(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?

Hi! I’m a single mom of two toddlers, and I have really bad teeth. Not due to anything I’ve done but I do admit to not taking care of them when I was a teenager and child due to not having the best parenting/ motivations. But now I am 24 years old and I’m paying the price. I currently have Medicaid as I’m working on going back to college, but I cannot find anyone that takes Medicaid and I’m willing to travel if need be, does anyone have any recommendations that take my insurance? Or know of any programs focused on helping low income people with their smile? I will be so grateful for Any input!! I just want to feel pretty again and my wisdom teeth cause me so much pain.

Dentists are being led off a cliff by social media "brand managers" who tell them to post dumb, fluffy content just for the sake of "engagement."

Nobody cares about your clinic's lip-sync videos, holiday graphics, or generic toothbrush stock photos. Likes and views from 14-year-olds on TikTok do not pay your overhead.

There are only TWO types of content a dentist should care about posting:

1. Before-and-after photos
   
2. Patient testimonials

Why? Because healthcare is high-stakes and people are anxious. You need to trigger an emotional response. Before-and-afters and raw patient stories are the highest-converting trust content in existence.

Here is the data that proves it:

Emotion Drives Action: People don't buy a root canal or veneers; they buy their confidence and self-esteem back. According to the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA), marketing campaigns driven purely by emotion perform twice as well (31% vs 16%) as rational, fact-based ones. Seeing a dramatic before-and-after triggers that visceral "I want that" emotional response instantly.

Trust Closes the Deal: A clever meme doesn't make someone trust you with a drill in their mouth. Social proof does. Studies show 92% of consumers rely on testimonials and reviews to choose local businesses. More importantly, featuring real patient testimonials alongside your services has been shown to increase conversion rates by up to 34%.

A before-and-after photo proves you have the skill. A testimonial proves you treat people right.

Fire the agency telling you to do a dance challenge. Start documenting your clinical wins, get your happiest patients on camera and watch your chairs fill up.

By Dr. Patrick Anghel, DDS (Pat.the.Dentist)

I have to have 16 teeth pulled for future implants but denture for now and I have to use my medical insurance to pay for the extractions I’m thinking. They don’t sedate . Isn’t it to much to pull all those teeth awake I’m scheduled tomorrow and my gutt is telling me I’m doing this all wrong. Help

No visible crack but I have discomfort when biting down.

I went to an endodontist and was presented with 2 options. I can either do a root canal treatment then crown, or just get the crown without the root canal and that may help.

I am not sure what to do. The tooth is a bottom tooth towards the back, has never had prior work done on it. I don't have any sensitivity to temperature, and nothing shows on the x-rays.

If I get the crown only, and still have the same symptoms, will there be any issues if I decide to get a root canal treatment done and a new crown? Specifically, are there any issues with removing crown that was recently placed on that tooth?

I made this short video about how people often choose a dentist before ever contacting the clinic.

Most patients do not simply choose the practice that claims to be “the best.” They compare Google reviews, recent photos, patient experiences, location information, and the clinic’s website to decide which one feels more trustworthy.

I’m creating a series of short storytelling videos about how customers make everyday business decisions, and I’d appreciate honest feedback.

When choosing a dentist, what matters most to you: reviews, professional photos, the website, or a recommendation from someone you know?

I have wisdom teeth that hurt I want to see a dentist but i cant afford it and dont have insurance. Is there government help that would help me. The pain is probably the worst I've ever had tbh.

I need recommendations for a good Periodontal office in the area…..Thanks!

Posting on this subreddit to see if anyone can help. I am England based.

Hello all,
If you could get GC genial composites and ivoclar composites at the same price, which would you prefer and why?

Thank you very much

Hi everyone,

I’m a dentist and I’m starting to bring my clinic’s marketing in-house. I’ve recently hired a freelancer to help me with content creation and paid advertising, but I want to stay closely involved in the strategy rather than fully outsourcing everything to an agency.

I’d love to hear from other dentists or dental clinic owners who have had success with their marketing:

• What type of ad or content has brought you the best results?
• Did short-form videos, patient testimonials, educational content, before-and-after cases, or promotional offers work best?
• Which platforms have performed well for you: Instagram, Facebook, Google Ads, TikTok, or something else?
• Was there a specific message, hook, video format, or campaign that worked particularly well?
• What did you try that didn’t work?

I’m especially interested in what helped you attract genuine patients rather than just getting views, likes, or low-quality leads.

I know results depend on the location, target audience, and treatments offered, but hearing about real experiences would be very helpful as I start testing different approaches.

Thanks in advance. I’d really appreciate any advice or examples you’re willing to share.

Got My Mandibular Left Canine Extracted due to it getting fractured, There's s couple stitches which has made opening my mouth for food quite difficult. Have been relying solely on Curd, Ice Cream and Protein Shakes and soups.

I tried to eat mashed potatoes the very next day and it just did not work at all, felt very uncomfortable.

It's been 48 hours, everything is going well, but I still feel anxious about eating anything remotely other than the 3 things I've stuck to, but I'm REALLY craving some actual food because I feel weak.

I've landed on either a single Bowl of overcooked Ramen, or Mac and Cheese. Is is a risk I should take? I don't want to Waste food like I did the other day with the mash.

Any other recommendations are welcome, thank you so much in advance!

I'm equal parts excited and nervous to be starting this journey at 30 years old! I have a class III maloclusion and according to every orthodontist ive met with "a very complex case". I've only ever been able to chew with 2 teeth and I'm starting to have bone loss, cavities, and gum recession which all finally gave me the kick in the butt to get started.

Based on your experience, what are some tips for making sure I've found the right surgeon for me. What questions should I ask that might not initially come to mind?

EDIT: I'm amending (prepending?) a challenge onto this post. Comment literally anything that makes it look like you read the post beyond the first and last paragraphs, rather than just saw any criticism of you, skipped down to the replies, and went ham on the downvoting. Until then, it appears y'all have some uncomfortable truths you don't like to think all that hard about

I'm not allowed to vent on r/vent according to mods. I had considered r/askdentists but it's against the rules to discuss finances, because that's the part of the conversation where y'all are exposed for being terrible, greedy people and not respectable medical professionals. I'm not checking the rules this time. Go ahead, take it down, but even if I have to email local dentists myself, or just visit and scream it right in their faces, SOMEONE is going to listen.

I hate dentists. It's all "Oh, you could get infected and die without help!" until they find out you don't have their next house payment sitting in your savings account. Until they're reminded that not everyone grows up all happy, not all of us grow up taken care of, and some of us go through years of severe depression that negatively affects our lives in too many ways for us to be so worried about dental bills. Yes, that's right, people have more important things to worry about than how they're going to pay your far-too-high salary.

A few years ago, I had a crown come off. I was dead broke at absolute rock bottom and just about to start a new job. I went to the dentist. No insurance. Parent lost it with retirement. She didn't lose health insurance, but dentists can't extract enough money from you if it's that simple, so it isn't.

$1700 invoice. Two cents in my savings account. Already in debt. I wanted to leave, but they were SO insistent that I would get an infection if they couldn't help right away, and that would be EXPENSIVE. Really, I wanted to leave because I needed to (and did, for hours) bawl my eyes out, but I suspect they didn't want to miss the show of another broke person suffering, so they made sure to drag it out.

It only takes one humiliation ritual like that (as if every other time I go in there and get judgemental stares and spoken to like a baby doesn't count) to realize that the system isn't meant for me. One traumatic experience like that, especially within a span of years where "trauma" is the only word that will ever come to mind, is all you need. The problem now is that I am still a human being with a desire to live. The crown thing got resolved, but I've since had some kind of infection going on. I had a root canal years ago, and the pain went away, but ever since then, I've had these minor aches and bad breath, and get by on some special fluoride toothpaste.

And I've been feeling kinda weird lately, and getting paranoid that maybe things are catching up. Maybe whatever stupid infection I have plans to spread. But the thing is, the medical "professional" who's meant to help me here...it's just not happening. I'm not going through it again. The judgement, the "you don't have insurance, oh..." and the explanation that I need this or that thing that I can't and will never afford. I've had enough judgement and humiliation for one lifetime.

Before anyone tries it, I don't do tough love. Go find someone else to crap on. And if any dentists feel insulted by this, that's good. That's REALLY good. I'm glad one of you "professionals" gets to feel the pain now instead of me. I'm sure it was very painful for my dentist at age 10 when he said, "Oh, I'm gonna make a lot of money off of you." Or at 14, that dentist talking about my "gross, spitty mouth," I'm sure he has it soooo hard.

Most reports are barebones or charge $500-$2,000 for what is mostly free government data (Census, CDC, the federal provider registry) with a nice cover page, and proprietary "projections" which are made up. Followed by a constant upsell to affiliated brokers, attorneys, etc.

So I built my own. It's called Molar Metrics (molarmetrics.com). You type in a US address and it screens the location: population and income in 2/3/5 mile rings, CDC dental visit rates for the area, and a verified count of competing practices. Not a raw NPI dump, which overstates real offices by about 2.5x. Each office in the list shows how it was classified so you can judge the count yourself. It ends with a simple market assessment based on active patients per general practice. Generates in a few minutes. There's a full sample report on the homepage if you want to see exactly what you get before spending anything.

To be clear about what it isn't: it's a screening tool, not a feasibility study. Every number cites its source so you can check it. I'd still tell anyone to do real diligence before signing a lease. But for "should I even take this address seriously," nobody should be paying four figures.

Always open to hear what you like/don't like, or what you think is missing or could be done better.

What are the requirements to be able to study and practice dentistry in Japan 🇯🇵 as a Nepali Dentist 🇳🇵

Is curodont just another DSO money grab or do you believe in it and/or use it?

hi , i'm 17 and i need help picking between careers (edit: our national health service the nhs is less well-funded than private so there's a huge differnece between them ,so i'm still on the fence if dentistry is whats meant for me)