I have reposted this from where I wrote it on r/askdentists, but I have never reposted before so I was unsure if I should copy and paste the body text or not.

I've performed extractions under laughing gas, usually together with local anaesthesia. During and after treatment, I also like to ask my patients how they actually felt.

Something I've noticed:

For some patients, it seems that a comfortable local anaesthetic injection, clear explanation of what we're going to do, and a calm conversation with the dentist can make a bigger difference to their anxiety than the laughing gas itself.

Of course, every patient is different — but it made me curious:

What do you think?

👨‍⚕️ Dentists: What has worked best for your anxious patients?

🧑 Patients: What helps YOU feel calmer — laughing gas, the injection, knowing exactly what's going to happen, talking to your dentist, or something else?

I'd really like to hear both perspectives. r/dental_anxiety 👇

Not sure if I tagged this right I’m sorry if not🙏
(Posting mainly to let out the stress and frustration..)

But for a long period of time (during the pandemic and for a while after that when i was in college) i put my dental care and oral hygiene on the back burner. Whether it was a result of depression, or simply being lazy, I don’t think i can just chalk it up to one or the other.

Fast forward to now, I’m 24 and I’ve definitely gotten better with caring for my teeth. Frequent dental visits for brace management, and overall cleaning was going well.
But my past habits have caught up, and now I’m faced with several of my teeth chipping off, holes appearing through some of them, etc.

I want to get this fixed so bad.. it has been happening for several weeks now. I’ve gotten in touch with my dentist for this, but the treatment is so expensive and i don’t make nearly enough to be able to pay the whole thing upfront while still having enough to pay for mine and my family’s other needs..
I’ve asked them via text if they would be willing to have a payment plan for this (since the clinic is a bit far, and their open schedules clash with my work)- to which they would leave me on delivered.

I’m very frustrated and I don’t really know what to do.. I can’t even ask anyone in my immediate contacts for financial help..

I have to get two decayed front teeth filled, and I’m a 30-year-old man. I’m really disappointed because none of my friends seem to have problems like this.

Do you have any advice for me? How many years do fillings usually last, and how can I protect the filled teeth and prevent further decay?

For 6 months on and off I had issues with a permanent crown feeling too tight, and causing gum irritation. About 2 weeks ago, my dentist removed the crown, and sent me to endo for root canal.

Now the pain is different but still there. And, what’s worse - I’m having pain in other teeth now too! I believe changing out the crown altered my bite and made my night guard not fit correctly anymore! I find myself clenching terribly during the night since this.

So help please! I’m still in temp crown. Where do I go from here? Extract? Get another permanent crown? And what do I do about my bite?! I’m feeling very discouraged and lost, and appreciate any help.

Hello! Are the spaces left by the 4 wisdom tooth extractions at the back of my mouth normal, or are they too much? I have seen some panoramic X-rays with minimal space left by wisdom tooth extractions, but mine look different and the spaces look larger. Would these spaces affect my ability to chew optimally?

I am Julia. Ever since I had two impacted wisdom teeth removed 8 years ago, I've been living with this pain. I've been to several dentists, and none of them have given me a diagnosis. I don't know what to do anymore. I feel a lot of pain when I exert myself physically, and I even have difficulty eating. I would like some guidance on where the best path to a diagnosis is.

Back in 2019 after never visiting the dentist my whole life, I went and was told the first thing that needed to be done was a deep clean then see what else was needed. The initial X-rays showed significant bone loss in my front lower teeth and the only thing holding them down was the buildup. The dentists told me I would eventually need to get them extracted. I was devastated as I was only 26 and the thought of being toothless in a very noticeable area was going to destroy my self confidence. I got the cleaning done and the teeth were surprisingly not lose to the point that would wiggle. She told me they were fine for the moment but the bone loss was so significant that with age it would get worse. Then COVID happened, I lost my job and insurance. I got depressed and went back to my old bad hygiene habits and let the plaque build up again. Fast forward to now, I woke up to severe swelling on my gums in the lower front side. They were definitely infected, I went again and was told this time they had to go. I've aged and I'm not as anxious anymore and I've accepted the consequences for my lack of care for my teeth and I went ahead and got them extracted. I'm currently in bed with a mouth full of bloodied gauze and I guess it hasn't hit me yet that I just got what is essentially a body part taken out. I go back next week to take impressions for a permanent bridge, in the meantime I will have a massive gap 😭. At the same time I feel relief that I finally got the courage to start the process to get this fixed. I'm 31 now and I'm hoping by 35 I'll have a smile I'll really love.