I don’t need a diagnosis online, I’m just looking for information. I had a tooth (molar) filled about 15 years ago. It was when I was active duty and the dentist told me it was cheaper to fill the tooth (it’s practically covered in the silver filling material) than to root canal and crown the tooth. There were some problems which made it quite painful (couldn’t get me numb, ended up hitting nerve, etc). Well, now the filling has either shifted or worn down and I’m starting to experience jsut a little pain. I know I need to have it looked at and get it taken care of before it gets worse but to be honest, I am terrified to go back to the dentist! I don’t mean sweaty palms nervous, I mean panic attack just thinking about it nervous.
So finally to my question…what is available out there for me that will allow me to get done what needs doing without me completely losing my shit? Are there dentists out there who deal with dental-phobia? If so, how do I find one?
IANADentist, but try googling “sedation dentistry” in your area. You should get plenty of hits. Also if you’re uninsured, 1-800-Dentist will match your criteria if you don’t want full sedation. If you are insured, you have to pretend you’re not or they’ll end the call - at least they did when I called them over a decade ago. Maybe they changed their policy since then, worth a call anyway.
You could go to the dentist of your choice for an assessment, with the idea that you will not get the work done that day, just the x-rays and stuff needed, a cleaning maybe, and if the dentist determines you’re not a drug-seeker but that you’re genuinely scared but don’t really need full sedation, he may be OK with prescribing valium or something for you to take before the “big” appointment.
I discovered all I need is a little vicodin (10mg) to make my appointments (2 crowns, 5 appointments total) happy.
You just need a kind, understanding dentist who is generous with the nitrous oxide. It wears off a few minutes after it is stopped and has KO’d my dental phobia through several root canals and other nasty stuff. Ask around. People are usually happy to tell you whether their dentist inspires fear or confidence in a painless procedure.
My wife is a dentist and cautions that what she says is just internet crap: look for a guy that will knock you out. The rest of the details would be specific to you.
Now my experience in the military (Army, 1989 to 1996) is that cost was never an objection. In fact, they did shit just because they could do shit outside of the norm.