Nervous Patient - Learning about Gum Disease and Treatment

[Starbright]

Hi everyone,

I've been afraid to go to the dentist for a long time, but I finally worked up the courage to go a few days ago. When I went to the dentist, I was told I have gum disease and need scaling and root planing. Because this can be very expensive where I live in the USA, I admitted it was a lot of money for me. I'm still happy with myself for finally getting the courage to go to the dentist, and I'm grateful to get the exam complete, but I feel disheartened at the thought of paying thousands of dollars every few months for deep cleanings. Right now, it's simply not affordable for me, so I worry that the disease may get worse, but I can't afford the treatment. I was also told I have cavities, but so far, I do not feel pain or see visible signs of huge cavities. I think it is possible the cavities mentioned were microcavities. But I am not an expert, so I don't know for sure.

Right now, I have a lot of tartar build-up on my teeth, but I feel no pain and my gums do not bleed when I brush. I also see no signs of tooth mobility or loose teeth. For context, I am an adult in my mid-twenties. I believe the gum disease diagnosis is most likely correct, but I wonder if there are less expensive ways to treat it. I'm here at the ask the dentist forum to inquire about temporary steps I can take to manage the gum disease until I can afford proper treatment. Thank you so much, and I'm very grateful this forum exists! If you need to see pictures of my teeth, I could attach those in a future post.

 

[honeybee91]

Hi fellow American who can’t afford the astronomical costs of healthcare here I know I have gum disease and like you I can’t afford to spend $1200 every 3 months on treatment. I haven’t been to the dentist in many years and I’m hoping to go sometime this year. One thing I can suggest is asking the dentist if they do payment plans, a lot of dentists have their own discounts now. I have a dentist in my city saved on to phone when I can afford to go who offers discounts on treatments, for example with this office I can pay $1600 for a entire years worth of deep cleanings. I have spoken to their office and that is what I was told, so maybe you can research dentists in your area. I wish you the best and I wish healthcare wasn’t a nightmare in this country.

 

[Starbright]

@honeybee91 Thanks so much for your kind reply! I really can relate to how challenging it is to afford healthcare here. I hope things work out for you, too. Searching for good payment plans to make the prices more manageable is a great idea. I'm glad you found a dentist in your city where you can afford the deep cleanings at a much lower price. I'll definitely keep an eye out for cheaper payment plans. I wish you the best, too. It's tough to struggle with gum disease, and then dealing with expenses for treatment on top of that makes it so much more challenging. Thanks for your advice!

 

[Gordon]

Do you have a dental school near you? They quite often do cheaper treatment so that the students can get some practice in. Doing some basic cleaning isn't rocket science, so it's not as if the students can do much wrong (they are very closely supervised btw!). Getting a student hygienist to do the cleaning would be cheaper still I guess.

In terms of DIY dentistry, the best thing is to get into a fairly rigorous oral hygiene routine, use floss/TePe brushes and preferably a good electric tooth brush (Oral B are generally the best ones). Brush three times daily and do the floss/TePe stuff once a day. Don't be put off if your gums bleed when you start doing this, it's a sign they're inflamed and this will stop after a week or so of good plaque control.

Best of luck.

 

[Starbright]

@Gordon Thanks for the advice! I was thinking about the dental school as an option. I'm not sure if it's still open, but in the past my parents went to a dental school to get cleanings, and they said it was much cheaper than a regular dentist. It's also a great way for the students to get some practice! I'll definitely keep that in mind as an option. Right now, I decided I'll try out a less expensive dentist in my area. The hygienist there was very good, but I got nervous and didn't complete my cleaning the first time around. It's a good idea to try again and finish the job!

I'll also try to follow that advice about making my oral hygiene routine more vigorous. I'll brush more often to start with, and then I'll practice using the floss. Do you mind explaining what a TePe brush is?

In the future, I could try to get the electric toothbrush, too, since that will probably be stronger than the manual one. I think that will help a lot to manage the gum disease until I get a proper cleaning. Thanks for the advice and encouragement!

 

[Gordon]

Happy to help. TePe brushes are a little miniature bottle brush that you use to clean between teeth. Much easier to use than floss (don't use floss until you've had a lesson from your hygienist, if you've never used it before).

https://www.amazon.com/Tepe-Interdental-Brush/s?k=Tepe+Interdental+Brush

As for electric brushes, get the cheapest Oral B one you can find, they quite often get discounted to less than 30 US dollars.

 

[Starbright]

@Gordon Thanks for the explanation! The TePe brush does sound a lot easier to use than floss. I haven't used floss much before, so I think I will try the TePe brush instead. In the future, I can also go for the cheap electric Oral B tootbrush. I think if I use both of those, I can manage the plaque buildup much better.

I wanted to add that in August I'll be heading to the dentist for the deep cleaning. Are there any tips or advice you can give about how to prepare for it, the best aftercare, and so on? I'd really appreciate it! Also, does the deep cleaning experience hurt a lot, or can the pain be managed? That's my final question for now. I hope everything turns out well when I go for the cleaning.

 

[Gordon]

Sometimes after the cleaning your teeth can be a bit sensitive to cold/sweet things, so lay in a small supply of sensitive tooth toothpaste, the Colgate one is best in my experience but it's not that important. Use it by massaging into the sensitive areas last thing before bedtime, i.e. not as an actual toothpaste. Don't rinse off or anything, just leave it alone and go to bed.

The cleaning really shouldn't hurt much, if it does then yes, it can be managed, a bit of surface anaesthetic can help or full on local if needed.

Let me know how you get on.

 

[Starbright]

Thanks, Gordon! I'll let you know how it all turns out. I'm hoping it all goes well. I'm a little nervous, but I feel I should do what's best for my health, so I'm glad I'm getting it done. I'm grateful to hear that most likely, the cleaning won't hurt much, and if it does, there are things that can be done to manage the pain. Thanks for the tips!

 

[Starbright]

@Gordon I'm going to be heading to the dentist in a few more days. I hope I have a pretty okay experience! Are there any things I should prepare for before the deep cleaning? What is the experience usually like? Could your teeth feel different afterwards, and do they get loose from the deep cleaning? Thanks!

 

[Gordon]

See page 2 of this thread for some actual patient experiences: https://www.dentalfearcentral.org/f...ket-and-potential-wisdom-teeth-removal.35806/

Nothing really you can do before hand, but buy some sensitive toothpaste for afterwards. The commonest after effect is for your teeth to be sensitive to cold/sweet after for a few days. This is due to the gums healing and shrinking back to a healthy size, they'll have been a bit swollen before.
Your teeth will not be loose, but your tongue will probably have fun exploring all the little nooks and crannies between them that were covered in plaque/tartar before.

 

[Starbright]

@Gordon Hi there, thanks for sharing the thread! I read the experiences and honestly, it doesn't sound too bad. It might be a little uncomfortable, but it doesn't sound like an unbearable experience. And I'll be glad to get my dental health in better shape afterward!

Okay, I'll prepare for the sensitivity. It probably would be a good idea to stay away from super cold or sweet food for a few days, too.

Ha ha, that's funny, I guess my tongue will be exploring a lot! I would really be happy for the tartar and plaque to be gone, so I think it's good I'm getting the cleaning. It's good to know my teeth won't be loose, too. Thanks a lot for the answer, Gordon! I'll let you know how it all turns out.

 

[Gordon]

Good luck, I think you'll smash it!

 

[Starbright]

@Gordon Thanks so much! I just came back from the dental appointment, and it really wasn't so bad. They started with a regular cleaning because the deep cleaning must be approved by the dentist first. The cleaning experience was a little scary for me at first, but I started to relax more and try not to think of the sensations as "painful", and it worked. I was able to get through the whole cleaning without completely panicking!

Once the dental hygienist was finished, I was really amazed and happy about how clean my teeth were. I'm very glad I got over my fears and took the right step towards getting my teeth clean! It also looks like the situation about the gum disease may not be as bad as I thought. The dentist said my teeth look much better now than they did before the cleaning, so we can go for regular cleanings right now. I'm happy about that!

Thanks for helping me through the anxiety before the appointment, Gordon! My teeth don't feel too bad after the cleaning. It actually feels a lot better than it did before, even if it's a little sore.

 

[Gordon]

Well done you, thank you so much for posting this update, hopefully others can learn from your experience too.
It's all very well me banging on about it not being a big deal, but I could be accused of a bit of bias

 

[Starbright]

@Gordon Yeah, I hope other people can learn from my experience and not be so afraid. Ha ha, yeah, as a dentist you know it's really not a big deal, but sometimes patients don't know that until they actually experience it themselves.

What I'm realizing is that getting the cleaning done was much better than the alternative (leaving things alone until it got worse). It also wasn't nearly as scary as what I imagined it to be. Sometimes our fears are way bigger in imagination than in reality!

 

[Gordon]

Sometimes our fears are way bigger in imagination than in reality!

Absolutely true!