Tooth is hurting 4 weeks after crown prep, bit of advice needed…

[Mitch2610]

I’ve always been really anxious about the dentist from being a child. I went for my check up in January and my dentist told me I had a crown on my top left molar that needed replacing due to some decay underneath it, also my teeth are generally doing better now and can think about having onlays to 7 of my other teeth with big fillings that aren’t far off needing crowns, to try and help preserve them for longer. Anyway, 4 weeks ago I had all the prep work done in one go, 5 hours in the chair!!! Bit of a problem with getting the onlays back from the lab so had to wait more than the usual 2 weeks. During that time all the onlay teeth seem to be ok, nothing I wouldn’t expect from having fillings etc previously, but I keep getting a dull ache in the replacement crown, they all have temporary fillings on by the way. I went last week to have the onlays fitted but I just wasn’t going numb enough and after an hour and a half we gave up and I had the temporary ones back in until I go tomorrow to try again. She said see how it goes with the crown, it might ease and settle down but I’m petrified if it doesn’t as I know a RCT will be needed. Am I just delaying the inevitable by not getting it done or can these toothaches genuinely get better as everything I read says no it won’t get better if it’s been more than 2 weeks, which obviously it’s been 4 and there’s only the slightest improvement, ie I’m only taking ibuprofen twice a day instead of 3 times day for it and it’s not waking me up and night like it did a couple of weeks ago. I just don’t know what to do with it and it’s stressing me out beyond belief. Thanks

 

[Gordon]

It's more likely than not to settle down once the permanent crown is in place, you'll get better sealing of the tooth than with the temp and it should fit into your bite better.

If you can handle 5hrs in the chair for crown preps though then you'll find a root canal an absolute walk in the park in comparison They really aren't as bad as American script writers seem to paint them!

 

[Mitch2610]

Thanks for the reassurance, my dentist is still confident it doesn’t need a root canal at this point, I’m hoping it’s just sensitive to food I’m eating etc as when I manage to get a interdental brush in there it feels much better, but I’m risking the temp falling out every time I do it. Believe me I looked like I was handling 5 hours well but inside I was a crumbling mess lol! It’s just I’ve never had a root canal before and the things you read about them really don’t help, and also I don’t always numb very well so I get scared I’m going to feel it.

 

[Gordon]

If it's improving after cleaning then it really doesn't sound like a root canal is required. Please don't believe everything you read about them online, if you have a read through some of the success stories on here you'll get a totally different picture.

Normally to do a root treatment the nerve in the tooth has to be either dead or dying, in which case numbing it shouldn't be a big issue. Obviously there are some exceptions to this but as a rule of thumb it's close enough

 

[Gordon]

Following up to my own post, very bad form I know but this might help...

K

Thread 'I managed to have a root canal!'

Oct 16, 2025

Never in a million years did I think I would ever manage to have this done!

A while back I had a filling done under IV sedation that was worse than originally thought and the dentist told me might end up as a root canal. This literally made fear run through my veins. Everytime root canal is ever mentioned - on a telly programme, book etc it’s this huge big thing, and has always made me feel scared even just hearing it.

Anyway this is supposed to be a more cheery story!

So I posted on here about it and the amazing @Gordon replied to my posts with some really helpful descriptions...

• Kitty84
• Replies: 0
• Forum: Share Your Success Story!

 

[Mitch2610]

I’m very much the same with even hearing the dentist saying it panics me and have almost passed out before when she said I might need one.

In better news I went back yesterday and had 7 onlays fitted and my crown replacement scanned which is the one I was worried about but she did a bit more prep work on it and touch wood today it feels much better better so I’m in good spirit and also very proud of myself for going through it all as someone who has dental anxiety.