Total Tooth Extraction & Dentures HELP
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Anonymous
I am a 49 yo female. I have lived my entire life with a severe fear & anxiety about dentistry, thanks to a crappy dentist i had as a child. The last dentist I had prior to this one now knew of my intense fear and was really good/gentle. I had many fillings done and root canals/crowns. Well, he retired and of course I had to go find someone else, which I did find a practice I liked. Key noted LIKED. They had several dentists there, one was very bitchy and made unnecessary remarks about my situation. Another I liked, but he is no longer with the practice. Now another I LOVED because she totally understood me & would prescribe valium when I had to have one tooth pulled is gone. 
Anyway, in the last several years, many of my teeth that i have had fillings in are falling apart/cracking. When I went in last time, they gave me a treatment plan that included a couple root canals and crowns. To the tune of over $10,000 out of pocket. I dont HAVE that kind of money and even if I could deal with the fear I have, I couldnt Afford to get this work done. FWIW, 2 teeth that had previously been crowned years ago, i lost. Had them pulled. So the money I had originally invested in those is down the drain. Every tooth I have has an issue. Either old fillings that will one day break the tooth down, a couple cracked teeth, some cavities. I brush faithfully, floss, rinse, etc. To no avail. My father had his teeth pulled when he was in his 20s, due to dental issues we believe were hereditary. My sister had to have hers pulled when I think she was in her late 30s. I am at the point of having my teeth pulled and having dentures. I cannot imagine living the rest of my life in intense fear everytime a tooth breaks or I feel pain. As I write this, my heart is palpatating 10000 miles per hour. One friend i know had all of hers pulled at one time, then waited about a year to get dentures. That I cannot do, i couldnt face people without teeth in my mouth. no way. Another friend of mine has the same fears as I do (just as intense, taking valium before appts, stomach issues due to anxiety, cancelling appts at the last minute). Anyway, I just found out last year SHE went and had dentures done for her lower teeth, and I never knew she did it!!! Has anyone reached a point where they have done something this drastic? At this point, would guarantee the dentist is going to give me a plan of action that will likely be over $20,000 by now. I just cant afford it nor do I want it.
Anyone care to share what they have gone through? |
Anonymous
| OP again. if anyone opted for getting teeth out and having the dentures put in right away, can you share your experience on that as well? that is what I am considering |
Anonymous
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OP--I'm sorry you're in this situation. If I were you, I would ask everyone I know (and trust) to recommend a dentist. If you have a primary care doctor, ask him or her. I found my dentist through my gynecologist and have been very happy.
After you find a dentist you like, then ask for a consultation and see what they advise. I think you need to first find a dentist you like and then learn more about the treatment plan. Don't race into anything right now. It could be that you could get dental care through one of the large university dental schools--the fees are usually lower and the work is heavily supervised by professors. Best of luck to you! |
Anonymous
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OP, I am so sorry. I have dental anxiety too, and pretty serious gum issues, so although my situation isn't as bad, I am very sympathetic.
Though I don't have personal experience, I will echo what PP said. There was an article in the Wash. Post health section about 2 weeks ago about going to dental school to have work done. |
Anonymous
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there are some places that specialize in just that situation...so you'd be surprised there are actually quite a few people in your exact situation.
why not ask the friend you mentioned who treated her? |
Anonymous
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OP here. I forgot to mention, we do have dental insurance. the money out of pocket was just our portion. Dental expenses are outrageous! That said, I have to choose a dentist and stcik with the one we choose. We cant change dentists mid-year AND the one my friend went to sadly is not on our plan. It sucks!
What is worse - towards end of last year, my DH's company decided to change medical insurance. At the time, we could also change our dental over. Well between the fact that there was this whole big blowup at work over the medical insurance (we were given 1 week to decide, the orig offer was a $2000 co-pay per member, which everyone complained about, so they revised and offered diff options, which we took the best, AND the fact my DH was out of work at the time for back surgery, hence he missed a lot of the communication) somehow he did not understand that while the medical choice was a WRITTEN choice, we were to VERBALLY tell them what we wanted to do about our dental policy (keep the policy we had or go to the other plan which the dentist I LOVED was on)and of course nobody asked him any different sooo in a nutshell we were screwed. I actually cried when I heard the news because we cant change for a year. And the other dentist had saturday hours, which worked much better with my schedule.
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Anonymous
I think i saw that segment about it. I cringed LOL I cannot even begin to think of allowing a student to touch me. I know that seems stupid to some. I wish I didnt have this fear.
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Anonymous
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Where are you? I've been to dentists all up and down the Baltimore/Washington area and feel like almost all the ones I went to are total thieves, recommending procedures that are completely unnecessary.
I ended up going back to my childhood dentist because he's honest. And his fees aren't bad in general. He's talked me out of stuff, and/or given different options over the years (I'm almost 50). Dr. Mark Rosenburg Laurel, MD (301)490-1700 And in general, you can always ask about sedation dentistry to help with your fears. |
Anonymous
Dentists ARE thieves. I have searched for sedation dentistry, and none of the drs that offer it are on my plan. I hate my insurance. i dont understand how more dentists dont offer sedation dentistry to begin with
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Anonymous
| I've been to Dr. Zohra Stoman at K St. Dental a few times. She is very gentle. I do not like the practice, but I kept going back to see her. Good luck. |
Anonymous
| There is a dental/denture clinic in Winchester va where an uncle of mine went several times for dentures. He couldn't afford all the work he needed and also had a terrible fear of dentists and they were great. I know that he had to get in line before dawn because they could only take a set number of patients a day. But they are so in demand because they were no/low cost and experts in the field. Sorry I can't remember what it was called but you might find them via a google search. Good luck-I feel for you |
Anonymous
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Boy do I feel for you. I am 46 - been TERRIFIED of the dentist. Genetically I have terrtible teeth, and after a childhood full of terrifying dentist visits and literally dozens of cavities - I literally stopped going to the the dentist, for like 10 plus years in my early 20's.
when I got pregnant I had pretty severe problems so ended up starting to go to someone - and for about 5 years it was very 1/2 assed. I would go only when there was an emergency - and then cancel my routing appts - and disappear. I was so anxious and terrified. I also have a lot of problem teeth - and it scares me. But I am taking it slowly. I somehow have faced my fear and am taking the best care of my teeth that I can. The dentist who I can't say enough good things about works with me. He helped me start going regularly and I am on the right track. I am treating 1 tooth at a time according to what I can afford, the worst ones first and going from there. Also I get cleanings now every 3 months to deal with my terrible gums and they are actually improving! Good Luck. His name is Dr Adam Schwartz He is on Connecticut and Brandywine in Van Ness. 202-244-8848 |
Anonymous
| OP, would you consider going to a dental school for your work? It would be significantly cheaper. Maybe they will give you laughing gas? I'm sorry that you are going through this. It must be awful. |