• 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.

My strange and unusual dental journey (root canal, wisdom tooth, filling and more)

Wow MountainMama. I've just read your whole story and can't nearly believe all that you've gone through! You said right at the beginning that you have trouble getting numbed up for dental work, which makes me wonder if you may have red hair? As that is a well known cause for needing more anaesthetic than most!
It's good to see that you could still get treatment during the whole 'Covid-19' thing, as here in the UK, I don't think that a single dentist is working anymore and not since mid-March, except for emergency surgery that is.
As I am 'between dentists', I can't get treatment anywhere anymore, not even for an emergency! Our '111' service, a kind of phone and online helpline for anything medical and dental tried to help me, but all I could get was one more course of antibiotics, which have dulled my root-canalled tooth pain just a bit. I love the way they said to me at the end of the call, "I'm sorry, but there really isn't any help out there for you while all this is going on." Great. I may as well be stuck on the moon!
I'm still having trouble with my tongue/tooth-gap problem and wonder if I'll ever get used to it? You said it took a couple of months for you and I'm coming up to that. I can handle it for one or two days of the week, but then seem to slip backwards into NOT handling it at all! I use a night-guard sometimes, but try to do without it. I think I could really do with something like the 'flipper' you mention. I know what such a device is, though I don't think it's used much over here. I'm sure it would solve most of my problems for a while, especially as I now believe that my first molar on the right upper side (the RCT I mentioned earlier) will probably have to come out too!

I'm amazed at how much work you get done in the US, we have our NHS service, which is a lot cheaper than going private, but they apparently only do as little work as necessary to keep your teeth in a basic, healthy state. I will either (eventually) need one or two bridges, or, if I can manage to raise the funds for them, a couple of implants, to hopefully put me back to 'normal', whatever that is! Although I will need to break into a private pension and raid that, as I no longer work, having had to give up working to care for my disabled partner.

I think what people have said, that you are courageous or heroic has some truth to it. It's the way things are thrown at us, whether we can handle them or not, that is the real proof of our strength! I have cancer too, but the problem I have had with my teeth since last October, is the real test of my 'mettle'! Only time will tell if I am strong enough to handle both of them. If the dentists ever go back to work that is!

From your story, you sure sound like a hero!
Thank you for your kind words, but I do not feel heroic. All this dental stuff was thrown at me at once and it was sink or swim. I have two young kids so I had to swim. I have struggled a lot, but finally am on the other side, with the worst of it over with.
I think you are right that the US does more intervention work, but we pay so much for it! I am lucky that we have been able to afford it, although we have gone into debt to do so. I have had to stop working during this Covid nightmare, but thankfully my husband has a good job (for now).
It sounds like US dentists are not as restricted as to what they can do. The American Dental Association put out “guidelines” and the state governors called for closures, but the dental offices have the freedom to decide what constitutes an emergency. They are just required to follow strict guidelines with only one patient at a time, sanitize everything, and lots of protective gear.
I am sorry you are going through what you are. It will get better but the uncertainty is what bothered me the most. I don’t know if I would have handled things as well if my mess had been in the middle of the Covid crisis!
 
Well like I say, none of us are heroes, though people can mistake that, when hearing such a tale of dental woes, that are thrust upon us!

Like Gordon, this site's retired Scottish dentist said to me, it's not that dentist's won't do what you ask out of spite, but that they have to follow an oath of sorts, to protect their patients. I thought it was the 'Hippocratic Oath' from the days of Hippocrates, but apparently no, they don't take that one, but they do take an oath of some kind. So I shall wait for someone to correct me on that!

But anyway, it means that dentists won't do whatever you want them to, but will do what they consider to be the best treatment for you. In my case, I just hope that my dentist agrees with me, that something needs to be done, in order to 'fill the gap'!

I had my night guard in again last night, for the first time in half a week and woke up with a mouth full of blood! So I'm going to have to soak it in really hot water this time and maybe even cut a small slit in it somewhere, just so that it will fit me better! I bought some online that you mould to fit yourself, but they soften up too fast and if one piece touches another piece, then that's it! It's stuck together forever and you may as well just throw it out!

I almost wish that I had access to an American dentist, but I wouldn't have the many thousands needed of course, for the treatment that I require. Looking at some peoples stories too, I thought that if you needed treatment, then your insurance would automatically cover everything! But so it seems, that isn't always the case!

This darned Covid thing, seems more like a war, where we are all fighting against one bug, but one that won't let you get your teeth fixed! I don't know how many more months I can stand this thing, but I just wish my mother had let me have the braces I asked for, then I'm sure I wouldn't be in this mess to begin with!

I really hope that, for you, all your dental problems are now behind you. No one should have to suffer continously with any health problem and we all deserve a break! I just hope mine comes sooner, rather than later.
All the best for your future MountainMama!
 
I haven’t updated in awhile. I still have had random pain here and there and in the past few months it has jumped to teeth that haven’t had work. So I went back to the oral surgeon today. He said my implants look fantastic and that he wishes all his patients had bone and gum healing like I did. He said he would call my “diagnosis” atypical facial pain but that I would have to see a neurologist for it to be official. I am not keen on medication so would like to avoid that if possible, but yesterday my back molar hurt so bad I would have gladly pulled it out myself if I could have. Today, nothing.
I am seeing my primary care physician next week. The surgeon said I should follow up to make sure nothing else is an underlying factor.
 
Mountain Mama - I am finally having my top molar implant placed tomorrow (yikes!) and it made me think of you - how are you doing? Any insight on pain levels post implants etc? I am happy to be going to the next step but not looking forward to renewed pain after I have been relatively pain free for a few months.
 
Mountain Mama - I am finally having my top molar implant placed tomorrow (yikes!) and it made me think of you - how are you doing? Any insight on pain levels post implants etc? I am happy to be going to the next step but not looking forward to renewed pain after I have been relatively pain free for a few months.
Good luck! All of my implants were different in terms of pain levels. The lower second molar hurt only after the numbing wore off and only a little...Tylenol took care of it. The first lower molar hurt quite a bit after the numbness wore off, but I didn’t keep up with taking my Tylenol on time, so that was my fault. The upper implant was the easiest and it didn’t hardly hurt at all. The gums were sore from being stitched but the pain was minimal...nothing compared to the extraction pain.
 
Mountain Mama - thank you so much for your response and I apologize for the tardiness of my thanks for it :). Had my implant placed - was so worried that I was going to relive the pain of last year, but so far....knock on wood.....it is very similar to what your experience was and the tylenol with codeine that I have seems to be doing the trick. So optimistic at this point - and I agree - the sites in my mouth where the shots were and the gum cut/suture is where I seem to be sensing things now, but nothing like the extraction. Thank you again for our insight - it was super helpful.
 
Mountain Mama - thank you so much for your response and I apologize for the tardiness of my thanks for it :). Had my implant placed - was so worried that I was going to relive the pain of last year, but so far....knock on wood.....it is very similar to what your experience was and the tylenol with codeine that I have seems to be doing the trick. So optimistic at this point - and I agree - the sites in my mouth where the shots were and the gum cut/suture is where I seem to be sensing things now, but nothing like the extraction. Thank you again for our insight - it was super helpful.
I am so glad it went well!!!
 
So I haven’t updated lately...been down about the consistent pain. I keep getting shuffled back and forth between the dentist and oral surgeon with no resolution.
So I have been pursuing the pain in my face with my GP.
I had an MRI done last week and my GP called me today and emailed me the report. She said the scans were showing no abnormalities which is great. When I got the report, I saw that it said I had a small retention cyst in my right maxillary sinus. The GP didn’t mention it but the right side is where I have pain and a feeling of fullness in my sinus. So I messaged her to see if that could cause any issues.
 
Another update...
At my cleaning a few weeks back, I mentioned the pain I was still having with my front tooth implant and my lower first molar implant. My dentist is on vacation so the new dentist in the practice looked at it.
He checked my bite again and said there was some contact on the back of the front tooth and on the lower implant, but not enough force to cause pain. He went ahead and adjusted both. He said if it still causes pain to follow up with a neurologist.
So now almost a month later, and my front tooth pain is pretty minimal! I think it was pushing on the nightguard when I clenched at night. Now I get some sensitivity in the gums behind the tooth but nowhere near the pain I was having under my nose.
The lower molar has been giving me MORE pain. It has constantly hurt since my appointment and now the pain is actually in the premolar next to the implant! Gah! That tooth has had no work done, ever! It aches all the time and sometimes gets little jolts.
The neurologist’s office called and the earliest they can get me in is March.
 
MountainMama - I had been thinking about you lately and hoping that things were better. I am sorry that you are having so much trouble with the two implants. It is so frustrating! I am shocked that the neurologist is 6 months out - that is so far and I am sure so disappointing. Maybe you can see your dentist when they are back from vacation to see his/her thoughts?
 
MountainMama - I had been thinking about you lately and hoping that things were better. I am sorry that you are having so much trouble with the two implants. It is so frustrating! I am shocked that the neurologist is 6 months out - that is so far and I am sure so disappointing. Maybe you can see your dentist when they are back from vacation to see his/her thoughts?
I think the dentist is just ready to call it neuralgia and be done with it.
 
I haven’t updated in a while. I have good news and bad news. Good news first. I had my front tooth implant crown redone last month. I never was happy with it. My dentist redid it and it looks so much better! I still have pain now and then but the dentist said it is neuralgia.
Bad news: We moved a few weeks back. Last week my lower first molar on the left started a dull throbbing at night. It was enough to wake me up and keep me up. It has had some twinges here and there and has been diagnosed as cracked. To be honest, I didn’t think it would last as long as it has. These things always happen on a Thursday night, and most dentists around this region are closed on Fridays apparently. I found one dentist that was open. I had wanted another opinion on the tooth anyway. My previous dentist wanted to crown it but I thought the nerve was going and didn’t want to go through the process only to have it extracted anyway. The new dentist was great! He did x rays and took a picture of my tooth to pull up and show me while he was talking about it and where he thought the crack was. He said he sees the crack line on the inside edge, between that tooth and the 2nd molar. He thinks, based on my symptoms (spontaneous pain, sensitivity to heat and cold, and sugar) that the crack extends under the amalgam filling across the tooth. He said there is a small possibility that the 2nd molar is the culprit because it has a deep filling that touches the pulp chamber while the 1st molar filling is pretty far from the pulp.
So I am having the 1st molar extracted. He said if the crack is as big as he thinks, based on symptoms, a root canal wouldn’t work. He got me in to a periodontist/surgeon on Wednesday this week for a consult and extraction Thursday! He offered to go in and pull the filling out to check the size of the crack, but warned that if it was as he expected, he would have to go ahead and do the first step of a root canal, to alleviate the pain.
So I am having another tooth out. I am getting it prepped for an implant.
New dentist did recommend swapping out my remaining molars with amalgam fillings for composite ones, as the amalgam ones are old and leaking, and could make the cracking worse.
 
First lower molar is out. The whole procedure was fairly quick. The periodontist gave the most painless shot I have ever had, and they gave me nitrous. The pressure was awful but he would stop every time I made a face or flinched and ask if I was okay and if I felt pain.
I am very numb right now but it is starting to feel sore.
 
Hi MountainMama
I have followed your string on and off, and suddenly see that you have had yet a molar out. I'm so sorry for you. Hope that you are feeling better today.
How many teeth have you had extracted in total?
I'm also going through a LOT of tooth issues, so I really can rely.
 
Hi MountainMama
I have followed your string on and off, and suddenly see that you have had yet a molar out. I'm so sorry for you. Hope that you are feeling better today.
How many teeth have you had extracted in total?
I'm also going through a LOT of tooth issues, so I really can rely.

I am now at four molars extracted and one incisor. My new dentist said that he thinks all my years of clenching my teeth at night, combined with fillings in my molars are catching up with me. The surgeon who extracted my first molar yesterday did see that the crack extended across the tooth. It was cracked on the other side between the molar and premolar as well, so likely went across the tooth under the filling.
I hope your issues are not as serious!
 
I have the exact similar problem, having had 3 molars extracted, due to cracks. Must also be because I clench heavily at night. Had my final crowns on the implants put in during this fall.
Now I'm dealing with pain in one incisor, for no obvious reason other than I hit it lightly 1,5 year ago. Feeling this is the never-ending-nightmare.
 
I have the exact similar problem, having had 3 molars extracted, due to cracks. Must also be because I clench heavily at night. Had my final crowns on the implants put in during this fall.
Now I'm dealing with pain in one incisor, for no obvious reason other than I hit it lightly 1,5 year ago. Feeling this is the never-ending-nightmare.
Have you been in to get the incisor checked? I chipped mine as a kid and it caused the tooth pulp to slowly die over time without pain. It was a total shock to find out it was abscessed.
It is a total nightmare. I am so tired of losing teeth. I have also been diagnosed with atypical facial pain. It totally sucks.
 
MountainMama - I am glad to hear that you may be on the road to recovery for your one molar, but can deeply appreciate the angst that it feels like to have the constant pain and seemingly never ending issues. After what I went through in 2019 and the loss of my two molars and months and months of serious pain - I do get it. However - I want to tell you THANK YOU so much for sharing your experience. I truly learned so much from you and feel so much more empowered now when I go to the dentist to really explain what I want and what I need. I dont think that I had that voice before or even the understanding - so, truly, thank you so much I really means a lot to me.
 
MountainMama - I am glad to hear that you may be on the road to recovery for your one molar, but can deeply appreciate the angst that it feels like to have the constant pain and seemingly never ending issues. After what I went through in 2019 and the loss of my two molars and months and months of serious pain - I do get it. However - I want to tell you THANK YOU so much for sharing your experience. I truly learned so much from you and feel so much more empowered now when I go to the dentist to really explain what I want and what I need. I dont think that I had that voice before or even the understanding - so, truly, thank you so much I really means a lot to me.
I am so glad my story has helped you! It has been a nightmare for sure. This extraction yesterday is the first one that I have truly felt at peace with. I know it had tangible issues that were not a guess. The others...not so much.
 
Yes I've had it checked 3 times with x-ray. I was at my normal check up in November, but they didn't want to do x-ray again, since they did it already half a year ago.
It's so frustrating not knowing what is actually going on. I'm constantly told that my bite is off and they try to adjust it a bit. But nothing takes the pain away.
At times I feel completely alone with my concerns, so in some strange way it is actually nice “to meet” someone in same situation.
 
Back
Top