I just learnt a sore tooth of mine is caused by my tooth root never fully closing (due to getting braces and shifting my teeth around). Now at 30 I need a root canal.

I’ve never even had a cavity before. I’m legit terrified. Teeth are the one thing that are much worse than nails on chalkboard for me.

How was your experience been? Any words of advice or words of encouragement? I could use it :(

  • PerogiBoi@lemmy.caOP
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    22 days ago

    Oh? I was under the impression that a canal was a permanent solution. You end up losing the tooth it’s done to???

    • bjwest@lemmy.ml
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      22 days ago

      That’s a tooth extraction, a root canal is where they drill down through the tooth and root to get at and eliminate the infection, saving the tooth. It’s not a one session job, they drill down then inject antibiotics to kill the infection, then place a temporary filling in the hole. This is to make sure the infection is gone before placing the permanent filling. I had one a few years ago that took several sessions to get rid of the infection. With a good dentist, it’s not painful. Hell, my wisdom teeth extraction was way more painful.