me anywhere and it felt fine, but chewing food is different than biting cotton rolls I guess. It could probably use some more adjusting but I am waiting to see if I just get used to it. It is kind of a pain in the ass to have to take it out every time I eat. You can’t brush your real teeth with it in and have to take it out to rinse it after every meal anyway.
Other than that it is not so bad, and I survived getting it, and nobody broke any more of my teeth to make it fit lol.

I hope everyone is doing well. We are dealing with the aftermath of the blizzard here and dreaming of summer!
 
Hey Scaredy! Just stopping by to say I'm still reading and still sending all sorts of good thoughts your way.
 
Hello Fearful and anyone still reading,

I hope everyone is doing well.
I ended up going back for another adjustment because the pain was still there if I tried to eat meat or anything chewy/crunchy. They were very nice to me, and they adjusted the bite some more. Although it was a bit better it still just wasn’t right.

I really didn’t want to go back again so I mostly gave up wearing it for a while.
In July we went away for a couple of weeks while my husband was on vacation. We rented a lakehouse and I didn’t think about teeth at all.
When we came home I googled a lot about my particular type of partial and saw a lot of people with similar complaints as mine. Apparently even though a flexible partial denture sounds great in theory it doesn’t work out that way for many people when it comes to chewing. So I had reached a point where I had paid all this money for something I was not likely to get a whole lot of use from. That was when I did something you are never supposed to do, and I sure would not recommend it to anyone but I did it and I am not sorry. I bought a file and some articulating paper like they dentist uses to check your bite. I checked it myself, not the way they check but the way I felt it should be checked... and then I took my new file and I went to work. Honestly I ground the hell out of it and I also adjusted the clasp. I can eat much better now although there will always be things that if I really want to eat them I’ll have to take the partial out. Aside from eating soft foods with it last night we ordered fried clams. you know how crunchy chewy they are. It hurt a little but nothing like before. I can chew pizza without pain, and crackers and anything crisp. bacon is still challenging but a very tender steak (think filet mignon lol) is not. I can crunch through salads and cereals and basically most of the foods I like. It doesn’t hurt to take it off or put it on. If I am really careful and only eat one a ta time I can even manage nuts.
So while I would never recommend anyone try to make your own adjustments plus if you break it you are screwed they won’t fix it if you break it) I don’t regret doing it.
So that’s it, my success story.
 
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