"The ordeal" is a term which I have applied to my recent series of dental treatments. It's my own fault really, I'm 23 but I neglected my teeth and overall dental hygiene throughout my teenage years. As a result I was left with several problems.
The ordeal began in October when a large piece of one of wisdom teeth broke off and left the root exposed. As an admitted procrastinator, I put off seeking treatment until January, when I was in excruciating agony and had taken the maximum recommended doses of both Ibuprofen and Paracetamol. Fortunately for me, my dentist (who I hadn't met prior to then) was able to fit me in and extracted the problematic tooth in question. On a side note, I stopped smoking on that very day, I had my last cigarette just before I went into the dental practise and I haven't smoked since - it's now approaching 6 months!
So everything was great for a while, I had no more excruciating periods of dental pain and by quitting smoking I'd not only saved myself money, reduced the chances of developing cancer dramatically and restored any functions diminished by prolonged smoking, but I had taken a major cause of dental problems (smoking) out of the picture. My overall dental health also improved as I had become more aware of proper dental hygiene. But nearly a decade of poor dental hygiene and neglect doesn't just go away, not unless you are really lucky...
Last month I noticed a large cavity had developed in one of my teeth, it was painless and mainly just an irritant, but I decided to seek dental help immediately, so I went along to see my dentist. He did a couple of X-rays and told me that the decay was pretty extensive and I needed to have root canal, so I grudgingly accepted this treatment and spent the next 20 minutes having my tooth drilled into, having the root removed by way of these horrible looking plastic files and finally having gutta percha melted into the now empty canal. For a procedure that is often spoken with dread, it wasn't particularly invasive (ignore my previous description, I'm just being overly descriptive for the sake of it!).
Anyway, during the same session my dentist surveyed the X-rays and put together a treatment plan. My face dropped when he said that I would need 8 fillings (yes, you read that right) and that I had pretty extensive internal decay in a couple of those teeth. Regardless, I decided that it just wasn't worth the hassle to screw around and put this off so I gave the OK to proceed with the treatment and in just two appointments over a three week period I had the decay purged and my teeth restructured with good old amalgam fillings! It wasn't all smiles (pun intended) as when I went back to have the root canal treated tooth perma-filled, we discovered that a tiny shard of nerve was still intact - by way of me jumping two feet off the chair dentist inserted a fine file into the tooth canal!
Anyway, one week after the final series of fillings I'm feeling pretty good and my teeth are in decent shape for the first time in years. There have been times in the last few months where I've been in unnecessary pain because A) I neglected my teeth for several years and B) because I put off seeing the dentist. When I was younger, people ALWAYS said "take care of your teeth" and the like, but I ignored them and as a result I've faced some pretty nasty issues and have been left with the possibility that my teeth may need to be "replaced" (hopefully dentistry will improve to the point that things like dentures and bridges are discarded) later on in my life. I'd urge anyone to not leave your dental health to chance, brush twice daily for at least two minutes, attend dental checkups at least twice a year and please, go see your dentist at the first sign of trouble because I wouldn't wish some of the pain I've experienced on my worst enemy!
Anyway, now that I've rambled on about my ordeal, has anyone else had similar experiences?
The ordeal began in October when a large piece of one of wisdom teeth broke off and left the root exposed. As an admitted procrastinator, I put off seeking treatment until January, when I was in excruciating agony and had taken the maximum recommended doses of both Ibuprofen and Paracetamol. Fortunately for me, my dentist (who I hadn't met prior to then) was able to fit me in and extracted the problematic tooth in question. On a side note, I stopped smoking on that very day, I had my last cigarette just before I went into the dental practise and I haven't smoked since - it's now approaching 6 months!
So everything was great for a while, I had no more excruciating periods of dental pain and by quitting smoking I'd not only saved myself money, reduced the chances of developing cancer dramatically and restored any functions diminished by prolonged smoking, but I had taken a major cause of dental problems (smoking) out of the picture. My overall dental health also improved as I had become more aware of proper dental hygiene. But nearly a decade of poor dental hygiene and neglect doesn't just go away, not unless you are really lucky...
Last month I noticed a large cavity had developed in one of my teeth, it was painless and mainly just an irritant, but I decided to seek dental help immediately, so I went along to see my dentist. He did a couple of X-rays and told me that the decay was pretty extensive and I needed to have root canal, so I grudgingly accepted this treatment and spent the next 20 minutes having my tooth drilled into, having the root removed by way of these horrible looking plastic files and finally having gutta percha melted into the now empty canal. For a procedure that is often spoken with dread, it wasn't particularly invasive (ignore my previous description, I'm just being overly descriptive for the sake of it!).
Anyway, during the same session my dentist surveyed the X-rays and put together a treatment plan. My face dropped when he said that I would need 8 fillings (yes, you read that right) and that I had pretty extensive internal decay in a couple of those teeth. Regardless, I decided that it just wasn't worth the hassle to screw around and put this off so I gave the OK to proceed with the treatment and in just two appointments over a three week period I had the decay purged and my teeth restructured with good old amalgam fillings! It wasn't all smiles (pun intended) as when I went back to have the root canal treated tooth perma-filled, we discovered that a tiny shard of nerve was still intact - by way of me jumping two feet off the chair dentist inserted a fine file into the tooth canal!
Anyway, one week after the final series of fillings I'm feeling pretty good and my teeth are in decent shape for the first time in years. There have been times in the last few months where I've been in unnecessary pain because A) I neglected my teeth for several years and B) because I put off seeing the dentist. When I was younger, people ALWAYS said "take care of your teeth" and the like, but I ignored them and as a result I've faced some pretty nasty issues and have been left with the possibility that my teeth may need to be "replaced" (hopefully dentistry will improve to the point that things like dentures and bridges are discarded) later on in my life. I'd urge anyone to not leave your dental health to chance, brush twice daily for at least two minutes, attend dental checkups at least twice a year and please, go see your dentist at the first sign of trouble because I wouldn't wish some of the pain I've experienced on my worst enemy!
Anyway, now that I've rambled on about my ordeal, has anyone else had similar experiences?
) I've also discovered that in the month before a dentist appointment, if you use the Pro-Health toothpaste, it'll knock out the gum inflammation that always makes the hygenist wrongly...or even rightly...accuse you of not flossing. 
