Started my Dental Journey 11/9/2013

[HPFan20]

Hi everyone,

First let me just say that I never post on forums with the exception of when I was in college and was obligated to do so. However, a few weeks ago I came across this forum after I did a search for dental anxiety; after reading other people's posts I quickly realized that I was not alone in my fear. Although I do not usually post on forums I know that posting on here will be beneficial to me as I journey into the dentist world and getting my teeth fixed!!

It has been a few years since I've been to the dentist. I was not a huge fan of my dentist when I was younger and when I was in middle school I had to have two root canals on two of my molars. I was suppose to get crowns on my two teeth, but I never ended up getting them. Because of this, I ended up losing part of one of my molars when I was in college. Then, last year I lost part of the other molar. Despite this, it still took my until Halloween of this year to hit rock bottom!! I hit it when the molar that I had lost part of in college what was left of the tooth was pretty much destroyed when I was eating a muffin. A muffin!!! How annoying is that!?! Right then and there I knew I couldn't do this anymore, I needed to go to the dentist! So, after years of avoiding the dentist I finally went this past Saturday!

The appointment itself wasn't that bad. Going into it I knew that it was just a consultation so I didn't have to worry about having any work done! I had some X-rays, and my dentist took a look at my teeth. The results are that I need my wisdom teeth out as well as one of my molars or what's left of it extracted. My dentist wants me to have it out before the end of December so that it's on this years insurance, I've already made an appointment with the oral surgeon for next Friday! Once my wisdom teeth are out, we are going to move on to my plaque on my teeth. I have more plaque on my teeth than someone my age should have, I'm in my mid 20's. I have already scheduled 2 deep cleanings for February to give my gums some time to heal from my wisdom teeth removal. Once the cleanings are done I have to get a crown put on my molar and then we're going to focus on my fillings. I'm not sure how many I will need, but I guess I'll have to cross that bridge when I get to it!

I'm sorry for the length of this post but I just wanted to get everything out!! I really would love to be a success story some day! I'm nervous right now though about losing part of my teeth before I go back to my dentist in February, I'm also nervous about my plaque getting worse as well!?! If anyone could give me some advice if they've had really bad plaque or if they have had a similar experience I would be very appreciative!!!

 

[ScaredyChick]

Hi - I can sympathise with your fear, I'm also terrified of the dentist whether that stems from plain fear, panic, shame, anxiety or a combination of them all I'm not sure. As for the plaque question, not sure how to deal with it until you've had the deep cleans but once they are done I would suggest you get a good toothbrush and experiment with floss whether its the floss tape, string, sticks or whatever works for you but find a method you are comfortable with and stick with it. I have awful gaps between my lower teeth left from plaque build up which in turn gave me gum disease and ultimately resulted in gum deterioration so I would get a system going for cleaning your teeth and gums properly every day so that plaque build up is minimal between regular dentist visits. My dentist now tells me that my dental hygiene is great and I had barely any plaque at my last scheduled check up but am now looking to improve the appearance of my front teeth so am on my own dental rollercoaster

 

[HPFan20]

Thanks ScaredyChick!! I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who has a plaque problem, it's also nice to know that its possible to get to the point where you're at where I will hopefully one day go to the dentist and be told that I have very little plaque!! Good luck with your dental rollercoaster, I look forward to hearing about how nice your teeth turn out when everything's said and done!!