Terrified of dentist. More afraid of what I've done to my teeth.

[Scaredwolf]

So I'm a 27 year old male, and up until I was 22 or so I had excellent oral heigene, braces to correct teeth, proper brushing every day, dental visits every year at minimum.

then it all kinda went to hell. I kinda started bleeding from gums a little when brushing, and I was so embarrassed that I would just brush, then I fell off.and now every time I brush my gums bleed, and if I brush too hard it's like I cut my mouth. I have a several red spots on my gums and I know there's a huge buildup of tarter behind my front lower teeth. So much so that it's come around to the front of my tooth and my gums are loose in 3 spots.

I don't really have tooth pain or aches, and I've finally broken down and sucked up the fears of going to the dentist and made an appointment for two days from now.

im just really concerned that I'm too far gone and they can't fix it and I'm going to lose all my teeth.

Anyone think there's hope for me? Or am I going to have too invest in denchers at 28?

 

[FearfulInMA]

First, congrats on making an appointment! I will say that it's almost never nearly as bad as people imagine. The good news is that you're going to get things sorted out. Often with a good cleaning, gums will start to get back to what they were. There is so much they can do for teeth and gums these days that I think it's extremely unlikely that you'd need dentures at this point. Best of luck with your appointment and please let us know how it goes.

 

[Scaredwolf]

Thanks for you kind words. I am trying to stay positive but the anxiety is killing me. So much so that I had to contact another dental office that could fit me in today.

I keep pacing around thinking that I should've done this so long ago and that I'm going to lose my teeth.

 

[FearfulInMA]

The anticipation is so very often the worst part! Good luck today!

 

[Scaredwolf]

So my consult went as follows:

He looked over my teeth and found 3 cavities and two teeth than need to be sealed, he then took a look at my gums and said that I have gingivitis and on my lower mouth specifically I have acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis.

He did a full work up of X-Rays on my teeth, didn't really mention anything pertaining to bone loss, so I'll take that as a good sign?

He noted a lot of plaque and calcium buildup on my teeth and scheduled me for two cleanings. The first is a "full mouth debridement" then I'll have a second follow up cleaning. I'm pretty sure they're going to check my gums during the debridement.

I'm concerned that what he believes is gingivitis is actually periodontitis and that will be discovered when they probe my gums, as I have had bleeding gums when brushing for years now...but maybe there is hope? Anyone else know of gingivitis not ever progressing to the much worse disease even after some time?

Overall. I feel better, he didn't look in my mouth and tell me I was going to lose all my teeth, and seemed confident that long term I would be okay. The anxiety was pretty intense in the waiting room and while I was waiting in the chair though.

 

[FearfulInMA]

Congratulations!!! Way to go for getting through the appointment. So now you know that you're not going to lose your teeth as you had feared. With all the buildup on your teeth, they will bleed because the buildup causes a lot of irritation of the gums. Try not to get too far ahead of yourself and try to stay away from Google. From what you've said, it sounds like you need a little bit of work to get back on the right track, but that your long-term outlook is good. Hang in there! When's your next appointment?

 

[Scaredwolf]

Friday morning I'm going to start my day with a full mouth debridement, its probably gonna be gross.

Then I'm gonna go to work lol

 

[FearfulInMA]

Good luck!!! You will feel so much better when it's done

 

[Laura robitaille]

Wow, I'm in awe that you faced your fear. You should be so proud..I'm sure your dentist would have told you if it had advanced to peridontitis. Take some time to be proud of yourself. You are young enough that you can turn this around and hopefully move on to have a healthy mouth. Im a coward who is sitting here scared and panicked and too afraid to call the dentist so I truly am in awe of you.
Bestvof luck...

So my consult went as follows:

He looked over my teeth and found 3 cavities and two teeth than need to be sealed, he then took a look at my gums and said that I have gingivitis and on my lower mouth specifically I have acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis.

He did a full work up of X-Rays on my teeth, didn't really mention anything pertaining to bone loss, so I'll take that as a good sign?

He noted a lot of plaque and calcium buildup on my teeth and scheduled me for two cleanings. The first is a "full mouth debridement" then I'll have a second follow up cleaning. I'm pretty sure they're going to check my gums during the debridement.

I'm concerned that what he believes is gingivitis is actually periodontitis and that will be discovered when they probe my gums, as I have had bleeding gums when brushing for years now...but maybe there is hope? Anyone else know of gingivitis not ever progressing to the much worse disease even after some time?

Overall. I feel better, he didn't look in my mouth and tell me I was going to lose all my teeth, and seemed confident that long term I would be okay. The anxiety was pretty intense in the waiting room and while I was waiting in the chair though.

 

[eor kennedy]

him not used to this thread as i havn't been on chats before so i hope you get this. i was 24 when i found out i had gingervitis and i had to brave the dentist as a friend found pictures to scare me that showed me what would happen to my gums and teeth. so i finally went, i was a heavy smoker back then and he just told me to floss and brush with electric tooth brush. i carried on going to the dentist who was good with nurvous patients. i also got my teeth cleaned regular. i thought i had got rid of it but did not realized that gingervitis was gum desease. so i dint go to the dentist for 4 years. i found another dentist which is really nice who told me i had savier gum desease and he helped me get it to moderate. i'm only just finding that may possibly loose my teeth at 42 which i feel is still to young to loose my teeth. my mum also has had this problem for years and she still has every tooth in her mouth at 70. don't think i will be this lucy but think if you go to the dentist it wont be as bad as you think

 

[Scaredwolf]

him not used to this thread as i havn't been on chats before so i hope you get this. i was 24 when i found out i had gingervitis and i had to brave the dentist as a friend found pictures to scare me that showed me what would happen to my gums and teeth. so i finally went, i was a heavy smoker back then and he just told me to floss and brush with electric tooth brush. i carried on going to the dentist who was good with nurvous patients. i also got my teeth cleaned regular. i thought i had got rid of it but did not realized that gingervitis was gum desease. so i dint go to the dentist for 4 years. i found another dentist which is really nice who told me i had savier gum desease and he helped me get it to moderate. i'm only just finding that may possibly loose my teeth at 42 which i feel is still to young to loose my teeth. my mum also has had this problem for years and she still has every tooth in her mouth at 70. don't think i will be this lucy but think if you go to the dentist it wont be as bad as you think

Thabks a lot for your response!

Im sorry that you ended up having some severe gum disease, my family has a pretty good history of tooth health, my parents are decent as brushing and flossing (though they have gotten better as they have aged) and my grandparents on my moms side all have their teeth, as well as their brothers and sisters. My parents only visited the dentist yearly when I was kid, but also have stepped that up with age.

I really plan to stay stay on top of my teeth going forward and making my regular dental visits every 6 months if that's all that is required of me going forward, I almost consider this my scared straight moment towards dental hygiene.