• 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.

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New member, a little scared

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Ducky229

Junior member
Joined
Mar 25, 2009
Messages
12
I have been lurking here for a few days now and reading all these pages of posts has definitely helped me see I am not alone in my fear of the dentist.

I'm a 25 year old female, haven't been to the dentist in about 3 years and the last time was to complete a root canal. I haven't had a cleaning or full exam in probably about 10 years and I'm ashamed of it.

I did find the courage to make the appointment for tomorrow (yikes) because the gum above my root canaled tooth is swelling and though there is no pain yet, I don't want to get to that point! I also have a chronic canker sore that I want looked at (originated with the flu a month back, wondering if I may need antibiodics or if its a blocked salivary duct)

I am not really scared of the tools or procedures, but I am scared of being belittled because every time I have tried a dentist in the past it has happened. My teeth aren't horrible (I don't think!) but I know I need a few fillings and possibly one broken one taken out. I also need a good cleaning and am worried about gum disease as it's in my family.

I found a supposed great phobia dentist about half an hour from here and I hope he is good. I don't have insurance but I don't mind paying if he is what I am looking for, if you know what I mean.

I am just happy to know I am not alone, and though this appointment tomorrow is all I can think about right now, I know it's the right decision and I want to correct whatever is wrong now, while I am still young so I can get on with my life and smile :)

Wanted to thank you all for your posts, you helped me get over the hurdle of making the appointment.
 
Okay so i went, and not so great news :(

The assistant I saw was fabulous and admitting my fears to her helped put me at ease. The dentist was pretty nice as well.

The root canaled tooth is probably going to have to be pulled. There is no infection but its fractured pretty badly. He wants another doctor to give a consultation (the root canal specialist) on Saturday to see if it can be saved but he thinks more no than yes.

I didn't have a full exam, but asked him about the canker sore, which he says is not a canker sore but from me biting down with my upper wisdom tooth on mouth tissue. He think THAT tooth will have to come out as well.

I am really upset right now and scared that when I get my other xrays I will get more terrible news :(
 
Hi Ducky :welcome:,

I'm really sorry to hear that the news was worse than expected. Fractures can be a real bummer if they are below the gumline :(. Let us know what the endo says! I hope though that the rest of the x-rays will be fine :grouphug:

Congratulations on making it there :respect: - that must have taken you a lot of courage!

Out of interest - when you said that the dentist was "pretty nice", do you feel he's right for you?
 
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Thanks for the support.

To be honest I didn't have a lot of time to talk with him, I told the assistant all about my fears and he just did a very quick exam. He explained everything before he did it though and that did put me at ease. I still can't get over my shame of the state of my teeth though and I think that is hindering me from not feeling judged.
 
I know the feeling. Not about teeth, but in general. For example, when I got a bad grade in an exam, no matter what my mum said about it, I felt all the time she's judging and critisizing me. In fact it was just me judging meself. So probably your dentist doesn't judge you.
 
Have you mentioned your concern about shame/embarrassment over the state of your teeth to your new dentist? It can really help to bring this issue out into the open, and you'll probably find that your dentist will be able to reassure you. Dentists deal with this stuff on a daily basis (they'd be out of a job otherwise :)) and most dentists look at problems with teeth and gums in terms of problem-solving rather than something they pass judgment on.

Unfortunately, especially in the past, there were some dentists who really thought it would help to shame their patients in order to "motivate" them to take care of their teeth - a "technique" which usually backfires (as is all too obvious when you read people's posts here - there are so many who have avoided dentists, sometimes for decades, precisely because they were scared of getting a lecture :().

Please do let your dentist know how you feel - you'll likely feel much better once you get his reassurance, rather than having some strangers tell you over the internet that there's no need to feel embarrassed :grouphug:
 
letsconnect, I am definetly going to do that. His website has wonderful, wonderful things written about him and how well he deals with phobic patients. I am confident that I found the right person, I think I just need to get over my shame.

I have my evaluation with the endo in the morning, I have calmed down and am telling myself it is not that bad if it needs to come out. I have another broken molar as well that probably needs to be extracted. I'd rather get them out and done with and concentrate on the rest so my mouth can be healthy again.

I WILL do this, even if I have to in baby steps, I'm determined to get over this fear.

Thanks again for the support, I cannot tell you how nice it is to read all these stories and know there is hope.
 
So I had my evaluation with the endo and he says the tooth needs to be pulled. he did say though I am an excellent candidate for an implant and from what he could see of my other teeth on that xray, my roots are long and my teeth seem strong so I am hoping that means good things? I was so worried about them all needing to be pulled (probably crazy but with a phobia your imagination makes you all kinds of nuts) and he said unless I start eating rocks for dinner my teeth will probably outlive me! Again that was just on some of my molars but I am more hopeful for when I get a full set of xrays.

I have to meet with the oral surgeon on Wednesday to discuss extraction for this tooth. It's nice cause all these Drs work in the same place, makes it easier.

I am slightly more relieved. :)
 
I had my consultation with the oral surgeon and he is going to do 2 extractions and eventually place implants (they are back teeth so my apperance won't be affected while I wait) I am nervous as heck though because he mentioned my sinuses lay too low and he would need to do a sinus lift. He was super kind and patient and I felt very at ease. I will be sedated for the extractions as he says he does that with basically everyone so they don't have to remember lol.

My only major concern is the COST. I am not even going to list how much they said this would cost because it honestly boggles my mind. I am thinking of maybe shopping around. I have no dental insurance and don't make nearly enough to pay what they want.

He didn't want to do bridge work because my other teeth appear great besides some small cavities which I can have fixed no problem. I am wondering if that will be cheaper though.
 
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Implants are rather expensive, unfortunately :(. Can you just explain why it's "implants" rather than "implant"? I thought there was one tooth that had a fracture and a wisdom tooth which had to come out. I take it you wouldn't replace the wisdom tooth with an implant? Sorry just a little confused here :hic:

It's great to hear that the oral surgeon is kind and patient :thumbsup:!
 
letsconnect, I had another bad molar that I knew would have to come out before I found out about the cracked root canaled one. I am keeping the wisdom tooth for now, maybe down the road will have it removed. It is healthy, just rubbing a little on the cheek.

He is a wonderful, highly accredited surgeon. I just wish it wasn't SO much money. I am going to get some other prices, just to compare.
 
Ah, now I get it :) - thanks for explaining!
Please let us know how the others compare :grouphug:
 
Update: Found a MUCH cheaper oral surgeon, one who is also experienced with implants. He said he could do both teeth plus all my wisdom teeth (which he said will just cause problems down the road - better to remove them) and place the one lower implant. As for the sinus lift, he recommends a bridge instead of that big sinus lift operation. I'm going to think about that for awhile anyway. We'll start with the left side both wisdom teeth and the lower molar out tomorrow (on spring break, figured I could recover while I'm off from work) and when I feel ready, the right side wisdom teeth and other bad molar.

I'm just having sweet air and novacaine and he says the whole thing should take 45 mins tomorrow. I'm scared as heck but happy to be moving forward.

Wish me luck!

PS - I am going to continue to use the same general dentist, it's just the other oral surgeon who was too much for me. GREAT guy, but more than my wallet could handle unfortunetly. They were very understanding about me cancelling and understood financial hardship lol.
 
Had 3 teeth out today, one broken molar and 2 wisdom teeth (one impacted) I had sweet air for the first time ever and WOW was it GREAT! I was a giggling fool, the dentist was craking up. It was slightly scary because there was a LOT of tugging. My teeth were deeply rooted and I have strong jaw bone (I guess that's good) so he had to do some pulling. They came out in one piece though. I drove myself home and took vicodin. He said there will be swelling and pain for 2 days or so from the impacted one. I'm a little nervous about the pain but I'm so proud of myself for getting through it :)

He said there is no rush on the other teeth, I think I will have my normal fillings and a cleaning first before I take care of the others.

I did it!!
 
Great job! I hope my experience with having teeth extracted turns out as good as yours. I do have a question though..you said you drove home after having the gas? I was worried I'd have to have someone drive me and pick me up, cuz I'd rather just go by myself. But you felt fine to drive?

Congrats btw:jump:
 
I felt great. The last 10 mins he reduced the gas to just oxygen so it wore off quickly after that. My mom was with me but I drove, I was totally okay.
Thanks for the congrats. :)
 
Congratulations :jump::jump:!!! Great to hear that the sweet air worked so well! Wishing you a very speedy recovery :XXLhug:
 
Well, I am 4 days post op now and everything seems to be going well. I am only feeling mild pain in the impacted wisdom tooth spot (regular advil is working fine), the other 2 don't hurt at all. I had a horrific reaction to the vicodin though and spent ALL day after my extractions throwing up. It was horrible, just horrible.

I'm wondering when I can eat real food again and chew on the side where the teeth were taken out? I'm so scared I'm going to rip a stitch or something.

Also, when can I go about getting my other dental work taken care of? I want to schedule a cleaning but don't know how long after extractions you are supposed to wait, anyone know?

Thanks :) Happy Easter :)
 
When it rains it pours... my original problem tooth that I was HOPING could wait on is breaking more and more, I expected it as the tooth is dead and rooot fractured. I am going to have to get it taken out this week probably. Am hoping my OS can do it and my other top wisdom tooth Friday as that wisdom tooth is through and shouldn't be painful (my other top one didn't hurt at all after it came out) I don't have the time to recover from the other impacted one right now. Will tackle that one down the road as its not bothering me, but these other 2 are :( I'm angry cause I wasn't sure yet if I wanted to go through with an implant on the upper or do a bridge (I'm very nervous about a sinus lift)

At least the other side of my mouth has completely healed up beautifully so I will be able to eat. I'm just scared about missing TWO molars while I wait for this bottom implant.

I have now promised myself I will lose NO more teeth (besides that other wisdom) I am shocked at how quickly you can go from zero problems to many. After these damn teeth are out and replaced I am going to take much better care of my mouth. I'm happy I am still young enough to have that chance (I hope!)

I haven't even gotten the news on how many other problems I have but I am assuming it will all be fillings, none of my other teeth have bad decay or deep cavities that I know of. And there are no more root canals that can fail.

I'm going to be SUPER poor from these teeth.
 
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