• 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.

    Register now to access all the features of the forum.

The Waiting Game

M

MoonRabbit

Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2018
Messages
41
Location
Usa
I recently got a filling on my upper right pre molar which was in a bit of trouble. The filling was deep and my dentist said it will all be a waiting game from here to see if it settles and if not a root canal and crown will be in order. Coming home from the appointment I had a considerable amount of pain but would go away with one pain killer. The next day, I felt wonderful, no pain at all and I was able to eat what ever I wanted. Then suddenly by the third day the pain started up again. I was told to call in if I end up with severe throbbing pain, but it has been moderate throbbing easily taken care of with one pain killer. Still annoying nonetheless.

The worst part about all this is my insurance just dropped root canals and crowns on the new year which means I will have to pay full out of pocket or this will end in an extraction. Just my typical luck and I really dont need to mention that I'm flat out broke. I havent prayed in years. Call me selfish or hypocritical but I've been praying for all this to settle and work out for the best.
 
I would also like to add that I noticed the pain is the worst when I wake up. I catch myself clenching my teeth really hard, especially on the tooth with the deep filling so maybe all the pain is coming from the pressure I put on it while unconscious. I might invest in a sleep guard to see if it helps. If it does I could then get a proper one from my dentist.
 
Oh no.. that is awful your insurance dropping root canals and crowns.. I hope that doesn't become popular with insurance . eeks.. so sorry. that is hard..
 
Is there any chance that your bite may just need to be adjusted? Sometimes when you’re numb, it is difficult to tell if your teeth are coming together correctly after a filling. I have had persistent pain after fillings before (specifically when chewing) and it turned out that the filling was a just a bit high and needed to be shaved down. I only suspect this because you mentioned pain when clenching your teeth. Typically when your teeth need root canals it is more of a hot/cold sensitivity vs. pressure sensitivity...in my experience anyway.
 
Is there any chance that your bite may just need to be adjusted? Sometimes when you’re numb, it is difficult to tell if your teeth are coming together correctly after a filling. I have had persistent pain after fillings before (specifically when chewing) and it turned out that the filling was a just a bit high and needed to be shaved down. I only suspect this because you mentioned pain when clenching your teeth. Typically when your teeth need root canals it is more of a hot/cold sensitivity vs. pressure sensitivity...in my experience anyway.


I thought about that. I have another appointment on the 20th this month so I'll ask if the filling is sitting high then. I heard it can take a awhile for a tooth to settle after a deep filling and since the pain isn't severe. I believe I can wait it out until then.

I'm not sure if this is the norm but my dentist didn't do the filling, she did the drilling but the assistant finished everything. She told me I would have hot and cold sensitivity for a few weeks after and I do. So now I'm concerned if this is normal or it means the nerve is dying. Ahhh hopefully I can hold off until the 20th.
 
I'm not sure if this is the norm but my dentist didn't do the filling, she did the drilling but the assistant finished everything. She told me I would have hot and cold sensitivity for a few weeks after and I do. So now I'm concerned if this is normal or it means the nerve is dying. Ahhh hopefully I can hold off until the 20th.

My dentist has always done the entire filling but I know in some states they offer various levels of certifications for assistants that allows them to do more (such as administer local anesthesia and even fill teeth). If the filling was very deep it’s true that it could aggravate the nerve and result in sensitivity to hot and cold for awhile. As long as it’s temporary, than it’s ok but also keep in mind if you have sensitivity specifically to pressure it may be the filling itself is too high which is an easy fix.
 
I hope your tooth settles! I have spent more on dental work in the past 8 months than I want to think about. My insurance covers root canals, but only half and maxes out at $1500, which covers about one root canal, not including the crown. Ugh. I still have more work to go, including at least one implant.

When I was waiting on a deep filling to settle, my dentist said it could take up to 8 weeks!
 
I hope your tooth settles! I have spent more on dental work in the past 8 months than I want to think about. My insurance covers root canals, but only half and maxes out at $1500, which covers about one root canal, not including the crown. Ugh. I still have more work to go, including at least one implant.

When I was waiting on a deep filling to settle, my dentist said it could take up to 8 weeks!

Thank you. The waiting is so hard, especially when I'm also stressed about the financial aspect. I wish they did payment plans cause that would lift some weight off my shoulders. I'm really hoping it doesnt get to that stage but I have a constant feeling it will. So my backup is to sell my car plus the possibility of cutting my really long hair and try to sell it. :cry:

Gosh I feel so pathetic right now. Finally get the courage to get my dental health back and cant even afford to do it. It all just seems like a one step forward two steps back dance.
 
Thank you. The waiting is so hard, especially when I'm also stressed about the financial aspect. I wish they did payment plans cause that would lift some weight off my shoulders. I'm really hoping it doesnt get to that stage but I have a constant feeling it will. So my backup is to sell my car plus the possibility of cutting my really long hair and try to sell it. :cry:

Gosh I feel so pathetic right now. Finally get the courage to get my dental health back and cant even afford to do it. It all just seems like a one step forward two steps back dance.

Are you in the U.S.? Some offices will do payment options if you can put down half. There is also Care credit program, which is essentially a dental healthcare credit card, where you make payments.

I get it. We are financially strapped right now as well, but since I have had so much work done, my office is allowing me to make payments. I still owe $750 from the root canal I had in October. I still have to get the crown at some point.
 
Do you have any say when it comes to choosing your dentist, moonrabbit? From what you've posted here and in other threads, it sounds like switching to a different office might be the way to go :dunno:.
 
Last edited:
Do you have any say when it comes to choosing your dentist, moonrabbit? From what you've posted here and in other threads, it sounds like switching to a different office might be the way to go :dunno:.

I only know of one other place that takes my insurance and it always takes a few months to get seen. I'll try searching around again.
 
Woke up with no pain today. Though oddly, last night I had some pretty bad discomfort happen right after an anxiety attack and crying spell. I kept focusing on the filling and then it started to hurt. I'm wondering if some of the pain is psychosomatic?
 
Woke up with no pain today. Though oddly, last night I had some pretty bad discomfort happen right after an anxiety attack and crying spell. I kept focusing on the filling and then it started to hurt. I'm wondering if some of the pain is psychosomatic?

I don't know if your pain is psychosomatic, but teeth can be really weird sometimes. I have a tooth that was hurting really really badly now and then during the time I was avoiding dental visits. As I was in the stage of getting back on track, this tooth was hurting a lot, despite it being perfectly fine according to several dentist. As I had built some trust with my dentist and had several visits to get desensitized, the pain just disappeared. We applied desensitizing fluid on it as well but the pain was actually gone long before the treatment.

Funnyly, about two months after my visit, I got worried about a different tooth because I found something weird so I knew I would have to get in touch with my dentist again. And guess what, that one tooth started hurting again so badly that I wasn't able to sleep. So now I just got used to the fact that in times of increased dental fear this tooth would hurt without a reason..
 
I have the same struggle financially, its hard to do everything and keep up when finances are limited. I have done like layaway plan, just giving the office money as I could and when I built up enough for the next thing do it.. it may take a little longer but that way I don't spend it on something else and they have it for my dental care.
 
I don't know if your pain is psychosomatic, but teeth can be really weird sometimes. I have a tooth that was hurting really really badly now and then during the time I was avoiding dental visits. As I was in the stage of getting back on track, this tooth was hurting a lot, despite it being perfectly fine according to several dentist. As I had built some trust with my dentist and had several visits to get desensitized, the pain just disappeared. We applied desensitizing fluid on it as well but the pain was actually gone long before the treatment.

Funnyly, about two months after my visit, I got worried about a different tooth because I found something weird so I knew I would have to get in touch with my dentist again. And guess what, that one tooth started hurting again so badly that I wasn't able to sleep. So now I just got used to the fact that in times of increased dental fear this tooth would hurt without a reason..
I think this is exactly what I’m doing. I think the fear of going to the dentist is coming out as actual mild niggling pain, it’s just enough to get my attention. This was actually comforting to read that others feel like they have managed to create tooth pain by worrying about them.
 
I have the same struggle financially, its hard to do everything and keep up when finances are limited. I have done like layaway plan, just giving the office money as I could and when I built up enough for the next thing do it.. it may take a little longer but that way I don't spend it on something else and they have it for my dental care.

It can get very depressing needing to worry about so much. I'm afraid that if I end up needing a rct, actually come up with the money and get it done and it doesnt end up working. Doing the treatment and throwing away so much money that could potentially end in an extraction is something I just can not handle right now.


Sadly the pain came back today while eating soup. This isn't a good sign.
 
It can get very depressing needing to worry about so much. I'm afraid that if I end up needing a rct, actually come up with the money and get it done and it doesnt end up working. Doing the treatment and throwing away so much money that could potentially end in an extraction is something I just can not handle right now.


Sadly the pain came back today while eating soup. This isn't a good sign.

I can speak from experience on that point. I had a root canal, then an apicoectomy when the root canal failed, then a retreatment. The endodontist did not charge for the retreatment but it still was a lot of money. Then I ended up having to have it extracted. It made me sick to my stomach for days. In fact, when I had another molar go bad, I jumped straight to extraction because I couldn't go through that again.

It is one of those things that you can't predict, though. There is no way to know, and it is better to try to save the tooth if you can.
 
I can speak from experience on that point. I had a root canal, then an apicoectomy when the root canal failed, then a retreatment. The endodontist did not charge for the retreatment but it still was a lot of money. Then I ended up having to have it extracted. It made me sick to my stomach for days. In fact, when I had another molar go bad, I jumped straight to extraction because I couldn't go through that again.

It is one of those things that you can't predict, though. There is no way to know, and it is better to try to save the tooth if you can.

I'm sorry to hear you had to go through all of that. I do want to do everything to save it.
 
I'm sorry to hear you had to go through all of that. I do want to do everything to save it.

I don't regret trying to save it. If I hadn't, I always would be wondering if it could have been saved.
 
It's been 8 days since my deep filling and I finally managed to eat a normal meal with very little pain. I even topped it off with some ice cream for dessert and the sensitivity wasn't too bad. Seems like the mild nagging pain comes in waves, especially if I catch myself clenching while being focused on something else. I really hope this no pain spell continues. I'm so tired of my mouth feeling irritated.
 
Back
Top