I'm a dental nurse- ask me anything

[mrsbont87]

Home alone tonight so thought I would try this for a giggle!x

Is there a way to remove tartar yourself at home?

I have considered becoming a dental nurse, how did you get into it OP?

Why does everything go wrong with my teeth? I've had a full Prosthodontic reconstruction, wear a night guard, use a waterpik, use a Sonicare toothbrush, a chlohexidine rinse twice a day and I lost 4 and 18 in the space of 8 weeks and am now getting implants.

Have I offended the dental gods somehow? Has a witch cursed my teeth?

Just kidding, sort of.

Alien- Not really! You can buy little hook type things online but I don't recommend it as easy to hurt yourself with them. Best thing you can do yourself to prevent it happening is floss, or use some interdental brushes daily. Floss whenever you can!

Atetoomany- I fell into it when I lost my waiting on job at 18. I worked there full time doing it and trained at the hospital one night a week. Although that was in 2006 so things have changed now! Colleges offer the course and many dental practices are happy taking on trainee nurses and you can do your course and work at the same time too. You are qualified when you pass your exams.

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MissconductUS- Ohh no! Sounds like you have been through the mill recently 🙁

You sound as if you are doing everything right though so I have no advice I'm affraid. I know you said you use a water pick but do you use floss aswel?! If not then try that x

Do you have to have nice teeth to be a dental nurse?

Do you ever think ewwwww when you look in peoples mouths?

Do you get free/subsidised dentistry?

No nice teeth aren't mandatory, obviously good appearance is needed though.

I dont really get put off by anything these days as I have been doing it for so long, although I hate seeing nervous children in pain, thats never very nice!

I am lucky to have an amazing boss who I have worked with since day 1. She is like a mother to me, so yes I am lucky as I do only pay for anything I might externally (teeth bleach) any work that needs doing that she can do herself, then I don't pay for

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Thanks OP, I was really just having a moan.

I ground my teeth down terribly when I was younger and my bite was misaligned. Getting crowns all around mostly fixed that. 4 and 18 both had prior root canals, cracked and had to be extracted. I've already had 3 other implants and it's all cost a fortune.

To the good, my Prosthodontist is brilliant, one of the best in the US and I've spent so much time in his office that I get Christmas cards from the staff and take in home made brownies at most appointments. They tell me I'm "a rock" in the chair.

I don't generally floss unless there's something stuck intradentally that the waterpik can't get out, but it can't hurt.

How bad are dummy's for children's teeth?
What age do they recommend quitting them and how frequently do they need to be used to cause damage?

They say to give up from as early on as possible or limit use during the day at least. But I'm a mum to a toddler and I wont ever take her dummy away from her until she decides she wants to give it up. My eldest didnt give hers up until she was 7...... So I'm not one to say a word on the subject! 😂 Thumb sucking is a lot worse for teeth x

Not a question but my daughter needed two teeth out today for braces to be fitted and it couldn't be done in the chair as an anaesthetic will be needed.

She was extremely distressed and I just want to say how absolutely lovely the dental nurse was. So thank you for what you (all) do

Would you have your teeth whitened? Is the laser one I’ve seen in Bluewater etc better? Main concern for me is safety and sensitive teeth. Also I have a permanent yellow staining from what my dentist called overuse of antibiotics in childhood (!?). Would the normal whitening procedure work for me? Thanks for answering.

Can you tell if someone has an eating disorder immediately?

My veneer has fallen off for the second time. Is there any emergency dental cement that I can take on holiday with me in case if happens sgain

**again

Aww how lovely of you to say that, us dental nurses get forgotten about 99% of the time whilst working so it means a lot!

I have been whitening my teeth for years. We only sell the home bleaching kit as my boss doesn't agree or like the laser/zoom whitening as its too extreme and can cause a lot of sensitivity. I love my bleach as it doesn't make them go too white and fake looking 😂

We can most of the time guess if somebody has an eating disorder but we would hope the patient might tell us in their strictly private medical history form, we wont openly disclose information infront of patients. Hope that helps xx

You can buy something called tootypegs (UK) from the pharmacy which is a temporary filling material which would probably be your best bet. Make sure your tooth surface is totally dry, use a cloth to wipe it as it will help it stick better. Dont use super glue or any other type of glue!!x

Aww how lovely of you to say that, us dental nurses get forgotten about 99% of the time whilst working so it means a lot!

Was that for me?