If I did not say I was nervous I would be lying

[wholewholesome]

Good evening. I wanted to get some advice regarding the situation I am in. Long story short its been 18 years since I have been to a dentist. This is mainly due to other members of my family having more urgent medical issues. I was a caregiver for my Grandparents. 1 had congestive heart failure and the other one several episodes of cancer. Money was tight so it went all toward their treatment plans and I just forgot about my own health. Fast forward now and I am now in a spot were I can start taking better care of myself. On Friday a filling that I have had since I was around 13 partially fell out. This is on a upper molar and it was a very large filling. My dentist at the time did me no favors and all I remember is pain while he drilled all the decay out and packed in a silver filling. He also pulled another molar on that side due to an abscess that I had off and until he pulled the tooth at 18. All I remember of that was passing out in the chair as he tried to remove the tooth instead of first releasing the pressure from my gums. I'm 37 now and have an appointment to get my broken filling and as I suspect numerous other cavities fixed on Wednesday. My work's insurance is not accepted at many of the local practices so I am having to opt for a dental college which doesn't help my fear. My biggest fear is being told i need several root canals which I cant afford and my insurance will only cover up to 2k in major repairs per year. What are my options and is this just overblown fear over something I should not worry about? I fear my only options are to walk away from the treatment and just make it work like I have for all these years or insist on getting the teeth pulled and deal with the gaps. No one offered an implant or bridge when I got my first tooth pulled so I feel this may be my best option.

If I have to get major work done in order to afford it I would have to walk away from another treatment program I am in to work on getting my bloodwork and weight down which is working wonderfully without all the new medications but its not cheap to say the least.

 

[Gordon]

US dentists I'm sure encounter your situation on a daily basis.
I'm sure the dentist you go and see will have some suggestions for dealing with the financial aspects for you, perhaps staging your treatment as your insurance cover allows or something like that.