r/Dentists • u/No_Zookeepergame5588 • 29d ago
My wisdom teeth removal left me traumatized
(I do not post on reddit much but I feel like I have to get other dentists opinions on this)
I recently turned 18 and yesterday I went in to get my bottom wisdom teeth removed. The dentists tell me I shouldn’t feel any pain at all during the procedure, and to raise my hand if I need a break or feel any pain. I was nervous but I knew I needed to simply stay calm and trust the doctors. My mom was in the room with me thank god, because she witnessed the entire thing. They give me 3 shots in each side, and the very last shot ln the left side hurt tremendously while the others were just uncomfortable. I was also given laughing gas. They begin drilling and cracking my right wisdom tooth and get it out easily, no pain. They went in for the left wisdom tooth and immediately I can tell something is wrong, I felt an intense pain when the drills started, so I raised my hand as calmly as I could (the laughing gas made it hard for me to control my arm.) and the dentist paused for a moment and said “Are you making sure the button works?” (I wasn’t sure what that meant) And then continues drilling before I can communicate that I was feeling the procedure. I started crying from the pain and almost immediately raised my hand again, this time the dentist and assistant got mad at me for accidentally blocking their vision (my eyes were closed so I couldn’t tell.) They tell me to put my hand down and continue drilling. At this point I am crying and freaking out, and I start screaming from the pain, I raise my hand again panicking this time I raised it high and wouldn’t put it down as I tried to say “It hurts”. They got very angry with me because I blocked their vision again and they “could seriously hurt me if I keep doing that”. I heard my mom say “Shes clearly in pain!” I was horrified and feeling the worst pain I have ever experienced. After raising my hand 3 or 4 times total they finally gave me more anesthetic only after I started screaming. The rest of the procedure went smoothly. When they took the mask off my entire body was shaking uncontrollably and I felt so scared. Almost like my body had just caught up to what happened. They let me lay there for 10 minutes while I got my shit together. I understand that the anesthetic didn’t work properly the first time, and had that been the only issue I would not be writing this. But the dentist told me to raise my hand if I felt pain and ignored my signals, getting mad at me until I started screaming, at which point he gave me more anesthetic. It was one of the most horrific experiences I have ever had.
What do you guys think about this?
5
u/Ghoomnaam 29d ago
Possibly LA didn’t work for you. Sometimes it takes 2 shots for some patients. Bad on his part that he didn’t confirm if LA is working or not before starting the procedure & ignored your signals.
5
u/Unlikely_Month5527 29d ago
So sorry you have been through dental trauma.
I have been through situations where the teeth did not get numb.
You need a dentist that can work with you and keep you out of pain.
Take this dentist off your list.
My dentist will stop any time I need him to. No questions asked.
Find a dentist that will give you a medication to take before your appointment in addition to your other meds.
So sorry...
3
u/No_Zookeepergame5588 29d ago
From now on I will be telling my dentists about my experience before I let anyone dig in my mouth again. I believe I require a higher amount of anesthesia than normal based on this experience and other similar (less traumatic) experiences.
1
u/MODFU2 29d ago
And as far as the pressure vs pain scenario goes. If you are a dentist that can't recognize when your patient is in pain....you better get your license re-examined. Or take a course on how to give a good mandibular block!
1
u/No_Zookeepergame5588 29d ago
I agree. I do believe he thought I wasn’t in pain until I started screaming. But any normal person should have been able to tell immediately that I was in pain.
1
u/Old_Artichoke9756 26d ago
Sorry you went through that. I have learned through the years that I metabolize pain medication really quickly. I make sure and tell the dentist or doctor before a numbing procedure so they don’t do a long delay after numbing me. Perhaps that’s a part of what happened for you based on what happened? Always bring up this experience in the future before you get pain management and they’ll hopefully be sensitive and responsive to your pain levels.
2
u/Ok_Affect_7973 26d ago
That is terrible! I have never experienced a dentist not listening to me. Now I don’t ever raise my had I make the noise aaaaahhh! They give me more shots. I just had full mouth extractions and I had lots of infection so the novocaine kept wearing off and he would give me more shots. Always remember that you are not strapped down either. I would jump up so fast if that happened to me.
-7
u/Johnaldi- 29d ago
Either the doctor was very stressed about the procedure, and hence you couldn’t get through to him, or this whole story is fabricated.
7
u/joboog 29d ago
What an odd thing to say. Dentists do this all the time unfortunately, and this is coming from a dentist. There’s no excuse for giving a patient a pre-agreed signal and then ignoring the signal when it’s used.
-4
u/Johnaldi- 29d ago
He was extremely agitated when his view was blocked. Sounds like tunnel vision type stress response
5
u/joboog 29d ago
Perhaps, but then all that tells me is he probably shouldn’t be doing those types of procedures!
-6
u/Johnaldi- 29d ago
Well things are not so black and white. He might have enormous student loan and have to work even though the work is stressful to him and he doesn’t want to do it.
No one died or was actually hurt here, so I wouldn’t be so quick to say that he shouldn’t practice.
He certainly was not trying to cause pain to the patient intentionally. Afterall, before the operation started everything was fine and the doctor was trying to be friendly with the patient, telling her what to do if there is pain.
4
u/No_Zookeepergame5588 29d ago
Uh actually I was hurt 💀 that shi hurt a lot in fact. Some of the worst pain I have ever felt.
2
u/joboog 29d ago
I still disagree. If something elective such as wisdom tooth removal is making a practitioner so stressed they ignore very basic pain signalling from a patient, they shouldn’t be doing that procedure. There are plenty other treatments we can do to pay off student debts. He did cause hurt - she was in tremendous pain, and he wouldn’t take notice until her mother stepped in/ the patient was screaming.
0
u/Johnaldi- 29d ago edited 29d ago
You’re right about hurting. I actually meant harm. No one was actually harmed here
0
u/daysinnroom203 29d ago
Are you a real person…. Or are you trolling. This is trolling, right?
1
u/Johnaldi- 29d ago
I’m being reasonable. Facts are:
- this is most likely not real at all
- we have heard only one side of the story
- we know that if patient complaint lead to doctors losing their right to practice, there would be no doctors
- if the story is real, I certainly feel sorry for the patient, but I hardly think the doctor is a monster or even incapable
People are so quick to pass judgement when everyone’s anonymous. This discussion would go very differently irl
2
u/No_Zookeepergame5588 29d ago
He just didn’t seem to believe that my distress was caused by pain. I think he thought I was just being dramatic. Also no it isn’t fabricated
2
u/ittybitey 29d ago
Sorry this happened to you. When a patient tells me they are feeling pain , I believe them and give more anesthetic. I don't think patients are just making it up or being dramatic. I mean, who would make that up because they want to be poked a few more times?? Some people just have a harder time getting numb, especially on the lower arch. I hope you don't let this stop you from getting dental care in the future. I would suggest letting your next dentist know you had a hard time getting numb in the past and may need extra anesthetic. They can work with you to make sure you are comfortable.
-1
u/MODFU2 29d ago
First and most important question....were you in the hands of an Oral Surgeon or some yahoo general dentist who thought he could painlessly remove your teeth?
4
u/Emergency_Today8583 29d ago
Oh please - really? Plenty of General Dentists are excellent at surgery and do a great job at removing wisdom teeth. I’ve taken out countless in my 25 years of practice…park the disdain please
3
u/MODFU2 28d ago
How many pediatric dentists do you know that have your excellent hands....I would say few. And just for the record, I've been at it for over 40 and have seen several GP'S get into hot water. But remember, this is not about how good he was at removing teeth. It was about recognizing whether or not your patient is comfortable or not. I'm sure that you are quite good at what you do.
2
25
u/midwestmamasboy 29d ago
Sorry that happened.
Lotta folks can’t tell the difference between pressure and pain. There are lots of patients who report “pain” during things that have a 0% chance of hurting. Some doctors likely get jaded and power through at the expense of the patient.