Next month I have to get 5 of my top teeth removed due to decay and abscesses and replaced with implants. I'm afraid. I'm afraid because I don't know if this is going to make my pain worse by messing around with my teeth. I'm afraid of pain. More pain then I have now. I feel like I'm at a breaking point. one minute I feel hopeful like everything will be okay and the next I am just completely lost in a black hole with no light at the end of the tunnel. I can't Handel any more stress. at all. I don't have a choice, I have infections in my teeth and I can either keep them in there and get worse or remove them and most likely get worse considering every time I go to the dentist I feel more pain. I'm just scared.
I'm sorry for you AND can validate your fears -- I've had many teeth removed before TN and have one implant
I've only had 1 tooth taken this year -- it just sucks-- Many people cannot even get their teeth cleaned because of TN - seems like the last people on earth we want to see are dentists and oral surgeons!
Please come back here in a couple of days and let us know how it went : )
well I have just been going back and forth with the dentist & the oral surgon about the date and money and blah blah blah its just stressful I dont want to be dealing with all of the arrangements and the anticipation. I just want to get it over with. and yes I realized people can't even handel a cleaning with TN/ATN. It hurts me to even touch my teeth, so its hard for me to just pay someone to put me in more pain when I work so hard every day to just try to feel good again :-/
Sarah, I am so sorry fir you. I hate dentists and oral surgeon, but dental health is so important that we cannot ignore. It is also very expensive having implants and other treatments. I can understand how stress you are now, especially with the pain you are having. I hope I could help you.
Take care.
There is a small hope that maybe it will calm my pain, but i have been told that this is not likely. either way its going to really suck. I sent an email to the dentist yesterday letting him know that ofcourse I want to go through with everything but also that I am very worried about my pain increasing, he has prescribed me valume in the past before a dental appt. so if he doesn't offer it maybe I should just ask. I hate asking ugh. I'm just going to try to be optomistic (sp?) today and look forward to being healthy. Today is a new day, yesterday was bad but I will just try to put it behind me and look forward to the future (eaiser said than done haha). Its not as expensive for me to get this done because I am getting it done by students at a University... so I am gettting 5 teeth removed and replaced with implants, thats $100 - $200 per removal (depending on dificulty) and $600 per implant so yeah... expensive but it could be worse... next year I have to do the bottom arch. this is kinda aweful because they have to remove all the teeth on the bottom and replace with 8 implants then bridge them all together. anyway I will worry about that when the time comes. this is just a lot for anyone to handel and a bit depressing for someone at the age of 24 :-/
I can empathize - I’m in the same position and have five broken teeth on my TN side. I don’t want implants because I’m concerned they might do more damage putting screws into the bone. I’ve decided to go to the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Dentistry. Because I’m on disability I simply can’t afford the work I need done AND any work I have done is going to be under anesthesia. They’re going to have to knock me out, which is even more expensive. They offer dental care for low income people so their students can get the experience needed. Additionally, I felt it would ne a good learning experience about TN, for the dentists involved. They have an instructor working with them, so I think it’s a win win situation.
SArah - I was also thinking like Cleo - .. .maybe just maybe in the end it WILL ease the pain ??
another thing.. maybe the day or two before surery you can take some Valium - It can really relax you.. don't suffer (but you HAVE to notify your dentist which meds you take.. otherwise it can be dangerous).. maybe taking the tension off with meds.. can ease your fears... the meds are only for a few days.
Hello Sarah...I'm in Toronto and I understand perfectly how you are feeling. I have been trying to get to the dentist for years and have gone thru 7 dentists in the last 6 months to find one I trust and who understands TN. I've been delayed several times but know in my heart that this is not good for my pain. As my neurolgist pointed out ...it's quite likely that my pain is being excerbated by my dental condition. I went to a sleep dentistry appointment last december and it went well but my TN was not overly active. The drawing card for me was their ability to do mega sessions and take care of large quantities of dential procedures at the same time and while I was asleep. The fear is always there for me when I go and lately I've spent hours in the chair. A few weeks ago I had a 5 tooth bridge removed and replaced with a temp.of 7 teeth! Only freezing was used and after 3.5 hours all was well, I have 4 crowns still to go on top of the two just done last week. Six cavities have been cleaned out and yes the cost is astronomical. In my case it will exceed $35,000 and my insurance covers $2000 so I understand the stress of the financial aspect as well. I'm probably ending up with a bank loan, maybe selling my car etc. as I am retired. I found I needed to put aside certain negatives and focus on the health aspects and give myself constant reminders. The longer the bad teeth sit the more possibilities of problems. I discovered when my old bridge was removed that there were 3 cavities underneath and of course that was contributing to pain and since they have been remedied somewhat I've notice a difference in the pain level. It's not as bad and I can eat better.
I still have the temp bridge to deal with (that's 7 teeth) and we've gone from suggesting another bridge replacement to planning to crown most and yes perhaps a few posts if it's possible. The logic which I agree with behind crowns instead of bridge particularly as I have TN is this. If a problem occurs under a large bridge you have no choice but to pull it off and replace it which is costly whereas if you have a problem with a single crown it's easier and less costly to replace, even if you have to do one at a time. There is also the matter of cleaning. It's easier to get between single crowns whereas you can't with a bridge it is all bonded as one. So I also have a tooth removal to do under that temp bridge but fortunately not on my TN side while most of the other work to date and going forward is!
I'm seeing a Prothodonist which is more than just a dentist and she's a woman which I think makes a difference, at least that's my experience to date. I wonder if your dentist can use gas or has the capability of sleep dentistry. I have this option with my dentist but have managed so far with just freezing and been lucky. She is extremely sensitive and constantly checks with me throughout the procedure if I am all right. I hope you will find the courage you need to go thru with this very important work and if you are having a TN event postpone the work. Try some calming activity before you head to the appointent, hot bath, breathing excercises, schedule a massage for the same day but a few hours before, get there earlier than you need to and wander some shops close by, take a friend if you can, have someone on call to pick you up, wear loose clothing, kick you shoes off before getting in the chair if it will help, take two squeeze balls for tension release and squeeze away, bring or ask for a comfortable pillow to rest under your neck and try to be optomistic that this will help you and not hurt you in the end.
Let me know how it all goes...I'll be thinking of you.
Sarah i feel for you..as you know I have been going through a lot of dental work and will continue to. So at least you're not alone in your fears. It worries me a lot too. I had an appointment for them to check on a filling on the other side of my mouth yesterday...but I just didn't go. No call or anything. I know not very responsible....but it really is that scary. I would say the advice to take meds pre-visit would probably be a good idea. And make sure you let them know how serious your pain is....don't be afraid to get on their nerves, they aren't the ones who have to deal with the pain...you are.
Gloria - I am also going to go to the University of Illinois in Chicago I have a Prothodonist, an Endodontist and an Oral Surgon. I am curious to see who you are working with, and it is good news, i think for both of us because they are seeing how this is happening in more then one person. how crazy that we are going to the same place. I have so many questions for you...
Nir- I am trying to just stay hopeful that this will maybe help eventually calm my nerves to get these infections removed, but i do feel like the healing process is going to be very hellish to say the least...
Deb- I am so sorry to hear about everything you are going through as I said to Gloria I do have a Prothodonist so that has been very helpful to me. They are going to use gas when they remove the teeth, they offered sleep dentistry but I have a bad reaction to it so I am hopeing that the gas with the novacaine should be enough for me. Thank you for all your very helpful advise.
Bri- Thank you, and I knwo going to the dentist is so scary now that i feel like I obsess over it but I am just going to try to stay positive because I am working towards a healther me. These people know how serious my pain is and how worried I am but I dont think they really know what to say to me about it...
I was at the dentist last week for my six month check up and they said it looked like I'm "doing great work" in my daily care but the five areas that they had been watching had become cavities anyway. Argh! You can just imagine how pissed off I was. FIVE? So, I decided that my TN (and I emotionally) probably couldn't handle all five to be fixed at once with 2 1/2 hours in the chair. So, I opted for two separate appointments for the two areas needing filiings. My first of those two appointments was yesterday.
->You should also know that I've been in the midst of a particularly bad streak with my TN lately but I'm waiting for an appointment with my neurologist -hopefully someone more responsive than my current guy- later this week. And, I'm pretty desperate to get to feeling better.<-
I too thought that my pain might get worse with any dental work but certainly with any drilling. But, I went ahead with the appointment in hopes that it could get better instead. While the dentist was doing the filling I could periodically feel nerve responses in other branches of the TN but nothing that was particularly painful. I let him know I felt it and that I was concerned. He asked if I wanted to go ahead and I took a deep breath and said yes as nothing had induced pain - just awareness that he was messing in that area. He asked me to let him know if there were any pain indicators that arose.
There weren't. I was in pain when I left but only about a 4. I had stupidly made the appointment for 8 am on a Monday and hated myself for it. I had to go to work! I didn't make it that long as my pain increased pretty quickly and I felt as though I had been horribly beaten on my TN side (a 10 on the pain scale) by about 2pm. I went home and took care of myself. When I woke up this morning though, there is only a slight reminder of the pain and I have been able to do everything I normally do! Yay! I even have hope that what I had been feeling of indications that my TN/ATN symptoms were spreading down into V3 may have been merely because of tooth pain I hadn't associated with teeth-but with TN. :)
I really don't say this to freak you out-but to give you hope that even though going is SO SCARY! And, the fear of more pain may come true on the day of the procedures - the next day may be a miracle you never thought possible (as yours is more than my few fillings). You're in my thoughts and prayers!
I am DEFINITELY going to change the time of my other appointment though! I made the other for 8 am on another Monday! Boy am I stupid! But, I'll change it now and make the next round better.
2 of them pulpiotomies at UIC the other 3 are root canals from a prior dentist... the 2 at UIC they were trying to save from sever infection with no luck the infectons will not go away...
right..it would be hard for anyone to understand who hasn't been through it themselves. just know that we're always here for you...and we actually can understand a lot of what you're going through. when the big day starts getting close just come spill your emotions here...its not much but we will be here for you the best we can. you can msg me anytime [= you're a very strong woman...you'll get through this! I'll continue pray for you too!.
I am glad to see all the support you have here with the TN members all rallying to your concerns. Sometimes I wish I could find a dentist who has TN and really understands the condition. What would that be like compared to any other one. Doesn't matter you have the courage and intelligence to move forward with a very serious issue. The outcome has to be better than before and I'm hoping it will be. Just wondering what other options the dentist might have discussed with you for your teeth and wanted to add one more suggestion for your appointment day. Hopefully the time is scheduled for the optimum period bewteen your regular TN medication. I think that would make a difference. My neurologist suggested as a preventative , that I increase my tegretol for a least a week prior to the appointment as it takes a while for the meds to get into the system. The plan was to pull back the dosage after the dental work was done. Even though I went thru some symtoms I didn't want for awhile with the increase it seemed a reasonable approach to me. Have your dentist and neuro talked to each other about the upcoming work? I have found that it is sometimes difficult for the professionals to interact with each other but may be worthwhile. I know at one point I went to a dentist appointment with TN info printed and handed it to the dentist as it was obvious to me after a few appointments she wasn't versed enough for me on TN. That should have been my first clue to find someone else and I did eventually.
Imagine how wonderful it is going to be without dental issues to deal with! That's positively worth smiling for now!