I just learnt a sore tooth of mine is caused by my tooth root never fully closing (due to getting braces and shifting my teeth around). Now at 30 I need a root canal.
I’ve never even had a cavity before. I’m legit terrified. Teeth are the one thing that are much worse than nails on chalkboard for me.
How was your experience been? Any words of advice or words of encouragement? I could use it :(
I used to have really bad dentist anxiety, so my teeth got pretty bad before I finally saw someone. My dentist prescribed some kind of twilight drug before my procedures, so I could still respond to commands, but I’d have no memory of the event. I’ve had two root canals and the surgeon had me use the same drugs for both procedures. I don’t know if that’s a viable option, but I don’t think I could have done them without.
Otherwise, when you go in for your consult, be honest about your anxiety. If you don’t want to hear the details of the procedure, tell them that. They have to inform you of risks, but they don’t have to go into detail about the procedure. I brought in headphones, which helped me calm down until the drugs kicked in, though, oddly, I can remember the music I woke up to and not much else. I was so scared in the days leading up to the first procedure, but the pain relief was so great that I’m glad I did it. If nothing else, focus on that.
This is good advice. I had an implant post hole screwed into my jaw a few months ago. During the initial consultation I honestly explained I get anxious and asked about what kind of drugs I could get. The dentist was literally like “oh we usually prescribe what I like to call ‘happy pills’” which turned out to be some kind of benzos. I also asked for nitrous. It was a total non-event, I don’t remember it at all, and experienced no pain (that I can remember). Also the initial local anesthetic shot you get in the gums is about 50x worse mentally than physically. It hurts way less than when e.g., you bite down hard on a sideways tortilla chip fragment and it gets jammed up into your gums.
So just be honest, ask for meds, and be proud that you’re taking care of your health and your anxiety.
