Welp, I booked a dentist appointment for the first time in.... at least 8 years!

[Kanin]

I have extreme dental phobia, but a new practice opened up near me recently and it has stellar reviews. I'm finally going to face my fear. Hopefully what I've built up in my head is worse than the actual experience! I could use some "it went better than I thought!" dentist stories, if you have them!

[maize]

Congratulations on doing something hard!

I think that many dental practices are getting better at dealing with patient anxiety and discomfort. I don't have any particular stories, dentist visits aren't hard for me personally--even the root canal and crown I had to get last year weren't that bad; maybe hearing that is helpful? I'm sending you positive thoughts and wishes for your anxiety to be manageable and the visit to go well. I have heard of people taking anxiety medication before dental procedures, so that might be an option.

It's tough when you have to fight your own brain to do something that needs to be done ((())).

[Kassia]

Good for you for taking such a big step!  Hope it's a good experience for you - that's a good sign about the reviews.  

[elegantlion]

I had extensive dental work done a few years ago. I went to my university's dental school and got a great student dentist. I had radiation tx in the 1990s that ruined my dental health and I had also knocked my two front teeth out as a kid, so those crowns needed to be replaced. 

I saw my dentist over 13 fillings, 1 extraction, and two crowns (so like several visits over a year). He was great, easy to chat with, great bedside manner. 

Recently, I've had to see another dentist. I have moved and my student dentist graduated anyway. The new dentist is super nice, personable, very upbeat when dealing with the additional 5 fillings I've needed. 

While I'm not consciously nervous, I do get nervous and my blood pressure tends to go up in the doctor's office. So beforehand, I listen to relaxing music, try to burn a candle like lavender. My SO will go with me often just to be supportive. So you could try some relaxtion techniques beforehand. 

My front teeth were visually embarrassing before I had so much work done. Now, I don't mind smiling. I think of how much better I feel about my overall health after visiting the dentist. 

I hope you have a great experience. 

 

 

[Lawyer&Mom]

Lots of people are just coming back to the dentist after extended breaks.  Okay, so maybe not eight years, but still you are not alone!  I recently had my first cleaning in since the pandemic and the whole office was super nice, and no one was judgmental at all.  I’m sure they will be thrilled to see you too. 

[mommyoffive]

Good for you!   I went like 7 years without going.  I can't even remember why???  Busy.  Pregnant.  Forgot?  I don't know.  

I would probably tell them that about your feelings going in.  I try to do that.  I tell them oh I have a small mouth and really bad gag reflux.  They offer things like numbing sprays even just for the xrays where they put the films in your mouth and to tell them if I need them to stop.  

I am hoping your visit goes well.

[TrulySusan]

Definitely tell them you are anxious. I told mine I am a giant baby which is an exaggeration but now they treat me great! 😂 

[Katy]

Good for you! I had that problem and found the best reviewed dentists are really good at actually getting me numb which totally relieves my anxiety.

[Amethyst]

Good for you, Kanin! I know it’s not easy. I am a dentist, and I definitely want my patients who have dental fear to let me know. All the dentists and dental hygienists that I know will bend over backwards to make you as comfortable as possible. We definitely don’t want you to put on a brave face and white knuckle through it. I’m sure the anticipation will be worse than the actual experience. Good luck! 

[JennyD]

Way to go!  I had terrible dental phobia when I was younger -- thanks in no small part to a horrendous pediatric dentist -- and as a young adult I did not see a dentist for many many years.  When I got pregnant, though, I decided to face my fears; not only did I know that it was important to address my dental health but I really did not want my kids to be afraid of the dentist, too.  So I picked a dentist who said he specialized in fearful patients and made an appointment.  It was so hard to make myself go and I was absolutely terrified, but everyone was so kind and it just wasn't that bad.  Fast forward 16 years and i have zero anxieties about going to the dentist, and better yet, neither do my kids.

My one piece of advice is to be up front with them that you are phobic about the dentist.  A good dental practice will know how to make things easier for you.   Oh, and if you can't deal with everything at one visit, then that's fine.  Just do what you can.  You can always come back another day.  

Good luck!  

 

[MEmama]

Hoping it goes well for you!

I agree with everyone else— definitely speak up about your fears and advocate for yourself. Making sure their patients are comfortable is part of their job.

 

[gstharr]

13 hours ago, elegantlion said:

I had extensive dental work done a few years ago. I went to my university's dental school and got a great student dentist. I had radiation tx in the 1990s that ruined my dental health and I had also knocked my two front teeth out as a kid, so those crowns needed to be replaced. 

.........

........... 

My front teeth were visually embarrassing before I had so much work done. Now, I don't mind smiling. I think of how much better I feel about my overall health after visiting the dentist. 

 I am half way through a treatment plan at a dental school. It was about a 10 year gap for me. I highly recommend the dental school if you anticipate extensive work.  My plan includes four implants, four crowns,, bone grafts and sinus surgery.  The cost for all is under the cost of two implants from a private dentist.

[Kanin]

18 hours ago, Amethyst said:

Good for you, Kanin! I know it’s not easy. I am a dentist, and I definitely want my patients who have dental fear to let me know. All the dentists and dental hygienists that I know will bend over backwards to make you as comfortable as possible. We definitely don’t want you to put on a brave face and white knuckle through it. I’m sure the anticipation will be worse than the actual experience. Good luck! 

Thank you so much! I am mostly concerned that they'll judge me for letting things go this long... I know that some things that would have been super minor are now major. Ugh. I am so mad at myself!!

[Kassia]

6 minutes ago, Kanin said:

Thank you so much! I am mostly concerned that they'll judge me for letting things go this long... I know that some things that would have been super minor are now major. Ugh. I am so mad at myself!!

Try not to be mad at yourself.  What's done is done and you're doing what's best now.  ❤️

The minor issues becoming major is what drives me to go regularly even though I hate it.  

 

[Amethyst]

1 hour ago, Kanin said:

Thank you so much! I am mostly concerned that they'll judge me for letting things go this long... I know that some things that would have been super minor are now major. Ugh. I am so mad at myself!!

If they are rude to you, find a different dentist! I always try to reassure my patients that they are here now and they are taking positive steps to improve their oral health, so they should be proud of themselves not embarrassed.

[Lecka]

Good for you!  I had a long gap one time (7 or 8 years) due to moving and having young kids.  I got my kids to the dentist and I got them signed up for a pediatric dentist, but I didn’t do it for myself.

To be honest there was more scraping than usual the first time back.  But since then I have gone regularly and it has been pretty smooth.  Well, I had a gap during Covid and the first visit back was worse than usual, but not as bad as before.

For my first time back, the hygienist was extremely nice, didn’t make me feel bad at all, or anything.  She told me all about her son’s Boy Scout troop that my son might want to join when he got older.  It went much better than I had expected.  It was really not bad!  I expected it to be a lot worse than it was.  
 

Now I want to go regularly for the rest of my life just so it won’t be awkward like this ever again!  

[Lecka]

To be honest I think it is maybe not that rare and they do see people coming in after long gaps, and it’s not that unusual to them.  
 

It’s not what I was thinking before I went, but there was a real lack of shock (or judgment lol) and it was not what I expected.  
 

Also the last time I went to the dentist, a woman in the waiting room was nervous and asked me about that practice, and I said they had been nice to me every time I had been there!  
 

Only one practice accepts our insurance (within a reasonable distance) so I didn’t shop around, but they are nice there.  
 

I have been to a rude, insulting dentist practice where they weren’t rude to me but I heard them talking to another man and berate him for smoking, and saying what’s the point, he’s just going to lose his teeth if he won’t quit smoking.  But that was when I was having a bridge made, which is not the same kind of thing.  I went there after seeing a billboard on the highway, and I did get good care at a very good price.  But they were not for routine care, my bridge was broken.  But that did not make me want to go again.  But I think that is not usual!  
 

Edit:  to be fair I think that man might have been rude to them first?  But still, it made a bad impression on me, I didn’t think he deserved someone to say that to him.  
 

Also to be fair I had a great impression other than that. 

Edited April 5, 2022 by Lecka

[MercyA]

I know for sure that it was over 5 years--probably more--between dental appointments for me more than once. I have a severe dental phobia too. For a while I only went when there was something major wrong. 

It made a big difference for me to go to a practice tailored for people with dental anxiety. They are one of the few practices in my area to offer IV sedation and initially I started with sedation for every appointment. The last two times I have just used laughing gas and I think I might be able to do a cleaning without it next time.

Just be very clear about what your issues are. I told them the specific things that bothered me, that I was afraid of. They have heard it all before, trust me! Just tell them. If it helps say, "I am embarrassed it has been this long but I have a dental phobia."

If you have any discomfort during the procedures, tell them. There are all kinds of things they can use now, including great numbing gels to help with the numbing shots.

Let us know how it goes! Proud of you for doing this! 

[theelfqueen]

I do every appointment with Halcion.