Was so anxious I wanted to die, ended up being great.

[dentalness]

I have bad anxiety, and my doctor and oral surgeon didn’t want to give me anything like valium or xanax for the night before and day of, and I was TERRIFIED the night before and day of. I vomited up stomach acid in the morning and almost cried. I would have rather died than gotten the work done. The worst anxiety I’ve probably ever had in my life. I ended up going in and waiting for over an hour which was awful for my anxiety- so MAKE SURE YOUR ORAL SURGEON WILL SEE YOU AS SOON AS THEY CAN ONCE YOU ARRIVE. I was told to arrive 30 mins early but it was a waste of time. I met a nice woman there getting a partial and some other work done who was nice and understood how annoying it is to get there and wait for so long when you’d rather just be done with it asap. The waiting was awful. The procedure was amazing. I sat down in the chair, the nurse put the little nose mask on me for the nitrous oxide, I felt normal for a few minutes, then I got a little light headed, the same feeling as when you stand up too fast when getting out of bed or after sitting for a long time. After a few minutes I felt kind of tingly, like a mild pins and needles all over the body, but feeling relaxed after the nurse turned up the nitrous oxide. The doctor came in and I was 100% coherent but felt fine, no anxiety. I told him to not use stitches since I gag easily, and he did exactly that! IF YOU GAG EASILY, ASK FOR NO STITCHES. They come out quickly anyways and open back up to the regular holes. Then the anesthetist came in and put in the IV which pinched, but I’m very used to it due to having gotten a lot of bloodwork done and allergy shots. Totally fine! He put in the mouthpiece between my front teeth which made me want to gag a little bit, but I asked him if I could move it and I did, which made me feel better. He started the medication right then and it was fine. No feeling at all. I decided to close my eyes just because keeping my eyes open and suddenly going out seemed creepy to me. I honestly recommend keeping your eyes closed and just chilling with the nitrous oxide before the IV with the sedation starts. Then I went out, and vaguely remember getting wheeled to my father’s car with the sun in my eyes, and then falling asleep again. (Another sidenote: don’t sleep too much the night before, wake up tired so you're already wanting to sleep, then the IV starts and you go out.) The next thing I remember is walking in my apartment and being pretty awake, and after about 5-10 minutes I felt like normal again. The blood is a little nasty, but it’s doable. The gauze kind of made me nervous before, but they must have numbed my mouth and lips (even my tongue I think..?) because I could barely feel it in my mouth. It only needs to be there for about 30 minutes, or until the bleeding stops, not too long or it could pull out the blood clot(s). I should also mention that I got out all four wisdom teeth, one with an infection, two completely above the gum, and another coming throgh the gums a little. There are barely any holes in my mouth. I’m honestly so pleased, happy, and pleasantly surprised by how small the holes are and how well everything went, even when I would have rather died than get it done the night before. I apparently started laughing getting out of the car which I don’t remember, but I didn’t say anything weird or crazy. My jaw is a little sore, but my gums feel great right now and it doesn’t hurt at all. I’m ready to go get some icecream and sorbet right now, and I just got done at 11:00am ( a little over three hours ago!). I’m fully coherent, feel fine, and am doing well. The room was also right in front of a little lake and trees, which was nice. I would recommend getting a room with outside windows if you can just to feel a little better.


my anxiety: mentally painful, wanted to die, was terrified

reality/what happened: no pain, no awareness, no issues



to conclude with the advice I listed:

If you gag easily, get nitrous oxide, and ask for no sutures/stitches.

Get there as late as you can without being past your appointment time, minimize the waiting time as much as you can.

Take or get prescribed an anti-anxiety med for the night (or even week) before if you need it. (I just took benadryl the night before since it has a mild sedative effect.)

and of course, I recommend IV sedation and closing your eyes once it starts to feel calm like you’re falling sleep.


I’m so glad it went well, really, I am. The amount of anxiety I had beforehand was not worth it. It was SO SIMPLE and you will also be fine even if you’re like me and HATE even getting mouth X-rays.

Good luck to anyone that’s getting teeth removed, it’s actually better than getting a dental cleaning since you’re out for it. Coming from someone who has worried and had extreme anxiety since I was born.

 

[thedogdemon]

Wow, congrats!

For future reference to people reading: I'd just like to state for us who have no dental insurance, getting IV sedation is expensive and I have found the group who provides my practice of choice office with it won't accept a payment plan. If you can work out a payment plan with your dentist's office manager to pay for cleaning and a filling or more, then please do get your work done! Your mouth will thank you for it!!