this post was submitted on 10 Oct 2024
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I just learnt a sore tooth of mine is caused by my tooth root never fully closing (due to getting braces and shifting my teeth around). Now at 30 I need a root canal.

I’ve never even had a cavity before. I’m legit terrified. Teeth are the one thing that are much worse than nails on chalkboard for me.

How was your experience been? Any words of advice or words of encouragement? I could use it :(

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[–] Dorkyd68@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Just get the gas! It's very affordable and very relaxing i did mine without the gas and it still wasn't too bad

[–] PerogiBoi@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Where I live doesn’t have a lot of specialists so I’ll probably need to rent an Airbnb or something in the next major city to be able to get gas.

[–] Dorkyd68@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Bummer. Good luck!!

[–] 2ugly2live@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago

I've had one and I am straight up terrified of needles in general. The only thing that hurt me was the initial needle. I won't lie, getting a shot in the roof of the mouth is not a good time, but literally everywhere else is on par, if not less than a regular needle. I don't know how to explain it, but it's less resistance, and a good dentist will numb along the way. Also, let your dentist know. You're not the only one who finds it scary. They'll do what they can to make it comfortable. And if it's long, they usually let you wear headphones. It's not a spa by any means, but once you get the injection (which I promise is not bad), that's it. Hard parts done. And you'll sleep great that night because it'll be all over. 👌🏾

[–] INHALE_VEGETABLES@aussie.zone 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Good luck kid your gonna need it

[–] PerogiBoi@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 week ago
[–] lordnikon@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

had ones done with a local only was not that bad just be careful with that you eat as you don't feel it as much if something is stuck downstairs there like a seed or chip. years later had something stuck didn't know it and snapped the screw and lost the tooth without ever feeling it. bended up having to have the tooth pulled and getting a implant for way more money.

Even had the tooth pulled with only a local was not that bad my jaw hurt from holding my mouth open than the tooth than the tooth itself

[–] PerogiBoi@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Gosh that sounds horrible. It’s my front tooth and I don’t need a cap apparently. Lucky that the facilities were close by.

[–] lordnikon@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

mine was a root canal after i had my crown but still its not bad if you find a good dentist its mostly their sound and vibration you feel. Get a dentist that has TV is a plus they give you headphones and you can just zone out. Three episodes of star trek ds9 and I was done.

[–] PerogiBoi@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Good choice on DS9 haha. My imagination is hard to control so I might have to be on something because the sounds, smells, and vibrations all blend together and cause me absolute terror haha

[–] lordnikon@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago (2 children)

When it comes to those thoughts a wise woman once told me let the bear eat you. Just let the anxiety wash over you and know you will come out the other side.

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[–] corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 week ago

Had one.

  • it's okay to be apprehensive
  • use a reputable clinic - Dr Nick will give you PTSD
  • it's gonna cost a bit. Ensure you have insurance or a healthy bank situation. It's like us$2k here all-in but we can get it back from taxes.
  • it's a long process and there is weird stuff going on. Listen to the practiced pros and warn them you're a noob. They'll understand and ideally warn you which ooky thing is happening next so at least it's not a surprise.
  • sometimes the temporary cap pops out if you have one while waiting for the permanent one. As long as you can bring it in to the office, they'll glue it back in in 2 minutes. You want them to glue it back in.

After a period of time you will be totally unaware of it as anything other than a tooth. It's not expected to fall out, split, or receive coded messages.

Breathe.

[–] Nemo@slrpnk.net 2 points 1 week ago

I had half of one. It fixed the pain, never went back to get the other half done.

[–] Elorie@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago (2 children)

I had one, from a tooth that got damaged with braces as a teenager. It finally got to the point in my 40s that it hurt all the time and couldn't be saved. My dentist suggested the root canal. Like you, I was scared.

I didn't need to be scared. It barely hurt after - in 48 hours it was like it never happened. During the procedure (maybe 75 minutes total?) they had really good pain blocks. My advise is to let them know your fear. Good dentists/endodontists expect it and have ways to help you.

If you've been in pain from this for a while, you have already been feeling the worst of it. It'll be so much better afterwards. Really!

They will likely fit you with a temporary crown to protect the remaining tooth until a proper crown is ready. Most of the pain will be from your irritated gums after the procedure, which will ache. Root canals terminate the damaged tooth nerves, so you may need to relearn how to chew on that tooth a bit. But did I mention it won't hurt?

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[–] CrabAndBroom@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I literally had one on Friday! Long story short: mine was nowhere near as bad as I was expecting.

I had a wisdom tooth removed a couple of years ago and that sucked but it was bearable - it hurt for about two weeks, but Tylenol made it manageable. So I was expecting something along the same lines here. The actual procedure itself was fine - the scraping out of the inside of the tooth is a weird sensation, but not painful 'cause they freeze you up. Then afterwards, once the freezing wore off it hurt for about three hours and I was expecting it to suck for a while. But I had a Tylenol and a nap, and when I woke up it wasn't hurting at all and it's been fine ever since.

Other people have told me that they had pain for a week or so, so your mileage may vary, but yeah for me it was literally just a few hours of discomfort and then back to normal. Nowhere near as big a deal as I thought it was going to be.

[–] PerogiBoi@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 week ago

I had 4 wisdom teeth extracted at the same time when I was younger so I’m really relieved to know it won’t be anywhere like that. 🥲

[–] NauticalNoodle@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I've had two. If there's an infection and the dentist get's a person on antibiotics several days beforehand, then the procedure has a pretty limited amount of pain. Usually less pain than a typical filling. As others have pointed out, the local anesthetic shots are often the gardest parts which aren't that bad. Don't avoid the local anesthetic. If you need more, speak up. Basically, if you can handle a few seconds of being pinched then a root canal is no problem. There are also bad dentists out there.

[–] Wolf314159@startrek.website 2 points 1 week ago

It's not all that bad. Ever done body work on a car with bondo fill, grinding, drilling, and sanding? It smells, sounds, and vibrates just like that, but in your mouth. The drugs will work, unless you take drugs like weed recreationally. Go ahead and tell the dentist this because you will need more than normal. Follow all the dentist instructions, especially about icing afterwards and taking ibuprofen (not for the pain, but to reduce inflammation), even if you feel okay. The worst part for me was always how sore my jaw was just from holding it open so long. Don't try to go to work afterwards, it'll just interfere with your aftercare of ice to the jaw. Besides, you'll just end up drooling on yourself. It's not so bad really. You'll be fine.

[–] ghen@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 week ago

My nerves were dead in that tooth. They died before the appointment date. All the pain from the toothache disappeared. The doctor did the root canal without anesthesia and i didn't feel a thing. Also because i went to a specialist it was far more professional than a cavity at my main doctor. Two thumbs up

[–] w3dd1e@lemm.ee 2 points 1 week ago

My dentist had to break apart a wisdom tooth and remove it in pieces. They also had to drill and fill cavities in nearby teeth.

They gave me a shots in that area to numb. They did a bit of testing before doing to work to make sure I was sufficiently numb. It didn’t hurt much, but there was some pinching that didn’t feel awesome.

The worst part for me was the pushing, pulling, and vibration of the tools in your mouth. It doesn’t feel natural and it made my skin crawl. I didn’t like the sound either. I recommend earbuds.

Afterwards, I had no pain at all. They gave me hydrocodone to take but I honestly didn’t even need ibuprofen. That isn’t the experience of most people, I’m told. I’m very lucky.

Aside from the headphones, my best tip is to visit a dentist that you feel comfortable with. Tell them up front, that you’re feeling anxious and any worries you have. A good dentist will do their best to explain the process clearly and do what they can to ease the pain.

[–] Mad_Punda@feddit.org 2 points 1 week ago

The worst thing of the root canal for me was that they had a hard time getting the numbing agent where it needed to go, so they used a lot, so half my face was numb for the rest of the day. So I looked really weird when eating/drinking/speaking/smiling.

[–] SplashJackson@lemmy.ca 1 points 1 week ago
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