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writergiril61
Member
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2015
- Messages
- 21
Yesterday, I had an appointment with my dentist for a routine check up and cleaning. Simple set of x-rays, quick look around by the dentist and then spent about 40 minutes with the hygienist to clean my teeth. Got my goody bag of toothpaste, toothbrush, and dental floss and I was good to go. Made another appointment for 6 months as I left.
Sounds like someone with no fear of dentists right? Wrong, not even close. This "routine" appointment was literally impossible 5 years ago. 5 years ago, just seeing a TV commercial for dentists was enough to set off a panic attack for me. Just getting me in the front door of a dentist office required heavy sedatives. Simply being in the same room with a dentist was a major accomplishment without her coming anywhere near me.
I was severely traumatized by two male dentists as a child and youth and the resulting severe dental phobia kept me out of the dentist's office for over 20 years.
And then I met Dr. Katy. An unconventional dentist specializing in working with dental phobia. My first two visits with this unique dentist was nothing more than conversation. She would later tell me I was the most terrified patient she had ever met in her 17 years of practice. She knew that the only way to get a look inside my mouth was going to require serious medication.
Long story short, it took two full years of sedatives and slowly building trust to address the disaster that was my teeth after two decades of no dental care. As trust grew, Dr. Katy began slowly lowering the medication until I was finally able to see her without being medicated.
Today, 5 years later, Dr. Katy is still my dentist and will be for as long as she is in practice. We both celebrate how far I have come in my recovery.
To all the precious people here, know that healing is possible. Believe me, it is.
Sounds like someone with no fear of dentists right? Wrong, not even close. This "routine" appointment was literally impossible 5 years ago. 5 years ago, just seeing a TV commercial for dentists was enough to set off a panic attack for me. Just getting me in the front door of a dentist office required heavy sedatives. Simply being in the same room with a dentist was a major accomplishment without her coming anywhere near me.
I was severely traumatized by two male dentists as a child and youth and the resulting severe dental phobia kept me out of the dentist's office for over 20 years.
And then I met Dr. Katy. An unconventional dentist specializing in working with dental phobia. My first two visits with this unique dentist was nothing more than conversation. She would later tell me I was the most terrified patient she had ever met in her 17 years of practice. She knew that the only way to get a look inside my mouth was going to require serious medication.
Long story short, it took two full years of sedatives and slowly building trust to address the disaster that was my teeth after two decades of no dental care. As trust grew, Dr. Katy began slowly lowering the medication until I was finally able to see her without being medicated.
Today, 5 years later, Dr. Katy is still my dentist and will be for as long as she is in practice. We both celebrate how far I have come in my recovery.
To all the precious people here, know that healing is possible. Believe me, it is.
