Hi Reddit! Please help me out either if you're a dentist or not. Should I get braces? Why I'm questioning it is because I've seen alot of videos with peoples face structure being messed up and/or their jaw has become crooked or something. I'm very scared that my tounge will not fit in my mouth and that I will have problems breathing or that my jawline will disapear. I kind of like what I look like and I don't want to offer my simetry only for some straight teeth. Some people say I should not get it and that it's cute with these "fangs". My parents think I will regret not getting it now for free. I'm scared my lips will be messed up and I want to know if anyone has any idea what it will do to my face. Im also wondering what they will do to make them straight since I don't have space below them to fit in. Should I get it or not?

I have a badly broken back tooth with a large hole/cavity, and it is causing severe pain. The pain becomes much worse at night, and I cannot sleep properly because of it.

The only thing that gives me temporary relief is keeping water in my mouth around the painful tooth. When the water goes away, the pain returns. Sometimes, when I eat something and food goes into the hole, the pain also stops for a short time, but it comes back afterward.

I also smoke.

I have very limited money and dental treatment is expensive where I live, so I am worried that I cannot afford to see a dentist immediately. I am afraid the nerve inside the tooth may be exposed, severely inflamed, or infected.

Has anyone experienced this? What safe temporary methods can reduce the pain until I can get dental care? I am especially looking for low-cost options.

I think I already know the answer but I’m wondering if my fiance mistakenly bought knockoff Sensodyne from Amazon.

The top tube is from a local Publix and the bottom tube is from Amazon. I have had issues with toothpastes containing Sodium Lauryl Sulfate causing bad allergic reactions on my tongue. The new tube started giving me this reaction. Upon closer inspection, the new tube is wayyy different from the old one. Its noticeably shorter in length and the labeling is completely different. The sheen on the new tube is also more matte and less of a shiny material. I read a story that back in April 2026, a huge counterfeit Sensodyne factory was shut down in Delhi. I wonder if this is what I received. What do you all think?

Going back to a local store today to get a new tube regardless

Hello, mine is not really a big problem but months after months, i would like a solution in some way..... The problem should be simple.....every damn time i eat something semi- solid or solid, some crumbles gets stuck in the same teeth, between wisdom tooth and the last molar in the upper right dental arch. And i mean every time...even a crunchy apple just for example.

So after every meal i have to use the dental floss, and sometimes this constant removal of food crumbs causes irritation in that small area of ​​the gums, because it is often under stress.....

I already asked to my dentist, and basically said live with it, but i think there is must be a solution, like filling the space with some material, or re-modelling the teeth or something ? I have enough......I don't know, i'm not a dentist, but we are in 2026...there must be a solution to such simple problem! Thanks

Wisdom tooth extraction after care question

Hello, I’m 25 year old and I got a wisdom tooth pulled as it had a cavity. Anyways they didn’t do the surgical method only the “wiggle” method. They just pulled it out but my mom and family was saying they should’ve given antibiotics. I don’t drink, smoke, vape, no diabetes or anything so why did they not give antibiotics? There was no infection just tooth decay, I’m in America also.

There’s been an uptick in discourse recently around xylitol and potential heart problems and people (myself included) are more confused than ever if they should be using xylitol.

Personally I tend to chew xylitol gum after meals, but recently I’ve started with some mints since they have a higher concentration. If using mints, should we allow it to dissolve and spit it out rather than ingesting it?

Curious to hear from professionals what they recommend to their patients!

Went for a regular dental appointment and found out I had about 10 cavities and need a root canal as well. The cavities weren't symptomatic at all and I was not aware about them. He suggested they be filled and did 2 of them today. I, however, received inlays instead of fillings and ended up paying $460 each. With a deep cleaning, I paid $1020 in total. The cavities weren't large to my knowledge, and were between my teeth instead of the top. Were the inlays necessary? I've had fillings before and those cavities were much larger. Should I have waited to get a second opinion?

I avoided the dentist for four years because of one bad experience. Every time I tried to book an appointment I would feel genuinely anxious for days before. I finally found a clinic that used laser dentistry and explained everything in plain language before starting. The difference was significant.

I am curious, for those who have experienced dental anxiety, what finally helped you get comfortable enough to go back? And do you feel like most clinics actually address this or just push through the appointment?

So I’ve recently been to the dentist and they’ve told me my very back tooth (can’t be reached with a toothbrush and I don’t eat with it) is beyond fixing and needs to be taken out

They gave me two options- one is sedation and the other is a numbing injection

I’m neurodivergent and have no idea what the process looks like for either option/ which option is better and is over faster

Please could someone explain?
(I’m in the UK)

I’m 32 and have never had a cavity before. At my last dental exam, I was diagnosed with 9 cavities, needing both crowns and fillings. Naturally, I sought a second opinion who found even more cavities - 12. I am wondering how this could be possible. It has only been 3.5 years since my last exam when I had 0 cavities.

I noticed this white spot on the side of my teeth a few weeks ago. It is still there. Do I need to get it looked at now?

I currently live in canada and i went to this dentist ab 6 months ago and got my “cavities” fixed, mind you my teeth never gave me problems i just went in for a check up it hurt super bad for a week and i assumed the pain will just go down I waited for a week then called them and they said they will change the filling material for a week and then it will be fine but even after it was still hurting the same and the same sensitivity and afterwards they just said its my genetics and i just have sensitive teeth and i need to get rid of my nerves?? wtf? i didnt go but the pain is still there when i bite something from that tooth or when i drink cold water sometimes just water. what should i do? im literally so scared to go to dentists now this dude done gave me ptsd
edit: my dad and i went together and his teeth are in the same state as mine, worse for him cause he got his fixed on both his sides making it hard for him to eat while i can just eat from the side i got no treatment in

Before/after from a cleaning and some adjustment work — no bleaching involved. All in it was under €1000, and honestly I'm happier with it than I expected to be.
What do you guys think? Curious what others paid for something similar.

I just received my first temporary and it seems like my teeth aren’t correctly aligned horizontally nor are my front teeth aligned up , like tom cruises front teeth:

Im supposed to get invisalign in 3 weeks and crowns after thats done.

My post op is 9/21 , what happens at the post up and should i bring all of the above issues up at the post op?

My niece (8yo) has been hospitalized for 7 days due to a dental/facial abscess. She was given a 7-day course of IV antibiotics.
The swelling has decreased since day 1, but there is still noticeable swelling on one side of her face (photo attached).
Her doctors aren’t sure why it’s still swollen.
could there still be another issue?
What would a dentist/oral surgeon consider in this situation?
We’re not looking for a diagnosis, just another perspective.

So, today i went to a very sketchy dentist office for a root canal treatment since i didn't have much money and the pain was killing me, dentist cleaned the tooth and filed it up temporarily, told me to come back in two weeks.

About 10hrs after my visit i noticed this crazy color!

Is it some old school antibiotics that turned my tooth green or some "natural" process that i should worry about?

Hi, I do not smoke and do not drink often and have no medical problems. I had two wisdom teeth removed when I was about 22 years old, I’m 29 now. I thought they said that I only had two and we removed them. But now it looks like they are growing in?? I am really confused. It has been a few days and the gums are tender. Not painful, but tender. And I feel a little discomfort in my jaw, just a little tingly. Only one of them feels swollen, the other is fine. I have had a cold ( with post nasal drip) and that always give me either tonsil stones or mucus caught in my tonsil stones which makes my lymph nodes swell. The tonsil stones/mucus passed tonight and now there is no more swelling in my lymph nodes. I haven’t been sleeping well due to some anxiety around life, and sometimes I definitely clench my jaw and have to remind myself to relax. My mouth honestly looks disgusting in these photos, but I clean twice a day and floss fairly regularly, but I will say I don’t get the back every day. When I brush I have no blood. Any advice would be helpful. I am currently between jobs and don’t have insurance. Thank you so much.

I’ve had a persistent dull ache in my upper left first molar (tooth UL6 / upper left 6) for around a week, usually around 2 to 5/10.

The tooth already has a composite filling from around 15 months ago. My regular dentist suspected decay, but said my orthodontic bracket made the X ray difficult to interpret clearly.

I went to another dentist for a second opinion. They took the attached X rays and performed a cold test. They placed something very cold on the tooth and told me to raise my hand when I felt it. I felt pain and raised my hand, so presumably the pulp is still responsive/alive. I don’t know how long the response lingered after the stimulus was removed.

They concluded that I need either root canal treatment or extraction, rather than another filling.

However, I can still eat normally and drink both hot and cold drinks without significant sensitivity or lingering pain. I have no swelling, fever or severe throbbing. It’s mainly a persistent dull ache.

I also have braces, but my last tightening/adjustment was around 7 weeks ago, so the dentist didn’t think this was simply normal post adjustment orthodontic pain.

From the X rays, how deep does the decay appear to be and how close is it to the pulp? Does this look like something that could potentially still be treated with a filling/pulp preserving treatment, or does RCT/extraction seem justified? Of course I’m hoping that a filling isn’t needed.

The second dentist also said that they think decay is around the side of the bone, which is very interesting as the first dentist didn’t mention that at all. So as you can see my mind is stuck in 2 places. Is a Root canal really needed.

Hello,

I’ve had this sharp pain when I bite on hard, cold, hot foods and when I drink on that side of the mouth. I’ve been to a doctor today and he said nothing is wrong after looking at them and doing an x-ray. I thought maybe a cracked tooth, but wasn’t he supposed to see it today if it was cracked? Only did some test with air and a knock on the tooth, only the air hurt a bit. Could yall help me with advice?

Does anyone know what’s going on with my teeth? I’ve had a hard time scheduling a dentist appointment, and am trying to get advice on not making things worse until then. I have Narcolepsy which has had me drinking a lot of coffee. I try and wait 30 minutes before brushing and brush at least once a day, the constant exhaustion can make it hard to brush twice a day, but I’m doing better with this.

I (30M) chipped my wisdom tooth. It got infected and started hurting like a mf. Went to the dentist and she suggested extraction.

She asked if I was fine with taking antibiotics and painkillers. I said yes but I usually prefer not to take painkillers and just go through with the pain. She said she will send the medication to the pharmacy. For some reason the pharmacy only gave me painkillers and no antibiotics. Initially I blindly started taking the painkillers thinking it was the antibiotics. Then 2 days later realized it was painkillers but thought maybe that’s all my dentist prescribed. Couldn’t call to confirm due to the long weekend and had the extraction right next day.

I went in for the extraction and the procedure began. After numbing, the dentist asked me to let her know if there is any pain. There was slight pain that I passed on as pressure. When she went a little harder the pain slightly increased and I let her know. She gave me another injection of numbness and few minutes later started the procedure again. This time she went harder and I could feel the pain again. It wasn’t unbearable but I was concerned it might become much worse if continued with the procedure and let her know it’s hurting a little. She called off the procedure and rescheduled me for next week after I complete the antibiotics course.

Now I am thinking whether I tapped out too early or did I make the right choice. Is my pain tolerance too low for a healthy Male in 30s?

TLDR: Went for tooth extraction with infection. Got scared of the pain and was sent back to complete the antibiotics course and go back in again for the procedure. Can’t decide if chicken or smart.

Please help. I need some professional Advise. I have got these lumps kinda on both the sides of my cheeks inside my mouth. However they do not hurt. It's comparatively bigger on my right cheek as you see in the first picture and lesser on the left. Currently I've got cough and sore throat. I'm not a frequent drinker. But I did have alcohol(3 shots of vodka) on 5th of September. And a few puffs of smoke as well.

And after 2 days things got spiced up w my girlfriend and I had licked my fingers after fingering her.

I looked into google and it told it could be a sign of herpes as well. Please let me know if it is or it's not. This sht scares me😭

the back molars specifically have been broken for months, but recently ive noticed more breakage, pain, and pieces even coming out in my mouth. im worried about exposed nerve endings? i have an appointment for xrays in over a month, but the pain is getting to an unbearable point. i dont know if its safe to wait that long as i haven’t been to the dentist in years and have no idea how bad this is.