Nerves about finishing up a root canal

[ameliahh01]

Hello all!
I started back on the path to oral health in November 2018 with wisdom extractions and two molars, too. This year, I invested in sedation dentistry, and have so far had all the fillings done on my top and bottom teeth (excluding my front 4, which have to have crowns next year) and a root canal started on a top left molar. I'm scheduled to have that finished up this Saturday (Oct. 19).
I hadn't been super nervous about it until today, mostly because there's been a lot of rescheduling happening with this appointment--not because of me for once! lol. I've avoided going to the dentist for years and years because of a bad experience with a root canal when I was 14 or so where the tech/hygienist who was finishing up let my feeling come back while using some kind of a heat gun and had me coming out of the chair from being burnt. To say the least, it was traumatizing. I thought I was doing a lot better with my fear of the dentist after coming this far in the process, but today I've been completely overwhelmed. I'm literally shaking just writing about it. I'm terrified that the same thing will happen again on Saturday; my dentist doesn't do full sedation, only partial, so I'm still awake during the procedure just a little loopy.
As a dentist, what would be the best way for your patient to clearly convey these fears? I know obviously to just tell them, but I want to make sure they really get it and take special care to make sure I'm numbed correctly. I guess I just want to make sure I don't sound like a crazy person lol and that I'm clear and direct, but it'd be nice to hear from someone in the field how best to say this kind of stuff.
Thanks!!

 

[drhirst]

Hi ameliahh01,
It's really is as simple as just telling the dentist exactly what you have written here.
When a root canal is being finished the roots are sealed with rubber filler. The excess filler coming out of the root canals is often removed by melting it off with a heated instrument. It sounds like this hot instrument may have touched your lip and burnt it when you were young. These days nearly all root canal treatment is carried out with a protective rubber sheet called a rubber dam in place. This was not so common when you were 14. As a result you are highly unlikely to experience the same problem.
If you tell the dentist this is why your are so apprehensive he or she may agree to use another method to remove the excess rubber so you can relax knowing this complication cannot happen again.
Personally, I love it when a patient is so open about what they fear most as it allows me to really concentrate of how best to get round their specific problem. It is really helpful.
Go on, give it a try.

Lincoln

 

[Aurora10]

Hello all!
I started back on the path to oral health in November 2018 with wisdom extractions and two molars, too. This year, I invested in sedation dentistry, and have so far had all the fillings done on my top and bottom teeth (excluding my front 4, which have to have crowns next year) and a root canal started on a top left molar. I'm scheduled to have that finished up this Saturday (Oct. 19).
I hadn't been super nervous about it until today, mostly because there's been a lot of rescheduling happening with this appointment--not because of me for once! lol. I've avoided going to the dentist for years and years because of a bad experience with a root canal when I was 14 or so where the tech/hygienist who was finishing up let my feeling come back while using some kind of a heat gun and had me coming out of the chair from being burnt. To say the least, it was traumatizing. I thought I was doing a lot better with my fear of the dentist after coming this far in the process, but today I've been completely overwhelmed. I'm literally shaking just writing about it. I'm terrified that the same thing will happen again on Saturday; my dentist doesn't do full sedation, only partial, so I'm still awake during the procedure just a little loopy.
As a dentist, what would be the best way for your patient to clearly convey these fears? I know obviously to just tell them, but I want to make sure they really get it and take special care to make sure I'm numbed correctly. I guess I just want to make sure I don't sound like a crazy person lol and that I'm clear and direct, but it'd be nice to hear from someone in the field how best to say this kind of stuff.
Thanks!!

How did it go??