IV sedation for the first time ever next month - Terrified

[Freez12]

As the title says, next month I'm going to be sedated via IV. A little backstory...I, like many others here, am terrified of the dentist. It started when I was a kid and my dentist at the time polished my tooth so hard during a routine cleaning that it came out - and no, it wasn't loose. Fast forward, I neglected my dental hygiene for years and then took up the great hobby of drinking orange juice non stop and chewing on ice...as you can imagine, this made my teeth extremely brittle and cracked a few fillings. Went to a dentist and was clutching on to the chair for dear life during x-rays, told them not to perform the percussion test as my teeth were brittle and they did it anyway. Needless to say, my tooth was cracked. There are a few other bad experiences, but I'll spare those details. So that leaves me here. I'm 27 now and finally trying to face this head on before another dentist just recommends ripping all my teeth out and getting full mouth implants. Not a great thing to hear at 27. So after months of searching, I found a dentist that offers IV sedation. I had tried oral sedation, but it wasn't strong enough to really put me at ease. Unfortunately, my anxiety is so bad they could only clean half my mouth because I needed a deep cleaning and I'm terrified of needles so, you guessed it, they couldn't give me a shot.

So, I had some new x-rays taken in September, and my mouth is in rough shape. It's going to be a long road and I'm honestly terrified. So much so that I am literally counting down the days til the appointment and getting apprehensive already. The sedation they are going to give me is "moderate". The dentist is concerned with my weight because I'm almost at the threshold (360-370lbs), and though I've been trying to lose a couple pounds, it's hard. So that's another thing on my mind. Will I be sedated enough to not know what's going on? I'm also just scared of the IV in general. I've always been afraid of needles and avoided them like the plague. I've never had an IV before or been sedated in that way. I guess I'm scared of the unknown and literally assuming I'm going to be their first patient that stops breathing or dies in the dental chair. Maybe I'm catastrophizing, but I really am scared. I want to get this taken care of though, and I'm trying with all my might to tell myself that this is for the best and that the end result will be so much better. I won't have to worry so much about my teeth breaking, I'll be able to eat certain foods again, or chew on both sides of my mouth. I'll be able to smile again and not worry about people judging me for my broken teeth...I just want to be on the other side of this, and right now, I have no idea how I'm going to get there. If you've taken the time to read this far, I appreciate it. I need some advice on how to overcome these fears. What do you do to get through it? Let me know.

 

[letsconnect]

Hi @Freez12 and welcome! I'm sorry I can't help with a personal experience of IV sedation. However, we've had lots of people over the years posting about it here on the forum, so do some searching .

We've also got a few web pages on IV sedation. One has general information on IV sedation (which might answer your questions about needle phobia and IV, and the safety aspect), the other has lots of personal experiences of IV sedation. You can find them here:

IV Sedation Experiences

Read about IV sedation experiences which people have shared on Dental Fear Central over the years!

www.dentalfearcentral.org

IV Sedation

Find out all about IV dental sedation: what does it feel like, is it safe, and how do the sedation drugs midazolam and remimazolam differ?

www.dentalfearcentral.org

Well done for trying to face your fears and wishing you all the best with it!!

 

[oneby]

@Freez12 I was also terrified the first time I had IV sedation. It was all I could think of for a week before the procedure. I keep imagining things going wrong. I was disturbed at the idea of someone else forcing me to sleep. Just know, it's not unusual to be afraid of something like this if you've never had it before. But believe me, IV sedation is your friend. It's perfectly safe and routine. And it doesn't even feel like being put to sleep, it's more like just skipping ahead in time. One moment they're getting ready to do the procedure and then the next moment it's over. You have no perception of time passing. It's wonderful. (I can only speak from my own experience of course). As for the risk, IV sedation, as I understand it, is low risk, but of course, nothing in this world is without risk, including your drive to the dentist. So take a deep breath, know that this is all a common thing you are doing, that countless people do everyday, and you'll get through it.

 

[feelingbetter]

I was in your state almost a year ago. This site and people sharing their experiences helped enormously. I have had IV twice since then. The first was an extraction and I remember nothing at all. I wasn't confused afterwards as I had feared, just sleepy. The second time I was 'out' for 2 hours to have several things done, including an extraction. I remember the end, as the sedation was wearing off. But no pain at all apart from an aching jaw because of holding my mouth open for so long. I want to reassure you as everyone reassured me. Honestly, as I told the dentist, IV sedation is one of humanity's best inventions (she laughed). It's scary because it's new and the unknown. But remember, you are not asleep, you can breathe on your own, it's not a big deal.

Also in my experience dentists' skill at administering injections varies enormously. My current one says 'you will just feel some pressure,' and really, that's all it feels like (this was during another session - when I had IV I don't remember any of the anaesthetics going in).
Wishing you all the best with this - you will feel so great afterwards.