I would also like to express my sincere appreciation to Dr. Mike Gow. He has provided me with support and guidance throughout my dental treatment. My first contact with him helped me to gather up the strength I needed to get this done. Thank you for taking the time to help me Dr. Mike. This is my success story.......

My dental problems began many years ago as a child. My parents struggled with money and didn’t have any medical insurance for us. Neither one of my parents ever took care of their teeth, and my mom had most of hers extracted in her early thirties. My father to this day has never seen a dentist and I don’t believe he ever will. Most of his teeth have fallen out but he manages. When I was twelve, my mom decided that she wanted to get my teeth taken care of. I had a lot of cavities that needed to be filled. All of the treatment went pretty well except for one in particular. I was sitting in the chair, the dentist had numbed me up to fill a front tooth and I guess it wasn’t numb all of the way. I didn’t know of any way to stop him and let him know that I was hurting so I had to sit there helpless with tears in my eyes.

Six months later when I was supposed to go back for a cleaning and an exam I refused to go and my parents didn’t push me. The subject never came up again. This started 17 years of avoiding dental care. I ignored my teeth for years; they didn’t start bothering me until I was in my twenties. When I was about 24 my wisdom teeth started coming in. They were hurting a lot and I was really lucky that I didn’t overdose on pain medication. I would take three Ibuprofin at a time every three hours to soothe the pain. After about  three weeks the pain subsided and I didn’t give it a second thought. In the meantime, my other teeth were starting to get worse. I convinced myself that going to the dentist would be too horrible and that I couldn’t do it. I would get them taken care of someday, but not now. When I was 25 I got my first abscess. My face swelled up and I was in pain. I was afraid the swelling would never go down, so I gathered up my courage and visited the health center at school. I knew that the doctor would tell me that I needed dental work, but I wanted some antibiotics to make the swelling go away so I went anyway. He gave me a list of dentists and a prescription. I got the  prescription filled and soon the infection went away. Once again I decided that going to the dentist was a terrible idea and that I couldn’t do it. Over the next four years I had several other abscesses, pain on many occasions,  and I even had an old filling come out and parts of teeth break off. Still I refused to see a dentist.

One night while suffering from a toothache that had lingered for 5 days I decided that I was going to do something about it. I picked up the phone book and looked through it (I had never been able to do that before, the mere thought of even looking at the dental listings caused me a lot of anxiety). I then went on-line and looked up dentists in my area. I found a website for a dentist nearby who said that he works with fearful patients. I took a chance and e-mailed him. I was both excited and terrified when he responded a day later. He said that he wanted to try and help me and asked me to call his office to make an appointment for just a consultation—just to talk and see if he could help me.

That was the beginning of my road to recovery. I was very afraid of that first appointment. Walking through the front door was one of the most difficult things that I ever had to do, but I made it through the door. When I went in, the receptionist had me sit in the kitchen of the office and a few minutes later the dentist came in. He introduced himself and asked some  questions about my history. He was very kind and had a very gentle demeanor. I liked him right away and felt comfortable with him. He then said that he would be able to help me better if he had an idea of what needed to be  done, he wanted to know if I would let him take a panoramic x-ray. I decided to go ahead and do it, that way I would be able to know how bad it was. I had the x-ray and he came back in and looked at it with me. I needed several  extractions (three regular teeth that had broken down to gum level and four wisdom teeth). He said that the rest of my teeth didn’t look so bad and if he could do a quick exam he could tell me more. With my heart racing, I  followed him into one of the rooms and sat in the chair. I decided to go ahead and open my mouth even though I was embarrassed. He did a really quick exam with just a mirror, and didn’t say anything negative at all. Besides the extractions I had to have gum treatment and I had cavities that needed to be taken care of. He then discussed the extractions I would need, and said that he was going to send me to an oral surgeon for them so that I could have  general anesthesia. I went to the front, and the receptionist called the oral surgeon’s office and made a consultation appointment for me. My dentist said to come back after the surgery and he would give me a full exam and take  x-rays.

To tell you the truth, my first instinct was to leave the office, cancel the appointment with the oral surgeon and never come back, but I knew that would put me back in the same situation I had started in. I was tired of toothaches and feeling embarrassed about my teeth so I kept the appointment with the oral surgeon. For this appointment I brought a friend with me for moral support. I didn’t really tell her a lot of the details, I just told her I had to have my wisdom teeth out. The consult went well even though I was very frightened. The office staff was wonderful and made me feel  very at ease. The surgeon came in and talked to me. He looked at the x-ray and then talked to me about what was involved in the procedure. He answered my questions and did his best to put me at ease. I felt really positive about the visit and felt that everything was going to be okay. I made the appointment for two weeks later for the surgery.
Well, the two weeks seemed to fly by very quickly. I made arrangements for a friend to pick me up in  the morning and stay with me. Well, that day didn’t start out well. I was waiting for my friend to show up and she had gotten lost looking for my place. I called them and told them I would be late and hoped that they could  still do it. I was so afraid that I would have to reschedule and go through the anxiety of waiting again. Luckily, my friend showed up a few minutes later and we made it to the office just ten minutes late. I was really nervous, and after I took care of the paperwork, they led me into one of the rooms for surgery. Then the assistant put the blood pressure cuff and heart monitors on me. The next step was the laughing gas. I gasped a little at  first because it felt funny to have the mask over my nose, but after a few moments it got better and I started to relax. Then the doctor came in, I was starting to feel the effects of the gas so I was MUCH more relaxed now. He  came in and asked me how I was feeling. I was feeling a little giggly and not nervous anymore. Then they put in the IV. It took a while for it to take effect, I guess I was fighting against it a little. Then the doctor came in  and said that the drip looked good but couldn’t believe I was still awake. Moments later they were putting gauze in my mouth, and to my amazement I had been out for about 40 minutes. The surgery was over and I didn’t even know  it had started. My friend took me home, and I was a bit out of it. I couldn’t feel my mouth and I was so numb that talking was impossible. I went home and was pretty much in and out. My friend got me to eat some soup and take  my pain pills and then let me sleep. I was still bleeding quite a bit, but the surgeons’ office said it was nothing to worry about and was probably due to an increase in blood pressure because I wouldn’t settle down. I slept on and off for most of the day and don’t remember much. I took the pain pills for two days, but then I couldn’t deal with the grogginess anymore and stopped taking them. Aside from not being able to eat much, the extractions were really not bad. I don’t remember much, but I feel like it was a positive experience. My follow-up the next week went very well. I felt pretty good when I left the office and was feeling very confident. I was so confident that as soon as I got home I called my dentist to schedule the appointment for my first exam and x-rays.

When I went for my first appointment with the dentist, I first went to see the hygienist and she must have taken a ton of x-rays, then she examined my teeth and looked at my gums. Then the dentist came in and did an exam. They both told me about the  gum treatment that I needed, and then I would need to have my cavities taken care of (8 in all at the time, but ended up being 9 in the end). So, I scheduled an appointment for the first of my gum treatments and was on my way.

The next appointment was just for a cleaning, which went pretty easily without much distress. I was a little anxious, but my fears were without reason. Nothing bad happened and after it was over I felt pretty good about getting through it. My next appointment three weeks later was for the deep cleanings (scaling and root planing). I was really nervous for this one  because I knew that I would have to have an injection of anesthetic. The hygienist numbed me with the numbing gel that they use, and then the dentist came in. I thought to myself, Oh boy, here we go. He told me that I was just going to feel a little pinch. Well, to my relief, that was it. It took a while because I had to have several injections and he gives the injections very (thankfully) slowly, but it really was not bad. When he was finished I said, “That’s it? That’s what I was so worried about?” He seemed pleased and said next time I won’t be worried about the injection. The scaling and root planing procedure really was no big deal, the hygienist just did cleaning  below the gums and I couldn’t feel anything so I wasn’t bothered by it. Two weeks later I had the second appointment for the deep cleaning and it went just about the same.
Now I was ready for the actual work, which of course meant the drill. My first appointment was for 3 fillings. When I went for the appointment, I told the dentist that I was worried about it because of the experience I had when I was a kid. He reassured me that I wouldn’t feel anything, but we worked out a way for me to signal him. He did the injections and gave me a few minutes to get numbed up. Then he came back and started. I was so relieved that I didn’t feel anything, and he told me everything he was doing before he did it. He also checked on me regularly to make sure that I was doing okay. After he was done, I felt so relieved. All that I built up in my mind turned out to be so much easier than I thought and I was thrilled with the look of my new fillings.

My next appointment went very much like the first, with the exception that one of my  cavities was very deep and he said that there was exposure. He filled it, but said that it would probably be sensitive and I might end up needing a root canal. To both of our surprise, I didn’t have any sensitivity. When I came in for my next appointment he told me that the tooth would probably be okay, just let him know if it starts acting up at all (pain or sensitivity). That appointment went fine too, a little deep like before but no sensitivity  and at this point I knew I only had one more appointment to go!

My last appointment was for two cavities on the bottom right molars in the back.  He did his usual thing of numbing me up, and then he started with the usual drilling. Well, this time I did feel a little something, but in a way I’m glad because it allowed me to test him on his promise to stop if I felt  anything. I didn’t feel a lot, but I felt it and let him know by raising my hand. He gave me a little more anesthetic, and started again and I didn’t have any other problems. It was a bit tough to keep my mouth open so wide because of how far back those teeth were, but I managed to get through it. When he was done, he told me that’s it!! I don’t have to come back for four months (when I see the hygienist for a cleaning and exam). It’s an amazing  feeling
I would like to share some of the things that helped me through my treatment.

The most important thing to do is to find a good dentist. Make sure that they are someone you can trust, and that they are caring and understanding. Finding my dentist over the Internet was a stroke of luck since his ad in the yellow pages is so small that I would  have missed it.

Ask questions. I always asked questions, that way there were no surprises. Knowing what was going on allowed me to feel in control.
Keep a positive attitude. I cannot stress that enough, having a positive attitude really does help you do deal with your fears. Even if you don’t feel positive at first, just keep telling yourself that you are strong and that you can do it and the feelings will follow. The power of suggestion is stronger than you think.
Communicate with your dentist. Always tell them what is going on, what you’re afraid of, how they can help you feel more comfortable. They are human, and not mind readers. They need you to tell them how they can help you.
Have a support system. Sometimes it’s difficult for phobics to share these problems with others. We often feel alone and embarrassed about our problem, but if you seek out support you will find it. I shared my dilemma with the great people at Beyond Fear, and have made many friends through my contacts there.
Always focus on the outcome. One thing that helped me at times was thinking of how great I would feel when the treatment was over.
Find out what your options are. Dentists have many ways to ease discomfort, such as Valium, nitrous oxide, relaxation techniques, systematic desensitization, hypnosis, IV sedation, and general anesthesia. Talk to your dentist and choose the method or combination of methods that works best for you

Remember, you CAN do this!! I never would have thought that it was possible for me to handle all of the stuff that I did, but it was. I think if I can do it, anyone can. There is nothing unique about my story, many people that I know that have approached the situation in a similar way have also come through their treatment successfully.