That's been my mission, avoid the dentist and you won't need to have any work done. Right???
I don't mind having my teeth cleaned or whitened for that matter. In fact, I love having my teeth cleaned and whitened. I floss and brush on a regular basis. I have a very nice smile. I just hate the drill.
Once during a filling, the anesthetic didn't work properly and I felt the most horrible shot of pain. So now when I have to have a cavity filled I am in constant fear of the pain relief not working. The last filling I had resulted in a full blown panic attack including tears, shaking, and sweats. Nice!
So I am now one of those patients who has to have Valium or something before dental work. And even then I'm still freaked out.
When I was about 4 months pregnant the dentist told me I had a new cavity that would need to be filled once the baby was born. I was relieved to have a built in excuse to put it off. I actually went to see the dentist in October (2 months after my son was born still) to follow up. I think the numbness of my grief kept the fear at bay.
I was desperate to do normal things like going to the dentist,,, so I went. Then he set the appointment for my filling to be in November due to me going back home to see the family and take care of all the arrangements to do with my son's ashes. In fact, I even had my teeth whitened while I was there. By the time I got back to London I was back in avoidance mode. So I cancelled my appointment and never re-scheduled.
Well now we're getting ready to go for our donor egg IVF cycle and I have no more time left to avoid it. The hubby keeps reminding me that if I don't get this done before getting pregnant than it will really suck to have to do emergency dental work with no pain or anxiety relief. So I went in to see the dentist on Saturday and as I had feared, I now have a few more teeth that need "work."
WTF?? I now have three teeth with cavities. One seems to be caused by a crack made from grinding my teeth. He asked me if I have any stress in my life. I just laughed and said, "Yes, lots." Oh, and an old filling now has cloudy bits below it so it has to be removed and cleaned out. Yay!!!
So I have to go. I'm totally freaked out. I have a cleaning first and then have to book the dreaded appointment to have the cavities filled. I've got my prescription for 1 Valium pill to take an hour before the appointment. One pill?? Are you serious?? Why oh why are they sooooo stingy with meds in this country? I feel like I need a pile of pills before the apointment, not just one!
So I'm totally freaking out. It's my own fault for putting it off. Now it gets to be just one more thing I have to worry about right now. Another ball to juggle.
Ugh! Procrastination never pays.
Also, avoiding the dentist is not an effective way to keep from needing to get cavities filled.
Dealing with the loss of a child is never easy, but it's even more difficult when you are an expat living far from home. Life will never be "normal" again and so now the challenge is to find my new normal. I am now back in the USA and the proud parent of two daughters, born using two different egg donors. "Frostina" and "Olea" are the loves of my life and I feel so grateful for the amazing women who donated their eggs and made my family possible.
I totally sympathise.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing that got me to the dentist was knowing that my maternity exemption was running out. It's bad enough having to go through that stress and pain but having to hand over hard earned and much needed cash is just adding insult to injury.
You are lucky to have a Dr that prescribes you any Valium. My GP wouldn't even give me sleeping pills a couple weeks ago when I was surviving on 3 hrs a night. Grrr. He wanted to get to the bottom of the problem rather than just cover it up with drugs. In the meantime try herbal tea and come back in a fortnight, if you can get an appointment...
Sorry this has turned into a bit of a rant. You can pluck up the courage and do it, it'll be over in a few hours.
you can do it!
ReplyDeleteHa! An unexpected discomfort associated with the fertility game. Never knew. Just get it over with and treat yourself after.
ReplyDeleteYou have my sympathy. I was a major dentist avoider before having my two (IVF + DE) babies. I won't tell you how many years I went without going, in large part because I KNEW I was going to have to have my wisdom teeth removed. Actually, the thing that really got me into the dentist's office was reading about how good dental hygiene can have an impact on pregnancy. I figured it was time to face up, and grow up. Sure enough, I ended up having to get the wisdom teeth out, at 41. Awful!
ReplyDeleteI had to have Valium, too, to quell the anxiety for a few years after I became a more regular dentist-goer again. Now I really like going, and I do it drug-free, but I really do like and trust my dentist. Would you feel better if you went to someone else?
I haven't been since I was about 14 weeks pregnant. At the time, all the poking made me gag, and thus I couldn't bring myself to go back. Here I am, nearly a year later and thinking I should likely book an appointment. Thanks for the kick in the pants ;)
ReplyDeleteyeah, putting it off is never good. I had to have five route canals...I feel your pain!
ReplyDeleteHang in there :-)
I do the same thing...I freak out because of a past painful experience...so I put it off. I guess my grinding has gotten so bad that I have several cracked teeth right now that could either need a root canal or potentially a cap. I've known this for two years, but I keep using upcoming IVF's as an excuse not to start the dental work, instead of using the IVF's as motivation to get things squared away. Now it is too late for me...and I just have to pray that I make it through the next nine months without any emergencies. I wish I could say that if I had it to do over, I would go to the dentist. But I wouldn't...so I won't be a hypocrite and tell you that is what you should do.
ReplyDeleteI could barely read this post, that is how much I hate the dentist.
ReplyDeleteUgh. I wish you could just clean your dentures.
OMG me too, I hate dentists and I have to go and I can not find the nerve as I know there is so much to be done and I panic just thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteBe brave and do it so you can tick it off the list so there is one less ball in the air, and maybe I will try and find the courage too. xxx