Kicking myself for not going sooner.

[Comebackjay]

Hey All, new to this forum but I've been fearing going to the dentist for a good 20 years. Had a few bad experiences as a kid and my parents set a bad impression on me when it came to going to a dentist. So unfortunately I tried my best to brush and avoid the dentist at all cost. However even with brushing twice a day it's not enough to keep up with dental care and I found my teeth gathering calculus and the edges turning black (very embarrassing). Still I avoided going and put if off.

Recently I've been thinking about my old experiences and how much times have changed. Reviews have changed, no longer do you just willy nilly go to a dentist and hope it works out. There are now reviews, if that guys sucks people will say something. Tools have changed, noticed this with a lot of postings. Yes those steel scrap hooks are still around but it's not at all like it used to be. Big Advances. And I think just general knowledge and patient understanding have come a long way.

Point is I made an appointment at the beginning of April. Had a consultation and felt more comfortable, I came back for a cleaning which was uncomfortable and unnerving but I made it through. Then came back for a crown, that was fairly scary but I did it and yes it was bad but it had to be done. I still have a scaling in a couple weeks, then another scaling. And I have a few cavities here and there. But I think crown might take literally take the crown for the worst I'll see... who knows.

I just wish I went sooner, it was bad but never embarrassing. They never embarrassed me or made me feel like an idiot. All that was in my head. And now my I have some bad recession in my lower gums but it's better that a build up of calculus I suppose. Maybe gum graphing can make me look better. And honestly I refuse to look at the I know it's sad but one day I'll work of the courage.

Again just wish I did it sooner. I hope this helps some of you holding back.

 

[Warman2019]

Well done for finally doing it, try not to leave it so long next time and i'm sure you will be fine

 

[Dg6300]

Well done. Such courage.

Enjoy!

 

[Jen615]

My experience is very similar to yours-I did not go to the dentist for literally thirty years (severely traumatized by my childhood dentist). I had a deep cleaning, a few fillings and two crowns, and I MAY be looking at gum grafts before I get (gulp!) braces to correct a small open bite. You are doing great to get in and get the work done. And isn't it nice to get all that calculus off?

 

[Enarete]

Thank you for sharing your story, and well done on getting on track with dental health.

Seeing a dentist for the very first time after a while takes a huge portion of courage and mental energy. For the most people it takes a lot of time and processing to make that first step and I believe this is a necessary part of the process that can‘t get skipped. It is always easy to find it easy afterwards..

All the best wishes, well done again and keep us posted

 

[VVD]

I know what are you talking about! Im here waiting to go to my first appoitment in 20 years in 2 hrs. Im so scare, because my teeths are really bad, I learned how to deal with pain all these years. So I believe if I can go today it would be great and hoping for a no judgement lecture.

 

[Warman2019]

I know what are you talking about! Im here waiting to go to my first appoitment in 20 years in 2 hrs. Im so scare, because my teeths are really bad, I learned how to deal with pain all these years. So I believe if I can go today it would be great and hoping for a no judgement lecture.

dentists dont normally lecture anymore its more of a learning curve and explain a little bit of how it probably went wrong and how t best move forward.. hope it goes well and please keep us updated

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Comeback Jay,

Wow.. very brave and so impressive all you have done stepping into the dental arena after so many years and bad experiences as a child. I too had awful childhood /teen experiences which caused avoidance. Thankfully there really are amazing and caring dentists who can help us through our fears and anxieties and yes, even the tools and injectin methods are so much better.!! REally job well done !! Some great positive momentum for you!!

 

[Comebackjay]

Just did my deep cleaning today on my right side. Went very smoothly, was uncomfortable a couple times and it pinched here and there but overall much easier than the crown!

I have final crown scheduled for next week and the week after I have my other deep cleaning. Then a ton of fillings.. yippy. Can't see the filling being that bad after the crown.

What's really nice is not having any pain during the night or morning. Sleeping my deep and better.

 

[krlovesherkids777]

So glad for you and some real positivie momentum here!!! Love you don't have that pain!!!

 

[Dg6300]

Enjoy!

 

[VVD]

Wohooo ! No more pain. That is awesome.

 

[kitkat]

Just did my deep cleaning today on my right side. Went very smoothly, was uncomfortable a couple times and it pinched here and there but overall much easier than the crown!

I have final crown scheduled for next week and the week after I have my other deep cleaning. Then a ton of fillings.. yippy. Can't see the filling being that bad after the crown.

What's really nice is not having any pain during the night or morning. Sleeping my deep and better.

Hooray! Yes, you are correct that fillings are much easier than crowns (at least in my experience). Crown preps are a very lengthy process.

 

[CourageAndBraveryASAP]

So inspiring, thank you for sharing your story!

 

[Comebackjay]

Hey Guys, following up on the latest procedure. I got my final crown impression done today. Went in thinking it was going to be a quick 30 minute easy thing but they had to recess my gums. Didn't know that going in and up to this point the pain hasn't been that bad. Had one moment when doing the first crown impression that was a sharp pain but recessing the gums was / still is very painful. We got through it just fine nothing a shot of Novocaine couldn't fix but the aftermath is very sensitive.

Still have another deep clean next week. Follow up with the final crown the week after.

Then fillings galore which I'm optimistic about after doing the crown.

Side note... I've been avoiding looking at my teeth. But they made me look for my crown coloring and my upper teeth look great. I'm so happy right now. Happiness will get my through this pain.

Off to make some hot salt water mouthwash.. yum.

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Sounds like you are doing amazing with all this!!

 

[Dg6300]

Bravo. Such courage. Well done. Hang in there my friend!

 

[Comebackjay]

Today I had my final deep cleaning. I was not looking forward to it since my mouth is still sensitive since my last visit. The sound is still unnerving but I got through most of it like a champ. That is until it his my sensitive tooth/gums which felt like a needle was plunged into my mouth. Actually that's not fair, I've had a couple needles go into my mouth recently and they didn't hurt. This was very sharp and my guess is it'll result in a root canal at some point. They did give me a fair warning that it might be the case.

Honestly I'm nervous about a root canal but I hear it's not that bad. It can't be worse than the crown. Right?

 

[kitkat]

Hi,
Congrats on getting through your final deep cleaning appointment! Root canals have a bad reputation but I had my first one a couple of years ago and found it to be much easier than I expected. From the patient’s perspective it’s not much different than a really long filling and typically there is a dental dam which is kind of nice because there is a barrier to keep stuff out of your mouth. I was extremely numb (and I consider myself difficult to get numb) and I honestly felt nothing more than some vibration. I wasn’t sedated but they did give me a pair of virtual glasses and ear buds to watch a movie for distraction. I didn’t think that I would be able to focus on the movie at all but surprisingly I was able to relax and not pay much attention to what was going on in my mouth besides occasional glances at tools now and then. A few times I even got caught up in the movie and had to stop myself from chuckling at funny scenes. I’ve actually had more stressful filling appointments.

 

[Dg6300]

Well done!