I hate going to the dentist!

[JcMack]

I would rather swim a raging river full of alligators and crocodiles than go to the dentist, and I don't swim that well. I think my fears stem from childhood memories of the dentist. He was that guy that inflicted a lot of pain via a 150 rpm drill with more drive belts than a factory power loom. My mother would drag me kicking and screaming to the dentist a couple times a year. I remember I needed a gold filling one time and the cost was enormous. $22, my father almost fell of his chair. I lost it about 10 years ago, it's probably worth $220,000 by now.
Most of my friends have bridges or plates or wadyacallem from fights or falling off bar stools, but not I. Yesterday I had to to the dentist as it's been about 8 years. 8 years ago I tried one of those cheapo "dental plans" DO NOT DO THAT! The guy yesterday was my dentist about 25 yrs. ago. He moved, but I tracked him down and went. He said "you know I moved to get away from you, you whining crybaby". So I spent all my "new gun" money to save two front teeth but it's worth it, cause now I won't have to ask Santa for two front teeth for Christmas.
The moral is: See your dentist soon, you may need to bite the bullet soon.

 

[crushnbugs]

Lol funny story!

A couple weeks ago I had a dental interaction, I'll spare the details. Final outcome is that #31 is now in a cup on top of my safe. That little bugger caused me much pain!

Now the healing process and I may be in for an implant. Any words of wisdom on implants would be appreciated.

Yes I know they are a couple mortgage payments...

 

[wbraswell]

Going to the dentist, is like buying guns. Don't put it off, because it will cost more the longer you wait. When avoiding the dentist you are taking chances with your health. Infections in your mouth can be serious stuff. Remember that your mouth isn't that far from your brain, and infections can easily spread. I'd much rather endure pain in the dentist's chair, than a toothache. If you have friends with dentures, you know, they ain't the same as the real thing.

 

[SweetMK]

No one has put up a good argument for not going to the dentist, other than fear.

This is the S&W forum, there is not supposed to be any fear.

That said, nobody has stated a way to make trips to the dentist easier!!

Your teeth are like a S&W Model 18. They need to be taken care of!!

A trick I learned over 10 years ago is a little devise sold at Walmart called Plackers. Plackers Mint Flossers, 2 pk: Health & Wellness : Walmart.com

Don't buy the off brand get the green Plackers. Use them every night before you brush your teeth. Then use mouthwash.

100% of teeth problems go away!! I am 62 and have not had a cavity in over 10 years. I got started due to tender gums. That had to be due to food left in between the teeth. My gums are "bulletproof" now.

I am addicted to Plackers. I now use one after every meal.

When you see what comes out from between your teeth EVERY time you use a Placker, you will be addicted also.

The food stuck in there is a place for bacteria to grow, the bacteria is what rots your teeth.

The interesting thing is to use one AFTER brushing and see food still coming out from between your teeth.

OR - Do the alternative - do not take care of your teeth, kind of like letting a Model 18 lay under the seat of your truck.

You will have to deal with the neglect later. It is much better to not let the gun or your teeth corrode away in the first place!!

Or, I guess you could let your guns rust, also!!

 

[ogilvyspecial]

Going to the dentist, is like buying guns. Don't put it off, because it will cost more the longer you wait. When avoiding the dentist you are taking chances with your health. Infections in your mouth can be serious stuff. Remember that your mouth isn't that far from your brain, and infections can easily spread. I'd much rather endure pain in the dentist's chair, than a toothache. If you have friends with dentures, you know, they ain't the same as the real thing.

How true, earlier this year a neighbor went to the Dentist and it was a good
thing he did as that was the first step in learning that he had a brain anurisym (sic).

 

[bigolddave]

Just went for a cleaning and check up today. Said it had been eight years since I had had a full set of xrays (why would that be necessary when I don't have a full set of teeth?) I think it was just the new machine they wanted to try out.

 

[jkc]

Lol funny story!

A couple weeks ago I had a dental interaction, I'll spare the details. Final outcome is that #31 is now in a cup on top of my safe. That little bugger caused me much pain!

Now the healing process and I may be in for an implant. Any words of wisdom on implants would be appreciated.

Yes I know they are a couple mortgage payments...

FWIW, Just yesterday I had a satisfactory checkup two weeks after having two implants "installed", that, after having two molars extracted and the associated lost bone replaced by grafts, six months prior.

I experienced no significant pain in the aftermath of either procedure (didn't touch my seriously heavy duty pain meds after day one, and am hoping I can recoup some of my costs by peddling them to the neighbor high-school kids), and the procedures, while not pleasant, are not the worst among my misadventures in dentistry. The most frightening thing is the expense, amounting to a couple years of mortgage payments. I think that if you can afford them, implants are a superior alternative.

 

[dlbx2]

left, lower wisdom tooth filling fell out while eating a hamburger. I thought the hamburger had a piece of metal in it. Didn't realize that it was a filling until brushing before bed. The brush must have irritated a nerve, as the rest of the night was awful. An xray the next morning not only indicated that a cavity had caused the filling to fall out, but also that the roots were deep and that each was curved into the jawbone. Dentist said that it had to come out in 4 pieces due to the root issue. After numbing me so much that my left ear lobe was numb, he cut across, and then lengthwise until it was in 4 sections. Now came the fun part. The roots sounded like a twig breaking as each one broke loose from my jawbone. Afterward he said that I probably should have been to an oral surgeon and had anesthesia. After the numbing wore off, all the Darvocet did was make me sick. The blood oozing from the site and down my throat most of the night wasn't pleasant either. The reason that I am sharing this is because it completely did away with my uneasy feelings about going to the dentist. I know that if I made it through that experience, a check-up and infrequent fillings are a breeze. The tooth hurt so severely before extraction that I was willing to do anything to get rid of that painful thing.
DLB

 

[rimfired]

Fear has nothing to do with it. Good lookin staff
and the $$$ are the misery.

Got my first tooth knocked out in a fist fight in a monsoon
incountry training in a chow line. I objected to his buddies holding his place.
Evidently a tap on the shoulder was the wrong thing for me to have 3 on 1
and a sucker punch immediately. Spit the tooth out and went swinging into
the maelstorm in my poncho. Ever try to fight in a poncho, in a Monsoon, in the sand?
I can show you the scars. I got my hits in but nobody would help me, 3 on 1 kicking me.
Ain't that grand.

 

[semperfi71]

About 23 or so years ago I went to the dentist.

My hygenist had the prettiest green eyes I had ever seen.

She was doing all the talking as my mouth was filled with "stuff" so I couldn't ask if she was single. So I read the "diplomas" on the wall. Her first said she was single. The second one in her career said she was married. The last one in her career said she was single...again.

I asked her out and we were married about a year and a half later. Still are, and hopefully always will be.

If you choose your dentist...and especially your hygenist well, the visits will be rather pain free.

 

[RYNO]

The last time I had a cavaity the dentist let me watch with a mirror while she did her work. That was pretty neat to watch. A couple shots in the mouth are nothing compared to nasal surgery.

 

[Faulkner]

I always thought my parents were fanatics about taking me to the dentist regularly. By the time I was 16 the dentist had pulled six baby teeth (roots and all) and four permanent teeth pulled so as to keep me from having to wear braces. Well, my teeth turned out straight enough but I swore I'd never go back to the dentist.

So, nearly 30 years later my new daughter-in-law is a dental hygenist. She is aghast that I've not been to the dentist in 30 years. Although I am very diligent about taking care of my teeth she is worried at the long term problems I may be hiding. She is as sweet as she can be, so she weakens me down and makes an appointment for a checkup and cleaning. From the visit I learned a few of things . . . first, that gas is some cool stuff! Second, dentistry has changed a good bit in the past 30 years. Third, wow, I love that gas.

That first cleaning took a bit of work, but after 30 years I only had one cavity. I've since been to my second cleaning and it was a breeze, but I sure like the gas.

 

[chez323]

I don't think anybody likes going to the dentist! I sure as hell don't... remember growing up our dentist never used novicane unless a tooth was being pulled. He scared me to death, wasn't till I joined the Air Force and realized that he was masochist...... even the military dentist used it when he drilled..... First time I came home on leave I wanted to go there and punch him for all the pain he caused me growing up.

 

[labworm]

15 years ago I was terrified at the thought of going to the dentist.

At that time my regular dentist retired and Dr. Marianne picked up all his clientele.

My fear no longer exists and I regularly check in every 6 months or if I have a problem.

Almost forgot to mention: Dr. Marianne also has gotten her permit (LTC A in MA) and loves shooting her 9mm.

If they gain your trust, the fear seems to disappear, for me it did.

 

[forresth]

The only thing worst than going to the dentist is...

Having a ragging toothache over a long rainy week end.

I made my appointment a month ago. A week and a half ago, the pain started up. Yesterday (aka, a half a bottle of Advil later) it was nearly done hurting. Today, I went to the dentist, but the nerve died already, so it was pretty painless.

 

[hunto]

2005, I feel a familiar pain- abscess. Great, had one before, nothing touches the pain but antibiotics (they kill the infection, thus the swelling goes down, and the pain goes away- been there, done that.)

I call the dentist, get appt.
"I have an abscess, doc." I describe the pain.
"Oh, I don't think you have an infection."
"I think I do."
"I don't think you do, but I'll give you the antibiotics anyway."
"Thank you."
"See you in a week."

I go back in a week.
"The pain has decreased."
"Ho ho ho, well, that's funny, because antibiotics take 2 weeks just to build up in your bloodstream." (This is in direct contradiction to what my previous dentist told me)
So he shoots me up, gets ready to do the root canal....but the anesthetic keeps wearing off too soon- a sign, he says, that maybe, just maybe, there is the slightest touch of infection in there.

Just like I told him.

After shooting me up with anesthetic 13 times he gives up, tells me to take antibiotics for 2 weeks, and come back.

I realize he's a quack, find a root canal specialist, and get it done right.

 

[Imshootin]

Had an upper wisdom tooth taken out today. It had been coming in on an angle and lodged against the tooth in front of it. Because of that he had to cut and remove it in a couple pieces. This guy was good. When he told me it was out and we were done, I was shocked.
Didn't have to cut me at all, no stitches. It didn't quit bleeding for about 4 hours but currently, about 8 hours later, it's not hurting at all. We'll see how it feels in the morning.

 

[hunto]

Had an upper wisdom tooth taken out today. It had been coming in on an angle and lodged against the tooth in front of it. Because of that he had to cut and remove it in a couple pieces. This guy was good. When he told me it was out and we were done, I was shocked.
Didn't have to cut me at all, no stitches. It didn't quit bleeding for about 4 hours but currently, about 8 hours later, it's not hurting at all. We'll see how it feels in the morning.

That's good to hear.

 

[BE Mike]

Teeth can cause a lot of spin off medical problems. I had a root canal, but the tooth still remained infected. I didn't figure that out (no pain), so I was very sick with every bug that came around until I finally had the bugger pulled. I have felt so much better since the extraction. I ended up with an implant. IIRC, it cost more than $3,500 to have everything done. I highly recommend implants, if you can afford them. For the implant, I used a dentist who was able to do everything regarding the procedure at his office including restoring bone, cat scans, etc. I highly recommend one-stop shopping for implants.

 

[RightArm]

Seems like my dentist visits are always about 10 yrs apart, but everytime I go I use all my insurance for the year and leave with less teeth and the knowledge that when I go back, there will be more surgery. Next, another broken tooth. Hopefully they'll just give me a root canal and a crown. If they pull more out, I'll live on soup and oatmeal.

It's pretty bad when you're hoping for a root canal.