Serious dentalphobia and passing out?!
Question: I am getting a root canal tomorrow and I was reading the proceudre and was getting kinda sick hearing about drilling on teeth that i was about to puke...I was on my way to the toliet and i passed out for about 30 seconds..everything went black and my legs crumbled beneath me and i woke up with a loud ringing in my head...si this normal to get this nervous and pass out? its never happened to me before and its kinda scary.
I dont know why i started this just now, I guess after reading the wiki on root canal procedure and them talking about tooth nerves and prodding really disgusted me. Is there anyway to calm my fears? ive never been known to have an episode like this before...
Answers: I am getting a root canal tomorrow and I was reading the proceudre and was getting kinda sick hearing about drilling on teeth that i was about to puke...I was on my way to the toliet and i passed out for about 30 seconds..everything went black and my legs crumbled beneath me and i woke up with a loud ringing in my head...si this normal to get this nervous and pass out? its never happened to me before and its kinda scary.
I dont know why i started this just now, I guess after reading the wiki on root canal procedure and them talking about tooth nerves and prodding really disgusted me. Is there anyway to calm my fears? ive never been known to have an episode like this before...
a lot of people are scared of the dentist, many to the degree you speak of. Thats why dentists can prescribe antianxiety medications that you can take the night before and morning of. Your dentist may also have the option of giving you nitrous oxide, an antianxiety inhalation medication that will make you feel like youre high and not scared of the procedure. ask about this.
Maybe you are coming down with a cold or had a weak stomach before from something else? or perhaps you just really dont like to read about medical procedures. To me reading about that stuff is a daily thing (im a dental student) and i find it fascinating lol. we all react differently to different things.
Like others have said, you wont be feeling or seeing any of what is happening. It will be making you feel better than you have probably felt with a tooth needing a root canal.
You can take some music and headphones with you if you dont want to listen, and even some sunglasses if you want to wear them while in the chair. If your dentist is willing, speak to him/her about your fears. Perhaps having him/her reassure you will help you out. They should be willing to help you in any way possible if they are a good dentist.
Well you might start by not looking up any more information just to add fuel to your fears. From the sounds of things you are already worked up quite enough. Put this all in perspective. First of all, you aren't going to feel a single thing that goes on in your mouth. And you aren't going to be in a position to be looking over the dentist's shoulder to watch everything that goes in and comes out. So it just doesn't matter how sickly it looks, because you won't have to look at any of it. As long as the dentist keeps his cookies in place, you are fine. You had a short syncopal episode- if you are interested in the medical term, because you let your imagination run away with you and overloaded your circuits. The best way to calm yourself is to remind yourself that this is just a dental visit. You will get something to numb up your mouth, so it's not like he's going to strap you down and haul out the plyers and Black and Decker tools, and drill through your jaw while you lay there and scream. You can always take along the IPod, and chill out to tunes while he does what dentists do in mouths. And quit focusing in on all the procedure. Your part is just to lie back and chill- that's it. It doesn't actually get any easier than that. Root canals are not necessarily painful, the whole point of one is to kill the nerve supply for the tooth so it doesn't have any feeling anymore. If you had an abcess going in, then it might be miserable afterwards dealing with the irritable tissue. If you aren't in that kind of situation, then it's a walk in the park most of the time. I have had mulitple root canals done, to prep teeth for crowns and bridges. Not a single one was painful or miserable, because none of them were infected at the time it was done. It was quick, simple, and a lot less hassle than the fillings usually were. So chill and quit looking for fuel to add to the fear flames here. You aren't a dentist, so you don't need to know all the insy details.
My dentist suggested to me to either get some anti-anxiety meds from my doc or to take a Tylenol PM before I come for anything like that. Something to make me slightly drowsy. It should work for you to calm down a little.
Just remember you'll be completely numbed... and your tooth will feel better afterwards!