• Dental Phobia Support

    Welcome! This is an online support group for anyone who is has a severe fear of the dentist or dental treatment. Please note that this is NOT a general dental problems or health anxiety forum! You can find a list of them here.

    Register now to access all the features of the forum.

Love's Journey

L

Loves

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 13, 2014
Messages
137
Location
Illinois
I haven't been to a dentist in a long time due to a bad experience with a mean dentist when i was a little kid. Finally i called and made my first appointment with the dentist for next Friday but I'm so scared of what he/she is going to say to me.

I keep trying to tell myself that positive outweighs the bad. Let me back up here I always had bad teeth most of my life and one day i lost one of mine and was afraid to smile hated talking and meeting new people before this i used to love it but now I am always afraid someone is looking at my teeth but I'm so scared. I know once I do this I will be happy but like i said i'm terribly afraid of dentist due to a bad experience when i was a kid.
 
Last edited:
Hi Loves,

How wonderful you made the appointment and opened a journal post about it.
Will you have the chance to talk with the dentist on the phone or even better in person, before the appointment?
It could make a great difference. In the end, the dental situation involves two persons, the dentist and the person. The interpersonal connection is the most crucial factor, especially when dealing with a fearful patient.
If you two will manage to build a trustful relationship, you will over come the past trauma, and you will have eventually a healthy beautiful smile, as you deserve.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask.
 
Thank you very much for the reply. Even though I'm just going for an X ray and etc
I am so still so nervous and hoping that they are nice I'm pretty embarrassed by my teeth but I keep telling myself to take deep breathes and not think about the positive

But also I'm worried about afterward to the discomfort I'll feel and everyone says just think of the beautiful smile, but honestly I am ashamed and embarrassed as I said
 
Last edited:
:)

Today I feel calm but I know that will change next week leading up to my appointment. But until then I am trying to do stuff to get my mind of it so I don't freak myself out to the point where i make myself sick.
This is why I watch soap Operas so I can take my mind of my anxiety and get lost in the story lines. Not only that I've wanted to be an actress for along time.

I remember being a little kid and having teeth pulled that Dentist was fine I liked him/her can't recall the dentist was a female or male I just remember talking about power rangers lol. Yes power rangers like I said I was a little had brought the yellow power ranger doll with me because I was so scared I also remember crying my eyes out because I didn't want to to go.

But I am adult now and I can't very well take a doll in there with me. :giggle: LOL

Also not only do I wish to be an actress I want to be comedian I have so many things I want to do and I'm just sick of being in pain. I happen to love to write and I have to say this is helping a lot. I know I am going to be a ball of nerves on Feb 20th my first appointment is Feb 21 Just glad I i didn't have to do it on my birthday Feb 1 lol but I also know I am going to be lurking on this board a lot the day before. Thank you to everyone who reads this

I feel I'm just rambling on now
 
I'm trying to stay positive and focused of course it'd a bummer to me having bad teeth at my age but oh well as long as i can get them fixed but I'm still freaked out one moment I'm calm the next my heart starts racing like crazy

I'm so tired of trying to tell people who don't understand. I'm starting to hate the phrase "It's normal! I just want to scream. I keep telling myself it's just an x ray why am i afraid? Of course I'm afraid because of what they'll say.

It's nice to have somewhere to go and no that I'm not alone in my fear.
 
Yesterday i went about my day okay I calmed down finally! Just watching my DVDs helps a lot to calm me down.

At the moment I'm rather annoyed more than anything else oh well I at least I am not freaked out. I'm for sure going get on here and tell about my first appointment reading through the other journals and journeys had helped me a lot to continue going through this

I keep asking myself why i am doing this? Then I remind myself of why. Oh well I am off now to continue watching the Call of The Wild I am so thankful this website was created!

Thank you to all the people who read these even if they don't reply I know it seems I am only saying the same thing over and over lol but as i said it helps to write my anxious feelings down
 
Hi Loves,

You're not alone in how you're feeling in every aspect of your experience. In my experience the over-thinking of the appointment beforehand is far worse than the reality of the appointment itself.

I was in a similar situation where I hadn't been to the dentist in a lot of years because of a bad experience I had as a child, too. I knew a lot of work needed doing, and while I still needed some teeth extraction and working on, it hasn't been anywhere hear as harrowing as I had imagined before I went. Tomorrow marks my fifth visit in as many weeks, and half way through the treatment I need doing.

You're making a huge step, and it will be worth it. Just keep thinking of the end result and how much happier you will be about it all. That is what I do. I will look forward to reading about your experience and journey.
 
Thanks, Yorkie! It sure does help to know that I am not alone in how i am feeling!
 
I do apologize for not writing in right away but I woke up with unbearable pain in my wrist I still have no idea why it hurts it huts to put pressure on it

I'm feeling a bit calm now I'm trying to write very carefully. I wish there were were places for people who fear the dentist I've come to realize that I have to be careful who i tell not that not everyone is sensitive about the fear. Honestly seems like this week is going by too slow and I just want this first appointment over with
 
I am feeling better today wrist wise also found another way to calm me down which is singing and playing my keyboard. Oh speaking of that I had a dream I was on Broadway LOL i woke up wondering what kind of dream that was. As long as I'm not dreaming of dentists I'm fine with that one. I have stopped freaking out as said i think but I'm still a bit nervous about the first appointment.

;DSo happy that i found this site and I'm able to write down my feelings and such without being judged and also knowing that i am not alone as i said before does help me to wanna continue on this journey
 
So Tomorrow is the appointment. My heart's racing I'm kind of nervous oh really freaking out about it still. I honestly just wish it were over with already but today I am gonna try get my mind off as well as I can. I want to go a head and back out but what good would that do me?

Well I am off to finish watching my soaps operas just wanted to update my journal. I'm going to update tomorrow after the appointment well see how much time I have before hand and write one but anyway I'm off for now
 
Hey Loves,

Stay calm, deep breaths, all that. Trust me, I was in your shoes just 6 weeks ago, scared to death about going to my first appointment. The thinking of it was worse than the reality of it. I am sure you'll find that. Afterwards was a massive sigh of relief but such a great feeling of having been. Don't over think it, try to stay busy. Nervousness and all those feelings are completely normal so don't be put off by those feelings.

You will be fine, I am sure of it. Looking forward to hearing how you get on and will be thinking of you.

Stay strong!
 
Hi,

Yorkie thanks so much for that. I just can't wait for it to be over with
 
Hi,

How did it go today? What treatment will you be having? Hope all was ok
 
So happy it's over with! I mentioned in another thread how I need 18 teeth extracted and cleaning good news is my bottom teeth are fine. They were so nice I even asked about my acid refleux and the dentist seemed impressed I knew about it.

He was gentle and very nice. As said I am glad that's over. They didn't give me an appointment when to go back but hopefully I'll have my beautiful smile soon! I am so much more positive now that i know what to expect although the thought of going to a another dentist for a cleaning freaks me out

Thanks so much for the support!
 
I am feeling rather hurt today. I am so sick of insensitive comments. i wish people would get how important this is for me or how serious is it to me. But as My mom said they can't possibly understand unless they were in the same situation.

The only people I feel get it aside from this place of course is my Mom my sister and my boyfriend. I know my sister and boyfriend can't really understand because they're not in this situation. Every time I start to feel proud of going a head going through this i get knocked down and not sure if i should continue being proud for even doing in the first place.

It seems kinda silly that I'm upset over a comment which I am not going to say what it is. I know this person meant no harm by it but being the sensitive women I am it has an affect on me. I guess I just need to write down what I was feeling
 
I am still feeling very frustrated to the point of crying. I can't seem to find a dentist who will do a cleaning for reasons I won't say. I still feeling like I am not being taken seriously at home about this or that no one really cares I just want to scream or shake something!

And at the same time I have people who are on my back and it's getting irritating to the point where I am about to snap at some people. All I want to do is being able to smile again without worrying about what others think and I just want this whole thing over with. It would be awesome if my family's attitude would change about this whole thing

I'm used to the insensitive comments but it would be nice if if for once they could and would start caring of how important this was! I just needed to vent about how frustrated I am!!!
 
So I have an appointment for a cleaning next Wednesday and I'm worried about getting a lecture. I wonder how long i
am going to have to wait to actually get my teeth fixed.
 
I would hate it if someone came through and lectured you for having the courage to go and have a cleaning session with them. I'd like to think most dentists and nurses, hygienists nowadays are a little more understanding and look at a persons on going treatment. Do they know you have got treatment awaiting and this is the first step in it? If not, maybe you should tell them so they understand.

Once you've had the clean do you have to call the dentist practice you visited to book in the rest of your treatment appointments?

I know it all seems quite daunting. And it may even feel like it's a long process for you, but just take every appointment one at a time and try not to think too far ahead, do what you need to do to get to where you want to be, and before you know it you'll already be there. Times passes, regardless.

I can't believe how quick it's gone for me, and I had a list of appointments as long as my arm to start with. Literally. Now I am down to my last 4. 3 throughout March and 1 in April to conclude the main treatment. After that it will be aftercare appointments and hopefully routine stuff. The best thing I did was just take it one at a time, concentrate only on that one and before I knew it 5 weeks had passed. Keep positive about it all, even when others try dragging you down. Remember you're doing this for YOU and YOUR wellbeing and happiness, anyone that wants to stand in the way of that, well, I would question their allegiance to you. Maybe, if it's close family, they simple don't understand how much this means to you and how sad it currently makes you and how potentially happy if COULD make you afterwards. Maybe a little heart-to-heart will help in that instance so they can truly understand.

I spoke with a couple of close family members, and most close family members now know, and it really is a relief they understand the impact of how it makes you feel.

The main thing is just don't give up.
 
Thank you but I s hard for me to talk to them. Its like they don't wan to hear it.oh and yes they do know
I guess I'm just paranoid.
 
Back
Top