Saturday, August 8, 2009

What to expect?

Going to the dentist. I haven't been to a dentist in a very long time and I mean a long time.Today I was chewing on a tootsie roll and my tooth broke, so I had to call a dentist. Now I have appointment tomorrow, do you think they will fix the tooth then or would I have to come back for another appointment. It doesn't hurt, kinda more annoying than anything and hard to chew on the other side of my mouth. I know I should go to the dentist on a regular bases but it's just a pain in the ***. And it's not that I don't have insurance cuz I do. Been paying for it for 18 years, just never used it.Now ya know it's been over 18 years since I've been to a dentist.
Answer:
First of all, be aware of the fact that dental insurance is a supplement, not full coverage like medical insurance.If the dentist has enough room in his/her schedule, getting that tooth fixed may be a possibility. But if you have other teeth that present more decay, those will be a priority. If you can't chew comfortably on the other side of your mouth, you may have a bigger problem than you know. Because you haven't had regular cleanings, your gums may be sore, irritated, or you may have periodontal disease. This is not a reversible condition. You can stop the loss of gum tissue, but you cannot grow them back.The assistant will take x-rays, the dentist will diagnose your treatment. The first visit usually involves processing paperwork and finding out exactly what needs to be done. There have been a lot of advances in dentistry in recent years; so don't psych yourself out. You should feel no pain; at the most you may feel some discomfort.Relax, you'll be fine. I had a patient today who hadn't visited a dentist in 20 years due to a bad experience. Now her dental insurance will only cover 6 teeth out of the 9 that need work. I'm not saying this will happen to you. I am saying that it is much easier to keep regularly scheduled visits so you can avoid having the need for extensive, costly work.
Kind of hard to answer this one- if the tooth is cracked largely they may just put on a temporary crown and have you come back later. Maybe that tootsie roll did you a favor- now you can go use your dental insurance.
WOW you probably are looking at several trips to the dentist. they will x-ray and clean your teeth and maybe fix that broken one if it is causing lots of pain. Then they will tell you how many cavities that you have and my dentist will only numb one side of your mouth at a time so if you only have two cavities and they are on different sides of your mouth then you will have to go two times to the dentist but I don't think they are all like that. The scraping sound is what kills me when they are cleaning but for the most part it is not horribly painful you'll be okay
Man you gonna have a mess load of appointments after he gets through with you. Sorry
healthy teeth don't just mysteriously break. did you have a filling ther already, maybe it was old and ready to fall out anyway, or you have decay in that tooth and it broke through. either way don't be embarrassed, the important thing is that your going now. if your new office gives you a hard time, then they are not the office for you. it will probably take the hygienist some time to clean your teeth, probably more than one appointment after 18 years. they can also do freezing for the cleaning if you find it uncomfortable.
ps maybe tootsie rolls are not your best snack idea :)

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