Any dentists around? Worrying about post-root canal

[Redlorryellow]

Posting here for traffic.. I had my first ever root canal yesterday on a top molar that’s been bugging me for a while, and there’s a temporary filling on it while I wait for the 2nd stage of the RCT and a crown. This will be in just under 2 weeks. I luckily haven’t got much pain in the affected area today but I’m worrying about eating and potentially damaging the temp filling. Everything I’ve read online says try not to chew on that side, eat soft foods, avoid hard foods- am definitely going to avoid anything hard as that was what triggered the pain which led to the RCT, but eating only soft on one side (where I am already missing a molar!) for almost 2 weeks sounds pretty challenging and I also just gained back weight I lost through (unrelated) stress and I really don’t want my weight to drop again. Any advice? I have no idea how strong the temp fillings are or how bad it is if they get damaged. Can I still chew soft foods on that side, for example? I should’ve asked more questions at the dentist but I was so relieved it was finally done…

Wrong thread sorry I've reported it

Your tooth is vulnerable at the moment as you wait for the crown to protect it. It's impossible to completely avoid a tooth but I normally recommend being careful so stick to softer food avoid hard, chewy foods. A soft diet should be absolutely fine.
If any of the temporary comes away call your Dental Practice for advice. We'd normally say if there is minor chipping it's fine as the temporary is very deep, but if a lot came out I'd want to see it in case the canals are uncovered and I don't want infection to get in.

I had a root canal over 5 months because of lock downs, dentist on holiday and an ill fitting crown, so it had to be sent back to the dental technician. It was a pain but do-able.
Just eat your normal diet but avoid anything crunchy. I did try to eat on one side but often forgot. If you feel you have cracked the temporary filling give your dentist a call. Good luck.

Thanks so much — it might sound silly but how would I know if part of the filling comes out?

I would just have a softish diet OP. You don't have to liquidise everything but avoid crunchy or hard foods on that side. You can have things like pasta or fish and mash potato, fish/cottage pie etc.

You will know if the filling comes out because the tooth will have a big hole in it

If the filling comes out at this stage its not the end of the world as you should still have some cleaning of the canals left to do. It will just make your tooth more vunerable. If a small amount of the filling comes off I wouldn't worry about it

@Redlorryellow

Thanks so much — it might sound silly but how would I know if part of the filling comes out?

You will probably feel it with your tongue if a little has chipped off, or if its big enough you will feel it in your mouth.

I had a temporary filling in between root canal treatment. I ate normally but avoided chewing or crunching very hard foods on it. It was fine.

I had an RCT and got a bit lazy about getting the crown afterwards. Eventually the tooth split and I ended up with an implant. Bitterly regretted it - although the tooth is now indestructible, food gets stuck under it all the time (especially under - there is a small gap between implant and gum). Maybe manageable if you like flossing, but I don't.

So follow the advice you've had, soft food, chew on the other side, crown ASAP.

Definitely getting the crown at my next appt booked for 1 July so not too long to wait. No plans to eat very hard or chewy foods so hopefully even if I chew a bit on one side I’ll be ok til then?