How do you cope with anaesthetic at the dentists?

sarahp

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I always seem to need work on my teeth... The last time, they put local anaesthetic in, and it hadn't done much, which I discovered when they hit a nerve while drilling, so they gave me more. By the time I got in my car to go home though, the entire right side of my face was numb!

Same this time - she numbs me up, and after 5-10 minutes, I barely feel numb at all, so she gives me a good lot more, and it finally begins to work. It was fine this time - no pain though.

So by the time I leave again, my face feels numb from my eye down to my neck
I don't think I can safely eat for a little while still


What about you? Do you numb up easily? Do you need LOTS of local anaesthetic? Does yours take forever to take effect?
 

forensic

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I numb up easy, but I'm always under gas when I've got big doings done (else I WILL punch the doctor).

But when I leave I'm always numb, it doesn't matter how much they gave me.

That sounds pretty typical.

My dad, on the other hand, gets violently ill if they try to use gas on him and doesn't tolerate novacaine well either.
 

gailc

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OK so I'm the odd person but say for instance I need a filling whether new or replacement I have the dentist do the work without any novacaine or other "pain" deading products.
I grew up having a dentist never use any and buy the time they freeze the area, do they work and having numb mouth/tooth etc.... naahhhh just do the work and get over quicker!!

Neil's lower mouth is still numb from the implant surgery done in March-another good reason to me for not using anything!!

Mind over matter!!!
 

natalie_ca

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They usually have to give me extra freezing for some reason. He freezes it, waits about 10 minutes to see how effective it is and then gives me some more freezing. He does it that way so I don't end up with a frozen face and tongue. Not sure how he manages it, but when my dentist gives me freezing my tongue is not frozen at all and only the area immediately before and after the tooth being worked on is frozen.

The last tooth he fixed which he thought had a crack in it didn't freeze fully even with the extra freezing. Part way through the drilling I started to feel him drilling. I let out and "OWW!" and he was going to stop and give me more freezing, but I told him to just keep going. The last minute or two of drilling was mildly uncomfortable.
 

natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by Forensic

I numb up easy, but I'm always under gas when I've got big doings done (else I WILL punch the doctor).
So far as I know the dentists here don't give "gas", just local freezing.

I remember as a kid having a couple of teeth pulled and they used gas to put me to sleep back then, but I've been to several dentists since then and not one of them has ever offered the option of "gas". So I think that might be a US thing.
 

luvmy2cats

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I've always numbed easily and it doesn't take long either. There was only one time when I had to have a cavity fixed on one of my upper right molars. The dentist numbed me but it didn't feel that numb. I didn't feel the drill or anything though.
 

natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by GailC

OK so I'm the odd person but say for instance I need a filling whether new or replacement I have the dentist do the work without any novacaine or other "pain" deading products.
No you aren't odd


I've had several fillings, my root canal and a crown all done without freezing. The drilling only feels like a sensitive tooth and once the drilling stops so does the pain.. instantly.

Of course it all depends on the size of the filling needed and the length of time needed to drill. I always ask about how long drilling will take. If it's under 2 minutes I just forego the freezing. My current dentist looked at me like I was from Mars when I said that the first time, LOL

I do know that drilling an unfrozen tooth hurts a whole lot less than when freezing is coming out.
 

cat_lady

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yeah i do! i had my last tooth surgery 6-8 months ago. the last thing i said was : "it feels fuzzy". although of course that was my first time having a tooth surgery since i was 2 and i'm 14 now. i don't even remember that long!
 

twstychik

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I seem to drug easily in general. I usually have to breathe half through my mouth if they put me in nitros and when they sedated me for my surgery I was out in under 5 minutes. She dosed my IV and with in seconds I could feel the drugs taking over and I was out before I hit the OR. Just yesterday I took a vicodine (left over from my surgery) because I was having some pretty severe cramps... I'm glad I didn't have a car because I should not have been driving... in fact, I barely left the couch.
 

jaffacake

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I`m ok with it apart from the lower right side. I`m not sure but it could be because I had surgery on that side to remove some bone and I was numb there for 6 months after. It still feels a but funny but I`m used to it. Anyway, one dentist insisted my filling needed replacing that side and after 2 injections I could still feel him drilling away but he was getting all impatient so he carried on anyway
 

h~chan

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I haven't had it done for a few years, but last time I got a cavity filled, they gave a shot to numb my mouth, and when I was driving home, I couldn't feel anything from the bottom of my nose and down, and I kept thinking my mouth was hanging open, so I kept feeling around on my face the whole drive home to be sure it wasn't.


It hasn't ever really bothered me, besides making me look kind of funny when I can't tell if my mouth is open or not.
 

fwan

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Never had it done for my teeth but i really liked the anasthetic they put in your arm.. tastes gassy and knocks you out in seconds!
 

forensic

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Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

So far as I know the dentists here don't give "gas", just local freezing.

I remember as a kid having a couple of teeth pulled and they used gas to put me to sleep back then, but I've been to several dentists since then and not one of them has ever offered the option of "gas". So I think that might be a US thing.
Ah, and here I'd always wanted to move to Canada.

Well, if I do, I hope your dentists are tough (I hate people in my personal space!)
 

catlover19

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Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

So far as I know the dentists here don't give "gas", just local freezing.

I remember as a kid having a couple of teeth pulled and they used gas to put me to sleep back then, but I've been to several dentists since then and not one of them has ever offered the option of "gas". So I think that might be a US thing.
They have gas at the dentist I go to here. I had it when I got my wisdom teeth out. My dad always had to have the gas because he couldn't stand going to the dentist.

I numb really easily but it wears off fast. They usually have to numb me once or twice more before they are done. My dentist puts it in the roof of your mouth too (which hurts really bad) but it makes it so you can't feel anything at all.
 

katiemae1277

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I was at the dentist about 2 months ago and they gave me novacaine and started drilling and i could totally feel it! I'm a big baby when it comes to pain too, so they shot me up again- no more feeling, but my face was numb for 5 hours
and my mouth was droopy kinda like I'd had stroke
I was really hungry by the time I could eat again
 

pami

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The last time I had to have it, he gave me 5 shots before I could no longer feel him drilling. When he was done, my vision was crossed eyed and I couldnt see, so I had to get someone to come pick me up, but that was gone the next day. It was weird because I had never had the problem of not getting numb before, ever.
 

arlyn

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My dentist doesn't drill cavities, he has a preasure washer like little thing and just blasts the soft bits away before filling.
No anaesthetic needed


When I do need it, he uses a very good topical and a tiny bit of novacaine.
The topical does most of the work, the shot just keeps it dulled longer.
 

momofmany

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I have the same problem as you do. Until the dentist knew me well enough, it would take 4 or 5 shots to deaden me enough to work on my teeth, then half of my face would go numb. Recent research has identified that many redheads have this problem, then I've heard more recently it is in general, fair skinned people of northern European descent. We are highly tolerant to pain meds and anesthesia.
 

calico2222

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I've never had teeth drilled but I did have 5 teeth pulled in one session (yeah, that was fun
) and he only did 3 local shots, which hurt the worse, then when my gums were numb he gave a shot of novacain on each side. I was numb in a few minutes. I wish they would have knocked me out with gas though because even though I couldn't feel it, the sounds were terrible (all were molars).

Basically, I was a drooling fool for about 4 hours!
 

mbjerkness

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I usually freeze easily, but it takes for ever for the freezing to come out. The only time freezing didn't work. is when I had a root canal done.
That hurt
 
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