Non SO related - Should I call the dentist?

[sparkles17]

Am I being a baby or should I call the dentist? I’d been having tooth pain for a while and finally broke down and went to the dentist last week. Luckily, I had no new cavities, but she did want to replace the filling on the tooth where I was having the pain. When she removed the old filling, she noted there was additional decay under the filling and had to drill some before putting in the new filling. This is on the lower left side of my mouth. I had three shots of Novocain prior to her working on my tooth. Also to note, I do have TMJ. Also also to note, I have an extreme fear of the dentist and I spent that entire appointment trembling and crying.

Anyway, my tooth still hurts. It’s not as bad as before she worked on it, but it still hurts and I can’t chew on that side of my mouth anything harder than bread. Also, my face still hurts. I can barely open my mouth wide enough to take bites of food and when I do, I have to take tiny bites because I’ll get shooting pains in my jaw line from trying to move my jaw too much to chew, I guess.

Anyway, I haven’t been to the dentist in 16 years before this appointment and hadn’t had actual dental work done in close to 20 years. So, my question is, is it normal for me to still be having these residuals a full week after the procedure? Seriously, I was in less pain before I got my tooth “fixed”. The BF has been telling me to call the dentist back, but seriously, it took me 16 years to go in the first place, I’m less than thrilled at the idea of having to go back again which is why I’m also asking for advice here.

[doriswe]

Yes go....I had a similiar issue and it was because I had bruising in my jaw because they didn't file down the tooth enough on the top and I was chewing really weird. They filed it down and it was almost instantly better!

[charitylynne79]

I agree. I would go. Something is not right and it might be as simple as Doriswe said.

[angieawesome]

Go for sure!

[starburst604]

Yes I had what Doris had before too, it had to be filed down. The simplest bite caused shooting pains in my jaw!

[dakotadangerdog]

Dude are you fucking kidding me???

GO TO THE DENTIST!!!!!!!

[liubotflittyfud]

GO! I had a similar issue two months ago, where they replaced a filling, saw exposed roots, and didn't fix it fully. I went back two weeks ago and had to have it pulled because it was starting to abscess. Tooth pain is terrible and it'll be okay. The dentist is scary, I agree, but being healthy and pain free is worth it.

Good luck.

[offbeatmama]

I would go back to the dentist. I hate the dentist too and also have TMJ. I just went in for a cleaning for the first time in many, many years. They were only working on me for 30-45 minutes but oh dear lord my jaw was killing me. They took regular breaks too. It hurt for a few days but it was mostly just sore. I don't think serious pain like that is normal.

[sparkles17]

Ugh. I called. I'm going to go in tomorrow. Now I get to have anxiety about it for the next 24 hrs

[dakotadangerdog]

Have you tried going to a specialist that deals with people who are afraid of the dentist?

[sparkles17]

May 17, 2012 11:10:23 GMT -5 dakotadangerdog said:

Have you tried going to a specialist that deals with people who are afraid of the dentist?

I have tried finding one, but can't find one that will take my insurance. I can't afford to pay out of pocket and hope that my insurance will reimburse me. I called half a dozen dentists before I went last wee. And while the dentist who worked on me last week was lovely and tried very hard to alleviate my fears, I still freaked the feck out. I'm supposed to have a scaling done in 2 weeks and she gave me an Rx for Valium for that.

[dakotadangerdog]

Take the valium and get your butt in there!