Molar extraction - IV Sedation - full blown panic

[Mrsmurray23]

@Akal you’re right - it is taking over my life and I can’t stop worrying about everything. Once one thing starts to calm down in my mind something else pops in and then I fixate on that. My consult with the oral surgeon is in 40 minutes and I’m hoping he’s gonna say “it’s no big deal at all and perfectly safe” and I can feel more peace scheduling the appt!

Thank you for your encouragement, I have read your story and comments quite a few times when I’m feeling extra anxious. Knowing that you hopped out of the chair 3 times over a year and then the IV sedation totally changed everything for you brings me a lot of peace.

I’m also somewhat relieved to hear you have Gerd and had no issues. I am just totally worried about something going terribly wrong I’m making everything out to be a potential life threatening consequence. I also know my stress has caused a flair up in my Gerd and ulcer so I’m doing it to myself with all this over thinking and stressing. I’m so ready to have this behind me and can’t wait to be on the other side of it telling you all how silly I feel for being so anxious!

 

[oneby]

Hope you will update us after you see the oral surgeon and let us know what's going on. I'm going to see my dentist in an hour with a problem - could be an abscess and result in a root canal or extraction, but I'm hoping for a cyst. Nothing like that heavy weight we feel while waiting for things like this - waiting for the news. Hope your news is good.

 

[Mrsmurray23]

@oneby just got home! So the oral surgeon isn’t the one I thought I was going to see, but the other at the practice, however the visit went well. He is ex military so he’s not warm and fuzzy but he’s been doing this over 20yrs and he was training residents for most of those years so I feel like I can trust him. He agreed to do the midazolam only sedation (hesitantly lol he was like “but we just have such better drugs that can help the versed”) and he also prescribed me some reglin? To help with emptying my stomach and handling stomach acid before the procedure. He said I’ll be snoozing, he will make sure I’m out - so I guess that’s good…but also scary. I’m not crying right so that’s a plus…and I scheduled my appt for January 22nd at 11:40am. He said that I’ll have a dental assistant, the surgeon, an RN nurse and just an additional assistant in the room - so that’s 4 well trained people to take care of me. Pray for me!

 

[oneby]

Mrsmurray23, Sounds like your appointment went about as well as it could. The surgeon seems very accommodating to your needs and confident that he will get you through it. I also sense that your nerves have been calmed a bit by all that he said. Good job, try to permit yourself to take a break from the worry if you can, you've earned it. When the time comes for the procedure, it's very good that you'll be snoozing because you will hardly even know that you ever went to sleep. It's more like they just hit a skip-time button and suddenly it's over. It's really an amazing thing. Well time for me to take off and go see what my dentist says and what I might be facing.

 

[Mrsmurray23]

@oneby best of luck! Let me know how your appt goes

 

[Akal]

@Mrsmurray23 glad to hear the consult went well and you have an earlier appointment!

That’s so interesting because my dentist who performed the extraction is also ex military - he was super funny and nice but his demeanor was confident and direct. That’s exactly what I needed. Other dentists were so kind and gentle but it almost made it worse.

To have a dentist that’s like “oh please it’s a walk in the park. let’s get it done and get you outta here!” Ended up being perfect for me.

Yeah you are SET! 4 trained professionals including an RN…your safer in that situation then lying in your own bed at night without having a procedure done haha

 

[Mrsmurray23]

@Akal I am nervous but I am confident it’s going to go well. He said he typically starts with 2mg of midazolam and then ends up around 4, not really ever going over 5mg, so I’m hoping that will be the perfect amount to safely have me sedated and I have no complications!!

It was kind of funny that this oral surgeon actually has the same last name as my mom and my maiden name, which for some weird reason brings me a little comfort lol

 

[oneby]

@Mrsmurray23m, Glad to hear you are confident. I know you're still nervous but you're sounding so much better now than you have in previous posts. As for the results of my dentist visit today - whatever my problem is (a bump on my gums with some minor pain) it's a mystery for now. Dentist took a close look, tapped around on the teeth (there's no tooth pain or sensitivity) he did an x-ray, and he just doesn't see anything amiss. Nothing wrong with the teeth or roots, no sign of infection or abscess, etc. The plan now is to see how it goes for a couple of weeks. He said it might resolve itself and then I can cancel the next appointment, if not, he will do a CT scan to see if anything shows up that way. He said sometimes it takes time for a dental problem to reveal itself on scans but at least we're on top of it.

 

[Mrsmurray23]

@oneby I am feeling better today, my emotions feel more leveled out than they have been. I do find that I do better in the afternoon/evenings and usually the most intense panic is right when I wake up. I think I’m also feeling restless and defeated with these teeth issues so I feel ready for it to be resolved.

I’m glad your issue seems to be a “non-issue” as of now! Here is to hoping that bump resolved itself and you’re able to just skip the next appt all together!

 

[Mrsmurray23]

@Akal that’s kind of how I felt too with him, he’s just like “I do this every single day” and he wasn’t arrogant but he was just very much like “I’ll have that tooth out in 5 minutes” and seemed like it felt like all of it was very uneventful. His assistant was talking to me and taking notes for my visit and she was just like “he’s really good, I would let him sedate me and do work on me” and that didn’t seem fake or anything she was just like matter of fact. She also said just this morning they did wisdom teeth extractions that took him like 5-10 minutes, so hopefully it’ll all be fast and uneventful for me too!

 

[Akal]

@Mrsmurray23 that’s the other thing too I don’t think I realized how incredibly quick tooth extractions are. He said the same thing to me! The shortest part of the whole appointment was getting the tooth pulled haha

My dad who took me was upset that he only got through 4 pages of his book before it was time to go.

 

[Aviara]

I am just going to chime in. I had a wisdom tooth (upper left fully erupted, but missing a lot of substance due to decay) extracted last Friday. I didn't go IV sedation, but trust me I was very much contemplating it as I as well heard all those horror stories online and what not. At times my fear of going through a horrible painful procedure was slightly worse than the fear of death. It's also my first ever tooth extraction (other than primary teeth). This may not be the right post for the actual topic as you seem to be more anxious about the sedation process itself.
I just thought for anyone who is afraid of the sedation process. If it's a simple extraction (non-surgical for fully erupted teeth) local anesthesia only may very well be enough. I have such a great dentist. This wasn't the one that usually treats me, which gained my trust. But the new one was also extremely capable of easing my anxiety. The tooth didn't look too complicated, he didn't expect any complications (but didn't fully promise any either) and he didn't expect any LA failure and there also was no inflammation or infection going on either, despite it being badly decayed on one side and causing slight problems (like that ugly but very brief "ZAP!" pain when biting on it at a bad spot).
All these were enough for me to go step by step. He gave me the shots, waited a bit and then started. A little pressure here and there, which did increase quite a bit during the procedure, but it was nowhere near as bad as I'd imagine it. I didn't really notice feal movement and the sounds were also minimal. Then I saw him taking that tool to pull it out, again pressure here and there and the next thing I saw was him holding the tooth. The best sight all week. Zero(!!) pain and it felt like it was over in less than 3 minutes.

 

[papayabanana]

I had failed local anesthesia and what felt like a seizure after the local was used. My molar and gum is infected its all puffy now around and through the area that has giant hole/crack where the filling came out over two years ago. I have needed a root canal and now extraction for over two years. The molar is half black and i take motrin every 6 hours for almost one year straight now. Its limited me from so much i dont even want it out anymore because only relief from the anxiety of it all is to not think about getting it out. Sedation to me just feels like im being sent to electric chair to die. I know it doesnt make sense. The psychologist i am working with said nothing will help me except actually testing what im fearful of and going through it. Its very depressing to think of it like that but wishing someone else could get it done for me is not reality and yet its all i wish for.

 

[Akal]

@papayabanana o resonate very much with those emotions! I absolutely went through the whole gamut of anxiety and depression and panic and dreaded every single day knowing I had to get it dealt with eventually and not knowing if I could.

The feelings seeped beyond dental and rooted deep into other areas of my life! You are not alone and you are not crazy for feeling the way you do. It’s hard to explain and you tell yourself “it’s just the dentist why is it so hard for me?!l but that’s just shame and you can’t beat yourself up about it.

All I can say, is that I started getting an ulcer from taking too much Advil and the infection was coming back and I was afraid I’d have an emergency where I wouldn’t be able to see a dentist who offered IV Sedation.

It felt like a death March going in and I was terrified that the worse would happen while I went under sedation.

All that said it was nothing. I was embarrassed afterword for how scared I had been. It was an amazing feeling being sedated and I could tell very easily that everything was under control and I wasn’t about to die. It was so relaxing and comforting and coming to afterward I was bummed it wasn’t longer!

Trust me, if I can do it you absolutely can! You will be more than fine.

I am the type of person that is allergic to everything and is super sensitive to every medication. They know what they are doing and you’ll be safe and well taken care of!

 

[feelingbetter]

I would like to add that I had an extraction under IV last week and it was wonderful. I also took some oral sedation the night before which helped. I remember the needle going in (slight sting) and being asked to move back in the chair and the next thing was being asked to open my mouth for gauze to be put in and being given painkillers. I had worried about being loopy afterwards but I wasn't at all (confirmed by my husband who drove me back). Just sleepy and slight pressure in my head. It is such a relief as I know I always have IV to fall back on if I can't face a procedure.
I was helped beforehand by a friend who told me that he had had sedation for stents to be put in after a heart attack. He watched everything on a screen - the blood flowing back through his arteries and enjoyed it all - the sedation was that good (Dental sedation is different as you don't remember). It suddenly put it all into perspective. I was only having a dead tooth yanked out and stitches. Not life-threatening. And although I couldn't remember, I was conscious. It's not like having a GA. And they have drugs on hand to reverse the effect in case of a fire alarm or something.

 

[Mrsmurray23]

I did it!!! I just got home from my IV sedation molar extraction & bone graft and I could not be happier with how the whole thing went. My team was amazing, kind, funny, and so competent. I was laying in the chair a little weepy and anxious and they just reassured me everything would be ok and that if anything did go wrong, they have all the equipment and everything available to fix it.

The IV prick felt like nothing. Then my anesthesia nurse said “I’m gonna start now” and so I closed my eyes and we were talking about sports and I opened my eyes and could tell my vision was slow and said “no thank you” closed my eyes again and then I was out. Woke up in my husbands truck lol he drove me around for about 30 minutes because I wanted to go to heb but he didn’t trust I was steady on my feet (I don’t remember this). Went to the store, got a few groceries for me to eat (this is actually hazy too for me now) and now I’m home chilling. I’m not specifically tired and feel in my right mind. I’m just a little wobbly on my feet. Took some Tylenol and my antibiotics and gonna chill the rest of the day. The relief I feel is amazing. IV sedation is a revelation. The best thing ever in my opinion and will make having my dental work done in the future so much easier. Thank you Jesus for this blessing and thank each and everyone of you who had encouragement for me up to this day!

 

[Akal]

I want to cry this makes me so happy to see today!!

Really proud of you, internet stranger! What a relief you must feel!

 

[Mrsmurray23]

@Akal I hope this isn’t weird, but literally one of the first things I wanted to do was tell you lol I felt like I related to your anxiety and story so much and it helped me so much. Midazolam was amazing. I literally just closed my eyes and then “woke up” in my husbands truck, it was great. I apparently was having conversations for about an hour I don’t remember but I was very much myself still. My daughter did keep this one of the funny stuff I said though

 

[feelingbetter]

Fantastic! I am so happy to read your post. Huge congratulations for your courage. It's liberating isn't it?

 

[Mrsmurray23]

@feelingbetter the absolute best! I feel so empowered right now for having gone through with it.