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Removing all my teeth

K

kcrazygirl74

Junior member
Joined
Sep 9, 2022
Messages
1
Location
Cleveland
Hi I'm 47 years old and petrified of the dentist anyways they wanna remove all my teeth and put me to sleep I'm scared to death it's been a year and still haven't went and got it done I'm afraid I won't wake up when they put me to sleep my fears is not waking up will I feel it what happens if I wake up in the middle of them pulling my teeth I'm also afraid of all those holes in my mouth and getting an infection right now my teeth are just breaking away how can I get over my fears to have the work done help
 
@kcrazygirl74

I am 51 and had iv sedation it was amazing. Please bear in mind the level of qualifications a anethtist has some are more qualified than a surgeon . They monitor you continually. You can do this
 
@kcrazygirl74 Hey I am sorry you have to go thorugh that situation, it sounds really rough and stressful. I don't know if this idea would be of any use to you, but would you prefer to have a lesser number of teeth removed at one time with local anesthesia? It might be an option. I had to have 4 teeth extracted and my dentist recommended to have all four removed under general anesthesia or sedation (he said "sleep" so I am not sure which he meant) and I refused and we negotiated for him to remove two at a time under local only. So far he has removed two and it was totally ok with just the local, I didn't feel any pain.
 
@kcrazygirl74 Hey there!

I completely understand your fears. On the 11th, I’m getting (at least) four teeth extracted under general (so fully asleep, completely unconscious) and ooh boy are there are a lot of fears that go with that!

Firstly, that fear you have of not waking up: very, very, very rare. As long as the dentist you go to employs an actual anesthesiologist, you’ll be fine! That being said, if it truly is a huge fear and you feel you can’t do it, I agree with Nervous. Talk to the dentist, negotiate with them over what they can do for you. Remember you don’t have to agree to anything you don’t want to. I chose general myself, because I don’t want to be aware of anything that’s happening and I want to know that I’m for sure going to be out like a light and not know what’s going on. That’s what’s best for me, but maybe not for you and that’s okay.

As for the holes, I can’t speak to that because I haven’t gotten those extractions done yet, but it’s something I’m afraid of too. Please remember this: the mouth is, I think, the fastest if not, one of the fastest, healing parts of the body. It heals so fast! So for the first day or so, you’re going to have these holes that are awful, but they’ll start closing up pretty quickly. Before you know it, they’ll be super tiny and you’ll barely remember what they looked like before hand.

As long as you follow the instructions for post extraction care, the chances of infection are low. It’s scary definitely (I’m terrified of infection/dry socket, I mean aren’t we all? It’s a thing you read about and it sounds like a horror movie!) but you have to remember that the risk of it happening is lower than you think. A lot of people on forums, and definitely on Google, always talk about their negative experiences, not their positive ones. That’s why this forum is so helpful! We have plenty of success stories that can give you a bit more confidence.

Getting to the dentist is really hard, it’s much easier to just ignore the issue and say: hey I can live like this. But those teeth are hurting you and hurting your overall health. Think of it this way: the longer you leave it, the higher chance you have that things continually get worse in your mouth, and the path to healing takes longer and is more involved. I know it sucks, but you need to do this for yourself. And you can do it. You can. You just have to take that first step and call the dentist again.
 
I was 56 when I eventually made myself see a dentist for the first time in 40 years. Rather embarrassing at first and you need a symathetic dentist to get through that first appointment. Needed quite a bit doing and four lower front extractions followed by a flipper then a proper chrome denture.
You're already doing well as it seems you are already seeing a dentist. Looks like it's the fear of anethesia with you. Ask about IV, I had that and it's great! It's hard to explain the experience but 10 seconds after the drip starts you lose awareness but remain conscious. Sounds impossible but is due to the fact that IV inhibits memory formation. Think about it - all experience takes place in memory, even if it was just a moment ago; no memory = no experience. You can still respond to the dentist's instructions yet after the proceedure you remember nothing. Not all dentists do it though and you might have to look around. Unfortunately some proceedures require a general and in the UK this can only be done in a hospital.
 
L crazy girl did you ever have your complete extraction?
 
@kcrazygirl74 , we’re in the same city, and I can offer excellent recommendations, especially on the east side: Mentor, Beachwood, University Circle, etc.

They can help you.
 
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