What made all the difference to me in dental surgery....

[thebunny]

Hello.

I am new here but wanted to share my story as I have learned a few things in the last couple of months that have helped me....

I had a BAD experience at a dentist years ago. This caused me to avoid going until I broke a tooth. I needed nitrous and valium to make it through a planing and scaling appointment.

I also need osseous surgery...on all 4 quadrants.

I had the first surgery and an extraction last week. I did not enjoy it. But it was not as bad as I was expecting. The difference that I have learned is that I trust my dentist. I trust that he does not want to hurt me. I trust that he cares if I say it hurts. He will stop the second I say it hurts. If I say I am not numb, he says that he is not sure how while giving me another injection. I trust him. He has my best interests at heart. AND when I say I am feeling pain, even if he thinks I am nuts, or am only feeling it in my head, he treats it like it is real. It's real to me, so it is real to him.

I can not stress enough the importance of trusting your dentist. I avoided dentists for so long due to fearing not only the pain but how I would be treated. Yes, there is discomfort after the surgery. Yes, I have been on pain pills for 2 days since the surgery. BUT, trusting my dentist makes me willing to go back for the next appointment. The sutures come out in 2 days. I am afraid it will hurt. I am dreading the appointment. But, trusting my dentist is giving me the courage to go to the appointment. I never thought I would EVER be able to handle this as well as I am.

I wanted to share this. I know it seems obvious. But to those of us who panic about the dentist, well, other people just don't understand. I hope my experience and discovery helps someone else.

 

[kitkat]

Bravo Bunny for your accomplishments so far and finding a great dentist that you can trust!

I completely agree with you. If you cannot trust your dentist, you will not be successful in overcoming the fear and getting the treatment you need to restore your dental health. Trust really is the key for long term success. Please try not to worry too much about the suture removal. Speaking from experience after my wisdom teeth extractions, having the stitches removed should be the easiest and most painless appointment you will ever experience. It should only take a couple of seconds to snip the knots on the stitches and they painlessly slide out. You will feel absolutely nothing and probably won't even know that they are being removed. Wishing you an easy and speedy recovery! I'm sure your post will inspire many others who are agonizing over the decision to make the first call to book an appointment.

 

[thebunny]

Thanks. I am still struggling. And this is the hardest thing I have done in a while...possibly ever. And thanks for the info on the sutures. I am hoping it is no big deal...although I am not convinced. But I have made it this far...2 scaling and planing done in 3 appointments and now the 1st of 4 surgeries. I am making it through. And I got lucky. My dentist said I caught it in time, that I am in the best possible scenario/case for the treatment, and the bone loss is still minimal, so my teeth only look a little longer...nothing as bad as I was expecting.

And I hope my story helps.

Trust your dentist. If you don't, go to another one. Its worth it.

I hope this helps someone else. I knew for a while before I broke the tooth that I needed dental care. I was just sooooo afraid. It also feels good knowing that this concern, the nagging "I am going to have to go someday" feeling is gone. I no longer have to be afraid of what will happen if a tooth breaks or something else happens....that feels good too. I got through this. It may, and probably will, take valium for me to get through the rest of the appointments, including the regular cleanings, but I finally feel I can do it. And that feels good.

 

[kitkat]

Thanks. I am still struggling. And this is the hardest thing I have done in a while...possibly ever. And thanks for the info on the sutures. I am hoping it is no big deal...although I am not convinced. But I have made it this far...2 scaling and planing done in 3 appointments and now the 1st of 4 surgeries. I am making it through. And I got lucky. My dentist said I caught it in time, that I am in the best possible scenario/case for the treatment, and the bone loss is still minimal, so my teeth only look a little longer...nothing as bad as I was expecting.

After all that you have endured so far, the suture removal should be a breeze! You will be surprised at how easy it is; I was amazed and having no prior experience with stitches, I was pretty nervous going into it.

And I hope my story helps.

Trust your dentist. If you don't, go to another one. Its worth it.

I hope this helps someone else. I knew for a while before I broke the tooth that I needed dental care. I was just sooooo afraid. It also feels good knowing that this concern, the nagging "I am going to have to go someday" feeling is gone. I no longer have to be afraid of what will happen if a tooth breaks or something else happens....that feels good too. I got through this. It may, and probably will, take valium for me to get through the rest of the appointments, including the regular cleanings, but I finally feel I can do it. And that feels good.

Your story will help others more than you probably realize. Valium or no valium, you have taken control of your health again and that is a huge achievement that will have positive and long lasting effects on the rest of your life! You may have lost a few battles in the past, but you won the war!

 

[thebunny]

Thanks again. I do feel like I am winning the war, and that is something.

I keep telling myself I have come too far to stop now....

 

[Thunderbird]

Thank you for posting and sharing this wisdom.

It makes perfect sense that part of your experience at the dentist would be impacted by how much you trust him/her.

In a strange way I am thinking, wow, these dentists are really close to your intimate/personal space, they are holding sharp instuments that could harm you if used improperly....but even more so, it's that emotional trust that comes from believing your dentist is not going to ridicule you or say nasty, snide comments to you or their staff regarding the state of your oral health when you present yourself in their practice.

A lot of what I have read here regarding emotional pain stems from a dentist's reaction to the state of someone's oral health; they say or let slide mean comments when the patience probably already knows their mouth is a mess.

It takes trust that even if your dentist thinks that your case is the worst they have ever seen, they won't express that to you in a negative, condensending way.