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Just Sad

G

Getting Anxious

Member
Joined
May 2, 2019
Messages
48
Location
New York
Maybe if I write this all down it will alleviate some of my anxiety. I suppose it will be quite lengthy and I don't expect many readers but I can at least get it out.

It all started back in January when I cracked a pre-molar on my right side. I was going on a month-long dream vacation with my husband of 40 years in 3 days. Always taking care of my teeth (I get a cleaning every 6 months) and having no major issues, I went to my dentist who x-rayed the tooth, said it didn't need a root canal and put a temp filling in which he said would hold until I came back and he could crown it. Later on the same day it fell out, I went back and he re-did it. He told me not to chew anything hard on that side. I had no pain at all-just being cautious about the tooth.

Fast forward a month- had a wonderful vacation -the temp filling stayed in until a few days before I got home, still no pain but at this point I'm super careful about chewing on that side so I continue favoring that tooth. The day I get home, I'm chewing something on the left and I crack a molar. OK- time to see my dentist and get these 2 teeth fixed up even though neither are hurting. I am in my 60's and have a lot of old fillings which is just how it is.

This is where my journey begins. I don't like to refer to it as a nightmare ,even though I sometimes would like to, because there are people who are suffering in many ways more than me.

Day 1 - Dentist says neither tooth needs root canal but do need crowns. Come back next week and we'll start.

Day 7- He says let's start with the molar and proceeds with the crown prep and temporary crown. I come home and after the numbness wears off I am in the worst pain I've ever felt in my mouth. Motrin, ice and a glass or 2 of wine dull it just enough to take the edge off.

Day 8 - A little better but still hurting.

Day 13- I call him up and say I'm uncomfortable and I'm told to take Motrin and rinse with salt water.

Day 18 - I call and say he has to see me. I go in and he says the bite is off and he shaves it and says it'll ( the first of many times to hear this) take a day or two to settle down".

Day 20 - He removes the temp (that still hurts) and shoves the permanent crown on which causes me to nearly hit the ceiling. Again, I hear the magic "settle" word. I ask him about a possible root canal and he says he doesn't think it needs it but he'll put the crown on with temporary cement just in case.

Day 24-27 -I am out of state for my young granddaughter's birthday and I can not bear to even touch the crown . I am living on Motrin. I call the endodontist and beg to be seen that day. They give me an appointment later that day giving me time to get home. He does the root canal right then and tells me it was infected with calcification and that it "never would have healed on it's own". He puts the crown back on with temp cement. I get a prescription for antibiotics but told to take it only if I run a fever or swelling. I am relieved this is over. I have to go back in 3 weeks to finish root canal.

Day 28 - The major pain is gone though I'm very sore. I don't take the antibiotics because I have no fever or swelling and I listen to what the doctor tells me.

Day 30- The right pre-molar is acting up and I'm getting pain- I call the dentist and he puts a temporary filling in (again) so I can wait until the other one heals to get that done. He also says that he's not sure if that one might need a root canal because the crack is deep but let's wait and see.

Day 32- It is my grandson's birthday and I go to the party feeling somewhat optimistic but not really great as the soreness around the gum line is still very painful and the tooth is very tender and the right tooth is starting to really hurt.

Day 34- The pre-molar is really bothering me so I call the endodontist for a consult. I am afraid to have my dentist attempt a crown without root canal after what I'm going through (still hurting) with the molar. They set me up for an appointment.

Day 37 - Endo says tooth is badly cracked and doesn't know if he can save it but he'll try. He does the first part of root canal and says he's optimistic it can be saved-crack didn't go to the root. Come back in 3 weeks to finish.

Day 38 - It is Easter weekend and I'm going to my son's house out of state for the weekend. I have two unfinished root canals, one on each side and I can't chew on either side. I do my best but am miserable.

Day 40- I start taking the antibiotics because both sides are hurting and I don't know what else to do - Motrin is doing nothing.

Day 45- Gum around molar bleeds a bit-call endodontist- he says come in, checks it out and prescribed Peridix Oral Rinse for 2 weeks.

Day 48 - Molar is still very sore and I go back to have root canal finished and he says it's not ready but as long as I'm here he'll finish the other side so I can shift chewing to that side and let the molar heal. He does, tells me to go back to the dentist in 2 days to get a post and core and come back to him in 2 weeks to finish up molar

Day 50 - Dentist says it's too early to do post and core because I'm still sore so come back next week.

Day 58- Have the post and core done, relatively painless. Come back in 2 weeks to get crown prep .

Day 59- Wake up in awful pain on the molar- thinking all the post and crown prep upset the unfinished root canal even though it's on the other side. Call endodontist office- they say they spoke to dentist and being that I was there yesterday, I should see him first and if he saw anything they would fit me in that day. He saw nothing on the molar the day before; what was he going to see now. Besides, I had some family who was counting on me that day (birth of a new grandchild )and these teeth were ruining my life enough. Endo said I would have to wait until my next appointment to have it checked by them.

Day 60- Post and core area is starting to hurt.

Day 65- Endodontist finished up molar, says it all looks good. As far as gums, he feels they should "settle" down now that root canal is done. He said the area was red and angry when he first saw it 5 weeks ago and now it's just pink and mad. He checks post and core and days it's a high bite , fixes it and says it will, you got it, settle down.

Days 66-70- Can't chew on molar as it is very sore and tender so start chewing on post and crown which dentist says is OK to do - that side starts hurting again. Molar is slowly healing as far as pressure goes but gums are still very sore. Don't know where to chew. Lost 8 pounds since this all started.

Day 71- Today- I have an appointment with the dentist tomorrow for the crown prep. I am hurting, afraid, mad and depressed. I feel like I will never be normal again. As you can see, I've gone through 2 months and special events feeling miserable. I am somewhat of a gourmet cook and my family enjoys my special creations. I have had a hard time cooking as even the thought of food hurts my teeth. I am sad. I plan on having a heart-to-heart with my dentist tomorrow though at this point I'm pessimistic about what can be done. I'm thinking extraction but fear that too. What if I never heal from that? I can't take any more Motrin- it's affecting my stomach.

Thank you to anyone who read through this. Again, I've heard writing it down helps. I will follow up, hopefully with a positive outcome.
 
Wow, what a mess. I hope your teeth do settle and you get some relief. I can sympathize. I have had ongoing dental issues on both sides for about a year now. It all started with a crown on one tooth. I have now lost three molars. I am only 39, and have always taken care of my teeth. It is frustrating to say the least. You don't realize how much you depend on your teeth until you can't chew on either side! I lost 10 lbs over the summer due to my teeth.

I have my first out of the country vacation in four weeks, and I am terrified that something is going to go wrong before the trip. Right now I have several things on "hold" that could easily escalate quickly. We have been saving for this trip for five years!
 
Wow, what a mess. I hope your teeth do settle and you get some relief. I can sympathize. I have had ongoing dental issues on both sides for about a year now. It all started with a crown on one tooth. I have now lost three molars. I am only 39, and have always taken care of my teeth. It is frustrating to say the least. You don't realize how much you depend on your teeth until you can't chew on either side! I lost 10 lbs over the summer due to my teeth.

I have my first out of the country vacation in four weeks, and I am terrified that something is going to go wrong before the trip. Right now I have several things on "hold" that could easily escalate quickly. We have been saving for this trip for five years!

I don't know if I'm the one to give encouragement but try to be positive. Even though I was miserable through all my events, I managed to get through and find some joy. I actually looked up ahead of time emergency dentists where I was travelling out of state - never had to make use of them. Sometimes if you have a plan, it helps reduce some anxiety. Get mad too- sometimes anger at the situation helps.
 
I don't know if I'm the one to give encouragement but try to be positive. Even though I was miserable through all my events, I managed to get through and find some joy. I actually looked up ahead of time emergency dentists where I was travelling out of state - never had to make use of them. Sometimes if you have a plan, it helps reduce some anxiety. Get mad too- sometimes anger at the situation helps.

I have been plenty mad, believe me. :p

We are travelling to an island in the Caribbean. I checked and there are no dentists. We did go ahead and buy insurance to cover medical costs (we have kids, and one is accident prone). I am hoping nothing major will happen. My endodontist prescribed antibiotics for me to take with me, just in case the infection flares up in my front tooth again. I also don't know how flying will affect my teeth. I know it is a myth about infection causing tremendous pain, but my dentist said that it can increase pain a little. We have four different flights.
 
Have my appointment in 2 hours and have so many questions for dentist and afraid I'll get no answers-didn't sleep well. I'm afraid I'll hear the old give it time. I'm scared.
 
Getting Anxious, I am really really sorry for your ordeal, this would make me really made and hopeless. One thing I was wondering reading your post- your endodontist seems to be helpful but it sounds like your dentist isn't really. What is the reason for you to stick with him/her?
 
Have my appointment in 2 hours and have so many questions for dentist and afraid I'll get no answers-didn't sleep well. I'm afraid I'll hear the old give it time. I'm scared.

I'm angry on your behalf. Not that it helps. I hope you got some answers from your dentist beyond 'let it settle'.
 
Just got back from my dentist. I swore I wasn't going to start crying but I did as soon as I got in. He actually was very sympathetic and I made it clear in-between sobs that I can't go on like this. He asked me which hurt more and I said the post and core and he said that shouldn't be. He x-rayed it and said it looked good and he was hoping he'd find something that he screwed up but didn't. He adjusted the bite again and also adjusted the bite on the other side (the permanent crown). He said every time the crown is taken on and off, a tiny change could affect the bite. He wants me to call him after I eat lunch today to see if the pain subsides even a bit as a result of the bite adjustment. He thinks it could be a microscopic crack in the tooth which would not show up on an x-Ray. Then, depending on how it feels, I'd have to call him again tomorrow. He will not crown it at all until everything settles. He said he can do some sort of cotton ball test to see if it's cracked (?). If I have no relief , he said I should have it extracted- it's gone on too long.

I have already decided that I will call today either way it goes after I eat but will not really have a good feeling about it- could feel better but might be wishful thinking on my part- until tomorrow. I probably will go for this cotton ball thing anyway. He says I'll have an answer by Thursday. I really feel at this point that I should get it out if some miracle doesn't happen with the bite adjustment. I can't take any more testing or treatments. Enough is enough. I still am cautiously optimistic about the molar.
 
Well, he did the cotton ball test and it doesn't appear to be cracked but could be a microscopic crack which can't be found. He did another bite adjustment and I am so confused right now that I called my PCP this morning and am seeing her this afternoon- can't deal with the anxiety and stress anymore. I know I have real issues with the teeth but I feel I am obsessing about every little twinge and not being optimistic; I change my mind multiple times a day about what to do: extract, 2nd opinion, wait it out, endodontist. I was on anxiety meds for 2 years and have been off them for a year. I was fine after I went off until this started. It might help if I get some help dealing with this to put me in a better frame of mindgoing forward. I am so sad.
 
I'm sorry things have been going poorly for you over the last couple of months. I hope your PCP was able to offer some guidance. Just know you have support here for when you are feeling down.
 
Sol, thanks for the kind words. My PCP did give me a script for lexapro which I started last night. She was very sympathetic, understood my situation and said the meds should get me out of the dumps and in a better place to handle all this. I know it takes a while to kick in and I'm trying very hard to be optimistic and get back on track.
 
I hope it helps ! Glad she understood and helped you!
 
Thanks-I so want to feel better and enjoy life again!
 
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