root canal?

Question

i have to get a root canal soon because my tooth really hurts and i am not going to get put to sleep because it is to expensive they r just going to give me a shot and i am deadly afraid of the dentist how do i not be afraid any more? what is a root canal?
whenever i touch my tooth it hurts really bad or if i do anything to it!

Answer 1

I just had two done in the same week.... don't worry it doesn't hurt (if you have a good dentist). It will just be a little sore the next day.

Answer 2

I have had two root canals. The pain of your tooth being abscessed hurts a lot more than the root canal by far. You will be so happy after it's done that your not in tons of pain anymore. To me the most painful part was the shot to numb the area. I had the shot above my top front teeth, so it was a little more painful than if it would have been one of my back teeth needing work. The root canal itself is uncomfortable, but not painful. There were a couple times it hurt some, but not bad at all. One of the most uncomfortable things was just having to keep my mouth wide open for that long! Don't worry, though. You'll be fine. You definitely don't need to be put under for it. If you haven't already, get some antibiotics for your infected tooth. That will help out a lot with the pain and the root canal. If you don't do anything about it you will loose your tooth and get really sick. From what I remember about it, they drilled into my tooth pretty far to get to the root and cleaned out the infection. They use some instruments to clean it out that look like little wires and then they put some kind of anti-infective liquid in there to further clean it. After that they test and make sure they got it all. Then they fill it back in or in some cases cap it. Afterwards, you can't feel anything in the tooth anymore because the root is dead. The tooth darkens some, but you can get bleach put in to lighten it back up.

Answer 3

A root canal should not hurt any more than a regular filling, since they are destroying your nerve. You might be a little tender afterwards, but probably nothing compared to the pain you have now.

Up until very recently I was TERRIFIED of the dentist too. Then I went for the first time in several years, found out I had cavities, and got them taken care of -- turned out to not be a big deal at all. I don't know if this will help you at all, but consider carefully whether you are afraid of the dentist because of the actual procedures that occur there, or if you are afraid of the dentist because you are afraid of getting bad news about your teeth? If it is the latter, keep in mind that the more often you go, the less often you will get surprise bad news, and the longer you let fear get the better of you, the worse your teeth will get.

You will probably feel a million times better once you just have this over with. A few hours of discomfort beats constant pain any day.

Answer 4

A root canal means the root of your tooth is dead the dentist is going to drill a hole in your tooth to the root and fill it with some sort of filling so that the tooth won't root and fall out or turn black. I just had it done to 2 teeth after getting hit in the mouth. My dentist used some new technology where all he did was use some numbing cream like orajel or the like and then used a microchip to give me the anesthetic. When he started I didn't know what he was doing and the next thing I knew my mouth was numb. It was great, no needles used at all. You should ask your dentist if they use this new stuff.

Answer 5

I had a root canal and they didn't put me to sleep. There were about 4 shots involved. After the first shot you don't feel the other three because your mouth is deadened. I didn't feel anything when they did the root canal, but I can't say it was a pleasant experience. I don't like going to the dentist either and the root canal took about three hours to complete. I'm probably not explaining this correctly (it's been a while since I had mine) but they go in and clean around your roots. I can't remember exactly what it is they're cleaning out. After they're done though, you aren't supposed to feel anything in there again. They'll put a cap on your tooth. Probably a temporary one and then you'll come back for a permanent one. You could call and ask what is going to happen just so you know what to expect. It's usually easier to handle things when you know exactly what you're getting into. When I'm getting dental work I try to get a good daydream going. Something to kind of zone me out of what's going on. It helps.

Answer 6

have had several Dentists generally give you "laughing gas" (nitrous oxide) in addition to the shot. Call the Dentist's office and explain that your fears ahead of time so you and they can be better prepared. They never have put me to sleep, but you might have some drive you home. A root canal is when they remove the dead nerves from the root of the tooth, sounds yucky but not really. Do not be afraid of the dentist, he/she is there to help you. There may be a little jab or poke when they start the deadening of the area and if it starts to hurt let them know. You are going there to get help. It is so much better afterwords.

Answer 7

I have had 2 root canals and I hate going to the dentist too.
They will give you gas, you don't have to be put to sleep.
Just sit back and relax and try to imagine yourself someplace relaxing, like sitting on a beach and the heat from the overhead lamp can be the sun. This works for me anyway...Just a suggestion. As for the root canal, they drill into the tooth and remove the nerves in your tooth and then they pack it and put a cap over it. But trust me, don't think about what they are doing....Try the beach scene, it works for me to keep me calm, maybe it will work for you too. Good Luck!

Answer 8

I was in your same situation I holded of so bad with the pain I was popping up to 4-5 advils in one shot to get rid of the pain and well I finally decided to go get the root canal done it was to late the infection was so bad They had to extract the whole tooth but had to get the root canal done on the tooth that was right behind it and quess what it wasnt so bad after all I thought it was gonna be worst so take care of it now or else its gonna get very expensive!!

Answer 9

A root canal is a cavity sort of peak that is above the gum line. They have to go into the canal of the tooth to extract the bacteria causing the problem. It actually does not hurt at all and I was surprised. I left the office with minimal pain. i didnt even have to take pain killers. I guarentee you that the pain of an untreated root canal is alot worse than a treated one.

Answer 10

A root canal is when the nerve of the tooth is removed & then the tooth is filled with a dental cement. Ask for some nitrus gas. Better know as laughing gas. This will help.

Answer 11

i had one after a cap fell off, the nerve ending was exposed and it hurt like hell every time i bit down, the dentist stuck me with a middle right on the exposed nerve. that was the worst pain i had ever felt but it was only for a second. the rest was a lot of drilling a grinding and pressure on my jaw but it didn't hurt. what they do is remove all the "pulp" from your tooth and effectively kill it. then they will fill it with something and most likely you'll get a crown depending on how much tooth they drill away. if you cant get the gas, see it they have those movie glasses so you can watch a movie. that helped me anyway. just don't watch the "hills have eyes"