to want to go to the doctor about my tooth?

[JaneFonda]

Last year, I had a filling in one of my teeth. A few weeks after I had the filling, I was drinking a glass of water and was suddenly in excruciating pain with my tooth. Every time I ate/drank anything on that side of my mouth I couldn't cope with how much it hurt (I am a bit of a wuss too!)

The pain has continued since then, and when I saw my dentist today I mentioned it to him, as I have during every single visit. He didn't do an x ray or anything, he just said it might need filing down. I can't see why, as the tooth doesn't rub against the tooth above it, it doesn't even touch it.

WIBU to go to the doctor about my tooth? I am really in a lot of pain, and I don't think the dentist is really willing to look further into it. Are you allowed to go to the doctor for teeth? I really have no idea, I'm very ready to be told IABU! :)

It sounds like he didn't go out of his way to explain why she was in pain, why there was no need for an x-ray etc. It's not a one-off, she has mentioned her pain for a while now

'when I saw my dentist today I mentioned it to him, as I have during every single visit.'

it does seem strange that he did not just file it down today

I agree ViviPrudolf.
This is too important. You have to get on with a dentist/doctor very well. If they are not good at explaining what is going on and don't solve problems when they are repeatedly brought up, then that is not good enough.

Jane I've been treated the same by dentists. Your gut feeling tells you you're being fobbed off and you're probably right.

I'm guessing from your posts that this is an NHS dentist? I'm probably going to get massacred for this, but NHS dentists are under massive pressures these days. They get a set payment per procedure and its all extremely time-sensitive. If he has to re-treat the tooth from scratch because the issue was not resolved with his first filling, there will be no £ (or significantly reduced £ compared to if he were spending that time treating a 'new' issue) in it for him. This could explain his reluctance to take it more seriously. I know there are NHS dentists on this board who may refute this, and I recognise that they are not all the same but this has been the case in my experience.

I've had a couple of dodgy NHS treatments re-done now and all issues are completely resolved.

I'm not too sure what he is, actually.

I know he used to be NHS, then went private, but still accepts NHS children and women who are pregnant/have just had babies...

I fall under the woman who's just had a baby category, so I'm getting free check ups, but this time he said that this was the last appointment where I'm exempt from charges, even if I get one of the forms. My twins aren't even four months yet, I thought it was supposed to be until they're a year?

It is supposed to be a year...

You have an exposed nerve. Hence the pain.

you cannot know that from words on a screen

I should have said "dentists treating patients on the NHS" rather than NHS dentists, apologies for the confusion.

Either way, second opinion. Good luck, OP. Tooth pain is the pits