A Quick Adventure To The Dentist (or Ok, Maybe I Overreacted A Bit)

I posted last week about going to the dentist and how my appointment ended up being split over 2 days. Last week was supposed to be a cleaning plus x-rays and the check-up from the dentist. But I only had the cleaning and my x-rays and check-up got moved to this week. But during my cleaning, we discovered a very small mark in a tooth that could turn into a cavity or worse if nothing was done. So it was decided that getting a filling would be added to my appointment this week.

I’ve had bad luck with the dentist in the past, but in the recent past things have been better. Even my last major dental work ended up being much easier than I thought it would be. And I had been reassured that this filling was even less involved than the last one so it would be super quick. But even with all that, I was still pretty nervous about everything. I had other things that distracted me from feeling panicky in the days leading up to the appointment, but when my appointment day came I was pretty shaky.

When I arrived, I saw the dental tools that were going to be used for my filling. I tried to keep reminding myself that this was going to be easy, but the fear was just building up in me and I couldn’t get worst-case scenarios out of my head.

I had my x-rays first and I was so glad that I had those this week versus last week. The things they have to put in your mouth for them aren’t the most comfortable things and I would have hated feeling like that plus being nauseous. The x-rays got done quickly and then it was just time to wait for the dentist to come look at all my teeth before doing the work.

I was still terrified that he would tell me that he found something else wrong with my teeth. While I work really hard at taking care of my teeth, genetically I have bad (or not-so-great) teeth. I try really hard to not need dental work, but it’s just something I have to deal with because of how my teeth are. Fortunately this time the dentist said that my teeth looked great and where he was going to do the filling was even smaller than he expected so it should be super easy!

Then it was time for what I knew would be the worst part for me. I had the option of getting this done without a Novocaine shot, but to me that probably would have been worse than having a shot. And it was only one shot this time instead of 2 (which seems to be the norm for me). I tried to stay calm and I did better than usual, but it still wasn’t good. I hate that shots make me cry a bit (and I think it’s just worse at the dentist because I know there is potentially more pain after the shots versus my IVs at MRIs which don’t hurt), but my dentist is used to me by now and how difficult this is for me. And he recognizes that I’m doing better even if it’s still not easy.

The shot took effect really quickly and they were able to get started on the work. The drilling was maybe 15 seconds and then they were putting the filling in where they drilled. They dried it with the light and checked my bite so they could file it down to keep my bite aligned. And in under 5 minutes from the time I had the shot they were done! It was almost ridiculous how quickly it was over! I knew it would be fast so I wouldn’t have to watch a movie while they worked to distract me, but I did have my headphones so I could listen to Spotify or something while they were drilling. But that wasn’t needed. With the exception of the shot, it was easier than a cleaning!

I was out of there in no time and ready to go on with my day. I was very numb for a while so I had to be careful not to bite my lip by accident, but I think I did do that when trying to eat some lunch so I’m a bit sore now. But honestly this appointment ended up being ridiculously easy so having a minor issue after the fact didn’t bug me too much. I was just glad I got through this and that it really was worse in my head than it really was. I rarely believe things would be easier than they are, but I think that idea is worse than preparing for something that wasn’t needed.

I know that for some people going to the dentist isn’t a big deal and they don’t even worry when they need dental work done. They probably think I’m crazy with how big of a deal I make these appointments. And I’m starting to realized that I am overreacting from time to time, but the truth is that the fear is still very real for me and it may never go away completely. But at least it is getting better for me and I have more positive dentist memories to help outweigh the scary ones in my head.

SaveSave

You Might Also Like

More Prepared Than Necessary (or Splitting Up Dentist Appointments) Another Year Another Dentist Panic (or One Medications Overriding Another) A Boring Visit At The Dentist (or Getting Ready For A Future Bad Appointment) Last Dentist Appointment For A While (or Not Really A Quick Appointment) My Fear of the Dentist (or Why I’m a Faint Risk) Surviving At The Dentist (or When Will I Grow Out Of My Fear)