root canal tomorrow am...
 

ugh.

(ive never had one before, but i HATE the dentist)

I had one, at the endodondist. Hi tech, and really easy. You'll be fine.

Best of luck. Not much you can do about it now, so don't stress too much. It's your doc who should be doing the sweatin' the night before. ;)

i'm trying to justify reasons not to go (ie: feigning illness).

it's funny how something so routine can elicit this kind of fear. i've done things that should be exponentially more scary, but something about dentists just puts the fear in me.

i'll end up going, but i'm still nervous as #*(@.

thanks for the encouragement

This isn't routine. At least not for you. That's why it's stressful. Hopefully you picked a doc for whom this type of stuff isn't out of the norm.

Waitaminute. On a Saturday morning?!

i didn't want to take time off from work....

when i inquired about sedation, the dentist was very unaccomodating. i haven't been to the dentist in 11 years (i'm not feeling any pain, but just decided to go for a checkup since work was covering it) for a reason....i have some major apprehension about going.

only worsening the fear is the fact that this place is located on the east side of palmdale, and none of the girls working in the office spoke english. i felt like i was in tijuana for my consultation.

Ok I hate the dentist too...

Put that aside and think rationally about this. You don't like this dentist do you...be honest.

You are going to let some guy poke around in your mouth doing work that can be VERY painful; can if not done correctly cause no end of problems because you feel no choice as you do not want to take time off work...

Don't do it.

Find another dentist and get it done late in the day if you can so that you don't take too much time off...and find one who has the option of sedation.

This is the 21st century...you're not supposed to suffer like we all used to in the dentist's chair.

In fact, find another dentist and get a second opinion...before the root canal gets done.

sage advice. there's something that just rubs me the wrong way about this dentist. i explained to him that i hadn't been to the dentist in many years, strictly because of fear. one would think that he'd make a point to make the experience as comfortable as possible.

it just seems weird that after looking in my mouth (after taking xrays) for, literally, 10 seconds, he was able to determine that i needed root canal. not to take away from his professional acumen, but that seems just a bit of a quick diagnosis

Mike,

Professional acumen or not, you're entitled to feel comfortable with your choice of dentist.

If you didn't like a builder, you wouldn't use him...if you didn't like a mechanic you wouldn't take your car to him...

Same rule applies for your body...

I think that's a telling statement. When it comes to your health, you have to be comfortable with who's treating you. Regardless their level of expertise. My $0.02.

Start the Motrin 800mg BEFORE the procedure to get a jump n the pain!!!

And your final answer???? I'm a hygienist and my husband has a dental phobia based on a horrible childhood experience. It stays with you for life. When we met 3 yrs ago he hadn't been to a dentist in about 10 yrs. We eased him into treatment. Few fillings first then the more involved work. Now he proudly tells of his time in the dental chair- implant, tissue grafting, bone regeneration, crowns, onlays, root canal. Its all about feeling comfortable and trusting who is doing the work. You deserve to have time spent answering all and any questions you have. They can certainly show you what they see on the radiograph which is determining the diagnosis of a root canal. Not all root canals are created equal and with that said, this general practice dentist should perform services within his abilities and if it is beyond his skill level, he should refer you to a specialist (Endodontist).

Don't allow yourself to have an uncomfortable experience which may only cause you to go another 11 years without dental care....too many connections between oral health and total body health.:)

i think i'm going to cancel my appointment and find a dentist that makes me feel a little more at ease.

when i was little, i too, had a horrible experience at the dentist. (the dentist later lost his license, not because of me, though).

my dental insurance blows anyway (this guy was the closest in-network dentist) so i was planning to just pay for a lot of it out of pockiet, anyway. i'm going to find a better place.

Most excellent idea!

angela

Lisa is 100% correct .... finally found a dentist I like, had a crown put in yesterday. I had terrible experiences with dentists in my childhood, good luck finding YOUR dentist...

I had a root canal done a few years ago. It took three trips to the office to get it completed and I had Novocaine at each trip. Other than the shots it was painless and the shots weren't back either, just a little pin prick. Root canals are not like they were 100 years ago where you had to be strapped to the chair to stop hitting the doctor.

i called them up to cancel, and (in broken english) the lady working the front desk told me that it was no problem..especially since the doctor called in sick today, and they would have cancelled my appointment, anyway.

there's a big dental complex right next to where i live...seems to be a bit more state-of-art. i'll give them a call.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Issssss...goes the drill.

The first Root Canal that I had I wanted him to do it cause it was causing so much pain...it was a relief to hear that drill going ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZSSSSSSSSIssssssssss, with the little suction thingy that hangs from your lip going thhhhhsssssss....the Doc pumped so much shyte into my gums that they were turning white..Finally he said that is all he could give me. Then after he drills everything out he starts in with those micro files, and while you don't feel any pain you can still feel the grating vibration as he files open the root canals...The last doc at least had some music to distract me from having your mouth literally clamped open for a coupla hours...just waiting for him to hit something that isn't medicated with pain killer....


Then there is the Dental Implant Doc...I sat in his chair whimpering about the pain I was going to endure while holding onto the Teddy Bear I brought along to comfort me...for the Implants and Bone Grafting he applied the drip to knock me out. Yet while under I could still here talking and working like it was he was in another room far away. So I moaned and he turned up the drip and that is the last I remember until they came in and said it was all over and time to get upfour hours later. I literally staggered like a zombie to the front desk. Saw the wheel chair and thought I am going to be needing it. Next thing I remember is waking up 3 or 4 hours later in my reclining chair. Surprisingly and I do mean surprisingly I had absolutely NO PAIN during or after the surgery.


BTW: The Implants and Bone Grafting was an expensive treatment, but well worthwhile in my opinion because the implants are just like real teeth. I cracked two teeth while eating salads that were not salavageable and had to be pulled. One culprit was a Klamata Olive pit on an old filling and the other a piece of Peppercorn. What was a real beotch was waiting 6 weeks to get the appointment with the Doc to pull the Peppercorn tooth, everytime I hit that tooth the wrong way it got my complete atttention for 15 minutes...the bright side was that I did lose 10 pounds.

On the Klamata Olive Molar the Doc shot me up with Novacaine and Procaine and told me during the process that if very tooth he had to pull was as tough as that one he would find another line of work like brick laying. He put his foot on my chest told me to hold on the the chair and pulled...that not working to well he resorted to a hammer and chisle to get the bugger outa there...When I wandered into Sams Club to fill the pain med prescription blood was running down my chin and onto my shirt..at that point I really didn't give a fk...the pain meds the Doc soaked me in were begining to wear off.

Mike,

Ask your friends who they see...ask several. Nothing like personal recommendation...