my dentist but new practice

[harper]

hi freakout yes it does help thankyou   just having someone to talk to helps im sitting here and i feel sick and really frightened and just want to hide nobody understands and i just want to cry . sorry. do you think i could go talk to C is this allowed?

 

[freakout]

Hi Mandy...I know how you feel.  I could never tell friends or family my fears, but everyone on this site, has been there or is currently going through it so they won't belittle you.  I think it would be a good idea to let C know that you are feeling uncomfortable again, maybe he will be able to help ease you into his new office.  I do know one thing for sure, he can't help you if he doesn't know theres a problem

 

[harper]

thanks feakout. yeah he prob doesnt know cos i never really told him i find it really hard to talk to people but im gonna try do you think its ok to phone up and tell them i need to see him ? what do i say to them? do you think i could phone tom so i could go asap cos i dont know how to cope feeling like this

 

[freakout]

I would call and say you have something you would like to discuss with him. If they are unable to get you in, could you write him a letter and drop it off. Maybe after he reads it, he will be able to discuss it with you.

 

[letsconnect]

I think it would be a good idea to see if you can talk to him about your feelings, be it on the phone or in person . Sometimes, the simple act of sharing your feelings can reduce a lot of tensions. You could ask when would be a good time for you to call or see him. He might not be fully booked if he's only changed practices recently.

 

[harper]

hi lets and feakout
thanks for your replies is helping . as you can see ,well hopefully not as its 3am! i cant sleep and dont feel great bloody worrying . i will phone tom morning be hard but it cant be as hard as this dont know what im gonna say to him but ive got to say something hopefully in person i hate using the phone. im also worrying now hell think im a pain and will tell me to see somoene else god why do i feel like this? its stupid 34 yrs old and sitting here feeling sick and in tears. if anyone is up and about before 7 any suggestions on what to say to him would be gratefully received,sorry to be such a stupid pain mandy

 

[brit]

well i just got back still in one peice. the new place is ok not as nice as the old practice but i wonder if thats just cos i feel like im starting all over again, dont know why im suddenly so scared again i actually feel like crying now but not sure why?
it would seem that it was the tooth next to the one with the temp in that was hurting me so hopefully the other one has settled down now. ive had the nerve out of the one we now think was causing the prob and apparently it was a bit cross lol.  does anyone know why whenever i have the Anaesthetic in my top front teeth it never works and i have to have more?  this bit is really hard does anyone know why i feel so upset and like ive just gone back to being scared i feel like crying

Hi Mandy
Sorry to hear you feel like you've been set back. I wasn't sure from what I read whether or not, the local worked okay eventually (?) for what you had done today....I hope it did and that it's just the new premises/staff making you feel uneasy.

What is it you want to discuss with him exactly: the problems with anaesthetic, your feeling uncomfortable at the new premises or both?

Have you already got another appointment booked in? Until you get more used to the new place the things Lets has suggested will probably help. Not arriving too early is probably in order, plus bring a magazine/novel you actually want to read with you or some other distraction. Could your partner come with you again like he did before, until you feel more comfortable?

 

[harper]

hi brit
yeah the local was ok in the end just seem to be unlucky with it always feel it the first time when i have front teeth done and end up needing more.
i want to talk to him about the way im feeling that i feel like the frightened 12 year old i was before and all the work ive done to get this far has been a waste i just feel terrified. im gonna ask if i can come the last app of the day cos some of the problem i think is that i feel a total pain all the time and that hell say i cant be doing with this and make me see someone else. the prob yesterday was the strange place, people i just felt helpless. its hard for hubby to come with me cos of his job.

 

[freakout]

Hi Mandy...Sorry I wasn't around last night, but I am in the US & time zones are different.  I hope you were able to get an appointment to speak with C.  I would just explain how you feel.  Tell him what makes you uncomfortable about the new office/staff.  He should be able to help ease your fears and concerns, once he know you have them.

 

[brit]

i want to talk to him about the way im feeling that i feel like the frightened 12 year old i was before and all the work ive done to get this far has been a waste i just feel terrified.

So glad it was just the new place - please don't say that all you have achieved so far has been a waste   - how it can it be, you are now able to have treatment without sedation and your teeth must be healthier. You are also now out of pain, aren't you or well on the way?

I understand you are now seeing him at a private practice, in theory this should mean he has more time per patient and that the staff should be customer focused to some extent. Maybe it would help to focus on the fact that the most important element in the mix is your dentist himself and this is the one thing which hasn't changed. How much worse would you feel if the practice and staff were the same but the dentist had moved on?

If your treatment is now finished, maybe you could just give it a couple of days - you may find you calm down and your anxiety lessens.

 

[letsconnect]

Hi Mandy, I hope you got (or will get) a chance to get in touch with C, let us know how you got on  !

 

[harper]

hi lets and freakout
phoned his practice this morning the receptionist   wasnt best pleased she said he isnt here . i very nearly put the phone down but managed the courage to say i needed to see him tomorrow. i then went to my old practice and had a chat with L one of the receptionists who sorts out the sedation (she really helped me when i had my first appointments) i had a chat with her and she said id done really well by not needing the sedation anymore,i explain  the best i could how i felt as luck would have it C was there doing sedations so L had a word with him and i went back at 2.30 to see him. he was really nice asked me what i wanted told me it was me thats important not anyone else he asked me if it i was scared of him which i said no to. i explained about wanting a late app and he said im only there 2 days next week but i WILL see you. i still feal awful but a bit better than yesterday xx
nearly forgot the dental nurse really scares me she doesnt say anything to you and  she frightens me silly i know ,what im wondering is will he see me without her to start with? thanks mandy xx

 

[freakout]

Hi Mandy...Congrats on talking to C I hope he was able to ease your mind a little bit.  I'm not sure how it is a his practice, but for me, typically the assistant puts me in the room.  I do not see her again until he has come into the room and talked about the procedure & numbed me up.  Once he returns to start the treatment, the assistant come back into the room.  I am sure that when you see him, he will do everything possible to make you comfortable  Let him know about the nurse, maybe she was just having a bad day.  My dentist has many assistants, some of whom I did not care for at first, but have grown to like.

 

[letsconnect]

differences UK/US

As far as I know, one of the big differences between dentistry in the UK and in the US is that dentists in the UK only treat one patient at a time, whereas in the US, they tend to treat more than one at a time - so in the normal way, your dentist (in the UK) would pretty much stay with you throughout your appointment. It's also pretty common for dentists to collect their patients in the waiting room.

Mandy - it's great to hear that you managed to get hold of him ! It sounds as if you're feeling a bit happier now - he really sounds like a star (apart from looking gorgeous, of course )

 

[freakout]

Thanks Lets...actually explaining the differences helps alot. Sometimes I read a UK post and think my dentist doesn't do that (no time). In the US doctors & dentists seem to be double and triple booked, so they can see as many patients in a day as possible. However, the wait to get an appointment isn't quite as long to see them.

 

[brit]

So US dentistry is like a production line - amazing - why such high fees then if you don't even get 100% attention!
It's a bit like that in Holland in that the Assistants seem to do the x-rays but you mainly just get the dentist. Mine sometimes even let's me in at the front door and rebooks the next appointment herself in the reception area. l actually quite like that level of personal service but it comes from a lot of practices here only having one or at most 2 dentists plus a hygienist. My kids' pediatric dentist even answered his own phone when I called to make an appointment which was good because it reassured me as to what he was like.
It's hardly efficient though is it? So once again the UK is a happy medium of the American and European approaches.

The first Dutch practice I went to, was awful in many ways, one of which was that the Admin person sat at a desk in the main admittedly large surgery, so you were in there with 3 staff - way too many.

Mandy - glad you feel better after talking to C -just try to ignore the Assistant if you don't like her - she probably thinks it's not worth engaging with the female patients as they are all so besotted   with her boss!

 

[harper]

hi brit
thankyou so much you made me laugh for the first time in days when i went in i just sat down and started chatting away to C maybe shes jealous   uk dentistry is a production line at times too,when i had my sedation its in work done next please. im not sure if private is better but i would think so less rushed and less patients in one day. our nhs which is what i used to have is underfunded and a bit of a shambles. i only went private cos of C though dont really have the money but somethings are more important and without him ill never get over this fear.
will update you all later mandy

 

[brit]

I'm afraid, as ever you get what you pay for. I am English, the vast majority of the work in my mouth is UK NHS and those old amalgam fillings are holding up well! However I went 'private'when my old London dentist did. If you can possibly afford it, it's generally worth it, because they tend to allow more time for everything and if you need more time for whatever reason you can opt to pay for it. Also a lot of NHS dentists tend to be newly qualified and lacking in experience, it might mean they are 'nicer' though, not as jaded.

Just back from taking my kids to their 'new' pediatric dentist who is a star  in my book. My 4 year old was fine about it, even though his first experience there a few weeks ago was when he had a tooth taken out - as a cancellation appointment had come up. My 7 year old was going for the first time and was totally happy - he had sealants put on some of his molars. Both now in the clear - weird that he had one tooth that decayed so badly and the rest are fine.

Glad I made you laugh - do you need any more work doing at present?

 

[freakout]

Hi brit It's funny you used the term "production line" My sister, who used to work for my dentist, said on her first day the dentist asked how she liked it. She simply replied, she was not used to production line dentistry. She said he looked shocked and said "what do you mean, I know every patient I have" She said he almost looked upset. Funny thing is he does have a mind like a steel trap, and does know every patients name. I was in the packed waiting room once (at the beginning) and he came out to the front and was greeting everyone by name! I was amazed!

My dentist actually is rushed at times, however, when I need more attention, he takes the time with me.

T

 

[harper]

hi all
i just got back from seing C and i feel a bit better now had a nice chat to him and cup of tea lol. i wrote a letter so it was easier to explain which he didnt mind at all. i was even brave enough to have my bottom tooths nerve taken out ready for my root filling .had loads of local so i wouldnt feel it as id been worrying about this after a bad experience. brit yeah ive got to have 2 root fillings done at the top that have temps in then ive got to have the bottom one done and maybe the one next to it. and then im going to have 3 fillings taken out and replaced and maybe a crown.