#1 ·
So, I’ve been dealing with this absolutely brutal toothache for two days now.
The real issue—and yes, you read that correctly—is that I am genuinely embarrassed to even step foot in a dentist's office.
Here’s the breakdown: I’m quite young, yet I’ve managed to get my dental health into a truly messy state. I have one tooth halfway falling out (which is the source of this two-day agony), one baby tooth from when I was five that somehow hasn't been pulled yet, and I really ought to be wearing braces.
If I’m being honest, the last time I sat in a dentist's chair was back in 2006.😢😢
The reason I’ve avoided the dentist all these years is because I dealt with some absolute butchers in the past. They’d always give me that soothing, "don't worry, it won't hurt" routine, only for me to walk out in tears and struggle to stop the bleeding for an entire week. To make matters worse, they never once offered me any pain management.
I remember getting a quick injection for the numbness right before the extraction, but after that? I just had to sit there crying through the pain. And look, I’m not someone who cries easily—I can handle a fair amount of discomfort—but that was something else entirely.
Since there aren't many options in my town, I was thinking about heading to a new doctor at the local hospital. My hesitation comes from the fact that he’s a recent grad, and I'm worried he might lack the experience I need, even though I'm desperate to finally fix my teeth.
Back when I had X-rays taken in 2006, they found that my canine wouldn't grow in properly—apparently a genetic thing where there's too much space between certain teeth—so I likely need braces and probably a dental implant down the road.
I feel so incredibly ashamed to show up to a clinic in this condition. What should I do?
The real issue—and yes, you read that correctly—is that I am genuinely embarrassed to even step foot in a dentist's office.
Here’s the breakdown: I’m quite young, yet I’ve managed to get my dental health into a truly messy state. I have one tooth halfway falling out (which is the source of this two-day agony), one baby tooth from when I was five that somehow hasn't been pulled yet, and I really ought to be wearing braces.
If I’m being honest, the last time I sat in a dentist's chair was back in 2006.😢😢
The reason I’ve avoided the dentist all these years is because I dealt with some absolute butchers in the past. They’d always give me that soothing, "don't worry, it won't hurt" routine, only for me to walk out in tears and struggle to stop the bleeding for an entire week. To make matters worse, they never once offered me any pain management.
I remember getting a quick injection for the numbness right before the extraction, but after that? I just had to sit there crying through the pain. And look, I’m not someone who cries easily—I can handle a fair amount of discomfort—but that was something else entirely.
Since there aren't many options in my town, I was thinking about heading to a new doctor at the local hospital. My hesitation comes from the fact that he’s a recent grad, and I'm worried he might lack the experience I need, even though I'm desperate to finally fix my teeth.
Back when I had X-rays taken in 2006, they found that my canine wouldn't grow in properly—apparently a genetic thing where there's too much space between certain teeth—so I likely need braces and probably a dental implant down the road.
I feel so incredibly ashamed to show up to a clinic in this condition. What should I do?