Canadutch
Tandarts means Dentist in Dutch, and I’m just as afraid of both.
On Thursday afternoon I have my 2nd dentist appointment since I’ve been living in the Netherlands (almost 8 years). I’m scared because I just downright hate the dentist, but I’m also scared because the first dentist I saw was a total quack. Plus, having only seen a dentist once in such a long time, I’m scared of what the new dentist will find!
What if I need to get a ton of fillings? What if I need a root canal?
WHAT IF HE DOESN’T FREEZE MY MOUTH FIRST?! AGGGHHH!!
The reason I went to the first dentist was because I noticed a chip in one of my back molars and because my teeth were really sensitive to cold and sweets. His answer was that the chip was nothing to worry about and the sensitivity would be relieved by rinsing my mouth with cold water every day that it will eventually become less sensitive.
I knew he was full of it but at that point I really didn’t want to go to another dentist. I used some Sensodyne toothpaste and hoped the chip wouldn’t get any worse.
It did though. Since then it’s been slowly breaking away and now I have less than half a tooth in the back of my mouth which until a few weeks ago didn’t really bother me. Now it’s starting to hurt though and I can’t avoid it anymore.
I have to go to the dentist and I know they are going to either pull it or try to do some nasty procedure like a root canal. If I was in Canada I’d buck up and get it done but here I’ve been putting it off for as long as humanly possible because I’ve heard so many horror stories about people going to the dentist and having things done without them even freezing their mouth first.
If they try to pull my tooth before giving me something against pain, Mr. Dentist is going to get one of those little mirrors on a stick in his eye.
Dentists are very evil people. Best of luck.
Oh yeah for sure, if they don’t understand ‘freezing’ or ‘pain medication’ I’m out of there like yesterday’s news! There’s no way they are doing anything without firm agreement on the pain thing.
I can completely sympathize. Right before I quit my last job I decided to go get my moneys worth out of my dental plan. I was so scared to find out what all needed done since it had been over 5 years since my last visit. Thankfully it wasn’t too bad but after about 6 appointments over 2 weeks, and almost $2000CND that I didn’t pay a cent of, I didn’t want to see them anytime soon. It really wasn’t as horrible as I made out in my head. My best advice is to shop around and always go for the one that advertises “pain free”. Gas in this case is goood :)
I have a friend who is originally from the Philippines and when she was a kid she had a cavity so they just pulled the tooth. She said that’s what they do most the time for cavities there, and at one point it was actually fashionable to have your teeth pulled and replace them with perfect dentures. Could you imagine? Youch!
Good for you for being brave and getting it checked out. My bf had a tooth breaking down like that and the dentist got him in a lot of trouble for leaving it so long. Made it unfixable and a lot harder to pull.
Goodluck. :)
I totalllllllllllllllllllllllly know where you are coming from. I am going to the dentist tomorrow for the first time in YEARS… Aside from a tooth pulled in the past 9 years, it’s been over 12 since I have been to one. I had a hellish childhood of dentists and was scarred for life by the one I had… I have been putting off going back for years, but I now do not have a choice and have an appointment for tuesday morning :S Im worried sick! So I totally know where you are coming from :(
I hate the dentist as well. But if they do have to do ANYTHING. Make sure you TELL them you want to be frozen. Can’t remember the Dutch word for it now, but that is what I used to do, and I made sure before the dentist done anything he froze me first.
I actually got put to sleep back in Oct. for 3 teeth removed, I recomend that, but not sure if they do it in the Netherlands, or if you have coverage, it cost my insurance 1500$ CDN. So I can only imagine what it would be over there.
Good luck Thursday I will be thinking of you.
In japan, I bet it’s even worse. Of course, they say that dentistry in japan is so expensive that no one goes. hence the horrible teeth that people in japan have.
I’m not sure if that’s true, but honestly, does anyone really want to go to the dentist anyways? I haven’t been to a dentist in over 12 years. I know I really need to go…but still.