I have a hole in my tooth the size of a pea and an abscess in my gum, and I can't afford to go to the dentist.

[TheMolarBear]

I know I'm going to need a root canal treatment or (more likely) an extraction.
I've been unemployed since September but haven't been on JSA as my DH has been helping me, and I have no money of my own. Even if I had gone on JSA it would have been contributions based, so I wouldn't have qualified for free NHS treatment.
I just started a new job this week but I don't expect to be paid until the end of January, and my DH can't afford to pay for me as even on the NHS it runs into hundreds of pounds.
The free emergency dental clinics at Kings College Hospital and Guys Hospital don't operate over the Christmas holidays (as they are run by students) and even if they did I'd have to take at least one day off for them which I can't really do a week into a new job.
Am I literally going to have to leave it until it bloody rots and falls out? It's not especially painful at the moment but it is bleeding.

See if your dentist will charge at the end of treatment - emergency treatment now going for the two trips two weeks apart in January. If you tell them you can pay in full at end of January they might be sympathetic

As an employer I'd want you to get treatment. Go in and speak to them they may even give you an advance. We've done it when someone has been desperate.

Most dentists can offer a payment plan for treatments, would be worth asking for. Your teeth and gums are too valuable mucking around with! Good luck

Op if its an extraction it can be done in one appointment as an emergency not needing days off work. And also if you leave it the side effects are very serious and very fast acting. Believe me i had an absess for ages and my face swelled, it was agony and it had the potential to enter my blood stream it needed draining. It went away after i had a filling put in. Please contact your dentist and explain.

Not sure how helpful it will be but you could try a temporary filling while you wait to be seen.
They’re available from most pharmacies.

www.lloydspharmacy.com/en/dentek-temporary-filling-material-17g

If you can't pay, you can't pay. Unless you are asking people to give you money, what else can they realistically suggest?

OP, even if it doesn't enter your bloodstream you could still be very ill and sick. I can remember vomiting a lot when I had one and I've heard others say they were very poorly.
I'm not sure if it's changed but my dentist wouldn't treat the tooth until the abscess was gone and my gp prescribed ab's.

OP, this is an emergency. I’m sure no dentist would leave you to get sepsis over Christmas so how about you speak to them and ask for a payment plan, or something similar? You haven’t actually said anything about speaking to your NHS dentist (not the KCH dental school).

There is also a clinic in Peckham, which I've used before if that's anywhere near you?

You know that dental abscesses can be serious (I.e. fatal)? Not sure what more people can say. Ring NHS direct

Also I have an appointment with my own dentist on Xmas eve so I'm sure you could find one that would be willing to help.

If you are registered with a dentist they will be able to give you an emergency appointment if you ring tomorrow, then you can sort payment from there. I know my dentist is open on Christmas Eve, and they have on call cover over the weekend, Christmas Day etc.

I only realised I had an abscess like an hour ago, I haven't just been letting it sit there. Prior to that I was planning on getting some of that DIY temporary filling stuff with my advantage card points (knew they'd come in handy!) and hoped it would tie me over til I get paid.
Will give my dentist a call tomorrow and explain my situation (humiliating as that is) and just see if they can help me out somehow and fit me in over the Christmas break. I definitely can't lose this job because of a tooth.

Kings doesn't open till 8, the clinic is 8.30 to 12.30. We were not charged for two extractions under sedation and antibiotics. You can call them and ask when they are open, it's not Christmas yet. I am sure your dentist will be able to arrange some sort of finance plan for you if you've been a patient of theirs. You won't know till you ask.

Op I don't understand how kings can force you to have more sessions with them.

I guess most people here won't agree with me here but, If you look at your gum and see a yellow head, stick a pin in it. It doesn't hurt. Then squeeze. Instant relief. I suffer gum abcesses all the time.

I'll admit, I was tempted to give in to my sporner tendencies and just pop the little bastard and douse it in mouthwash and/or hot salt water, but I suspect that'd just make a bad situation worse! It doesn't hurt at the moment and I've only just noticed it, I don't understand how it could have come up so quickly?! Is that normal?

Mine have gone from nothing to really swollen in a few hours. Trust me. it's like squeezing a spot. I get an abcess every 3 months or so. Never had sepsis though. Had some horrendously bad ones with no visible head too. Had to go to the dentist with those and they've always pulled the tooth that day.
I really do sympathise.

Best way to get rid if the swelling is to wet a tea bag and hold it against the tooth and gum. Drains the puss

I would suggest you get it sorted as soon as possible you really don’t want to be in pain over the Christmas period. My dentist lets me pay in instalments it would be worth asking or maybe ask your new boss for a sub.

Don't you have a relative that could lend you the £21 until next month? I would certainly give my sister/ cousin/ niece £21 in your situation.

Can’t your dh help you out?

I think your dentist may well be sympathetic, particularly if you've been with them a reasonable time.
In the meantime I'd have a good look around to see if there is anything you could sell on Facebook sites just to raise a little cash (apologies if you've already done that).
Hope you feel better soon

Dentist here.

DO NOT use a home temp filling kit. It will trap any infection and increase the risk of something serious happening.

If you are not in any pain, and have a smallish tender lump that drains pus, this may not necessarily be a problem in the short term, but does need attention.

If you were my patient and knew the circumstances, I would either extract immediately at a cost of £21.60, or More likely I would write a prescription, you’d be charged £0 for a “prescription only” course of treatment and you’d then pay the NHS prescription levy of £8.60 in England. I would advise you to keep the prescription and not get it dispensed (saving you the £8.60) unless you had facial swelling or severe pain. I would ask you to return to have the tooth treated once you were able to pay / had accessed relevant benefits to be eligible for free treatment.