J
jordan22
Junior member
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2021
- Messages
- 14
- Location
- Everett, WA
My whole dental story is a bit long. I'm 28, and back in October of 2021 I went to the dentist for the first time in probably over a decade (ugh). Luckily I only needed a simple cleaning, but I did have a handful of cavities and one tooth needed a root canal. This was all a bit difficult to go through, I had never even had one filling before. My whole childhood I never had a cavity. Unfortunately I had several years of pretty severe mental health issues and financial problems in my teens and twenties and taking care of my teeth fell to the wayside.
The root canal itself was fine, I got it done by a specialist and he was amazing. The crown prep, on the other hand... Oh man. That's a long procedure just for one tooth, but my dentist also did a deep filling on the tooth next to it as well, then got through that and decided that it needed a crown as well, as it was too slanted towards the other tooth and would just cause problems with hygiene (I've always needed braces, my bite is pretty gnarly). All in all I was there for 3 hours, and I ended up crying about 2 hours into it. Pretty embarrassing, and man my whole face was sore after that.
I got through it though, got the crowns put on and they made an appointment for 6 months out for another cleaning and probably to get the rest of the fillings done. I ended up cancelling, it was supposed to be back in April. Ever since that crown prep appointment I get shaky just thinking about it. I made an appointment with a new dentist closer to home, that's for this Friday and I am TERRIFIED. I'm scared I won't be able to get through it, I'm scared they're going to tell me my whole mouth has gone to hell and every tooth needs a root canal or they all need to be pulled or I've developed severe gum disease.
Plus I know I need to get braces, I just feel way too old. I still have 3 of my wisdom teeth as well, I likely need to get them out. I'm just feeling overwhelmed and like I can't do this. I know I still have several fillings I need, I hope they're still just regular fillings but I don't know if I can make it through it without panicking.
I guess I just need to be brutally honest about my anxiety with this dentist and not just try to white knuckle my way through it. I hope they don't think I'm an annoying patient or something. Hoo boy. I just hope it goes well and it's not as bad as I think. I've been more consistent with brushing and flossing than I ever have in my life these past 8 months or so, I'm hoping that means something. Send good thoughts my way, I'm sure I'll need it. I hope I can make it though this.
The root canal itself was fine, I got it done by a specialist and he was amazing. The crown prep, on the other hand... Oh man. That's a long procedure just for one tooth, but my dentist also did a deep filling on the tooth next to it as well, then got through that and decided that it needed a crown as well, as it was too slanted towards the other tooth and would just cause problems with hygiene (I've always needed braces, my bite is pretty gnarly). All in all I was there for 3 hours, and I ended up crying about 2 hours into it. Pretty embarrassing, and man my whole face was sore after that.
I got through it though, got the crowns put on and they made an appointment for 6 months out for another cleaning and probably to get the rest of the fillings done. I ended up cancelling, it was supposed to be back in April. Ever since that crown prep appointment I get shaky just thinking about it. I made an appointment with a new dentist closer to home, that's for this Friday and I am TERRIFIED. I'm scared I won't be able to get through it, I'm scared they're going to tell me my whole mouth has gone to hell and every tooth needs a root canal or they all need to be pulled or I've developed severe gum disease.
Plus I know I need to get braces, I just feel way too old. I still have 3 of my wisdom teeth as well, I likely need to get them out. I'm just feeling overwhelmed and like I can't do this. I know I still have several fillings I need, I hope they're still just regular fillings but I don't know if I can make it through it without panicking.
I guess I just need to be brutally honest about my anxiety with this dentist and not just try to white knuckle my way through it. I hope they don't think I'm an annoying patient or something. Hoo boy. I just hope it goes well and it's not as bad as I think. I've been more consistent with brushing and flossing than I ever have in my life these past 8 months or so, I'm hoping that means something. Send good thoughts my way, I'm sure I'll need it. I hope I can make it though this.