My Teeth & My Mental Condition

[Mr Idiot]

Hello im new here & am looking for support & advice, im not sure where to start so i'll just type & see what comes out.
ok about 2 years ago i had a complete mental breakdown & was sent to many councillors & psychiatrists, i was diagnosed with loads of mental problems, severe anxienty, agrophobia, depression, ocd, bdd, i think that covers most of them, ive sufferd with these for many years & finally it all caught up with me which ended in my breakdown.
so anyway onto my teeth, i did manage to go to a dentist regularly untill i was 17, then i had afew very painful fillings done by a very cold minded dentist, when i complained of pain during drilling he kinda got defensive & carried on, anyway it ended with me never going back.
so now 20 years on (im nearly 37) im really starting to suffer with my teeth, i have 4 teeth that are crumbling when i try to eat, im sure many more teeth will follow too soon, i want to get help but the fear of going to a dentist is making me feel sick with anxiety, the thought of all my teeth rotting in my head is too much to deal with & its affecting any progress ive been making with my mental conditions.
i see a CPN (community psychiatric nurse) once a week & i really get on well with her, she is the only friend i have in the world, i'd like to talk to her about my teeth but am terrified it will lead to the dentists.
i come from a family which all the men are terrified of the dentist, i think the fear is passed onto the men from them telling many horrific stories about the dentist, my dad is the worst & has only little black stumps at the gum line for teeth, im terrified this will be my fate.
are there drugs that can kinda zone me out so i could maybe get myself to a dentist?
i could go on all night but i'd better not bore you any more, i dont know what i want to achieve by coming here, maybe just to be told there is a way out of this mess im in.

thanks for reading & i hope everyone here is brave, maybe some of your bravery can rub off on me.

ok bye bye.

 

[olivacs]

Welcome!!

You have come to a great place for support! Everyone on here has a similar story when it comes to fear of the dentist and the anxiety that goes along with it. Without the help and support of this site I would have never returned to the dentist after 12 years nor would I continue to go to all my appointments now without everyone's support.

You have made a great first step in recognizing your teeth need help and that you want them checked out. Each little step you take will equal big results. I suggest speaking with the person you mentioned in regards to your dental health. They cannot make you do anything you don't want to do but it does feel 100% better to have someone to talk to about all of it.

We are all here for you and will help you get to your appointment whenever you decide to make one.

 

[brewer734]

Hey
you found the right place to talk about being scared of the dentist we all know how you feel. I felt really sad when you said yr nurse is yr only friend though bless you !!Im sure if you want to talk to yr nurse about this she will be fine maybe just talking about it first will help but then you've just done that on here!!! If you already know some of yr tablets "zone you out" then thats good if you can use them or maybe speak to yr dr about whats best to take for something like visiting the dentist my mum takes diazepam and she is totally out of it when she does!!!!
The most important thing is to think who you are doing this for you !!
Like you said you dont want yr teeth to get worse like yr dad so that should be an incentive and also theres nothing worse than toothache and i bet yr dad must suffer if his teeth are bad.
I really hope you can talk to someone yr nurse or dr they might even be able to help you find a nice dentist cause thats the most important part finding a nice caring dentist to help.
emma

 

[Stress Doc]

Hello:

Welcome to the forum.

The conditions you are speaking of can rob quality of life. You are doing the best thing by confronting the dental issue. The only way anxiety can be permanently overcome is by facing the object of fear. I know this takes courage, but it does work. You are not helpless or hopeless, you have the personal power to overcome this. I speak from personal and clinical experience.

I am a psychologist specializing in anxiety disorder. If you would like some specific techniques or just to chat, PM me.

Blessings and peace