Does anyone else put off going to the dentist- hygienist?

[lemontreeee]

I've been putting off for ages. I just really hate going, but obviously the longer I leave it, the worse it is. But I just throw it to the back of my mind somehow.

I finally went today ! What a relief! I hadn't gone since 2020!! Totally unreasonable. Anyone else?

I also hate it. Really really hate it, I am always close to tears when I leave. I can't really justify my reaction with any rational reasons, but it is what it is.

I just book the next one as I'm leaving and I am not the sort of person to be able to miss an appointment without a good reason, so I know if it's booked I will go.

I need to go to the hygienist but what I'm put off by are the charges as opposed to the treatment itself

I hate it. So does DH as it turns out. Last time me and DH booked consecutive appointments so I went first and came out grey faced and grinned at him with my bleeding gums, he absolutely shat himself

Buy an electric toothbrush, stop snacking, and clean your teeth twice a day.

Yep... loathe seeing the hygienist. So uncomfortable and , at times, painful.

When my dentist did a scale and Polish, never felt a thing other than the obvious.

Still need to see the hygienist! I do all the above, floss and use interdental brushes and visit twice a year

I had to ask her to do it by hand last time as she's v thorough (and new) and I couldn't cope with the water jet

Surely you still need to go to the dentist??

Dentist - since the pandemic we only go if there is a problem. Hygienist has been avoided wherever possible as they seem to have a god complex. Plus cost v benefits just don’t balance out. Neither of us love paying to be in pain, which is always the outcome.

That's not quite how it works.

@5zeds Following the pandemic our dentist has ceased doing NHS work and there'are no other NHS dentists within miles. So you advice is all we have!!!

I have an electric toothbrush.. everyone needs to go to the hygienist !

It's just nasty. Plaque is so gross. Some people get more plaque than others. A water Flosser is a good investment too if you suffer from a lot of plaque.

I havent seen hygienist in years. I'm not mad eof money! The one at out dentist only works hours thay mean I would definitely have to book time off work too (I'm part time so I'd normally try to schedule appointments on my day off). So the double whammy of using annual leave and laying silly money means I don't go. I do go to the dentist though

Mine was just 60 pounds today. I think that's ok.

It's a lot! I usually just pay £23.80 for the basic check up. £60 is a lot of money to me

🤣well it works for me. I have a waterpik too but I forget to charge it so I don’t think it really counts. I’ve only been to a hygienist once and she told (!) me I must have been recently as I didn’t need to be there. I explained it was my first time and she said my previous dentist must have been cleaning them. I was too embarrassed to say I hadn’t been to the dentist for years because it sounded like I was telling her she was talking shit.
I think good hygiene is the only way to avoid them.

It is a lot but a recent thread had people spending hundreds of pounds on their hair.

The practice I go to makes you see the hygienist before having an appt with the dentist. The last three appts I’ve had, they’ve apologised profusely and said the hygienist was off. It’s such a relief! I even joked once that I’d pay NOT to see the hygienist. The receptionist didn’t think I was funny.

What does the hygienist do if you don’t have plaque???

I make my next appointment while I'm there, or I'd do the same. The only reason I make myself go is because I hate the thought of having to have dentures.

Yes, me! I am like this and have put off seeing the dentist and the hygienist since 2019!. I’ve had a couple of weeks off work and said o myself that I’d go in that time but still not booked the appointment!!!

I love it it makes me so relaxed I could fall asleep

My hygienist numbs my gums first as I’m so sensitive/scared. Makes it a much more pleasant experience!

It’s not a bad price in terms of what you get, but particularly at the moment a lot of people just simply don’t have it spare.

The fact others have hundreds to blow on hair appointments doesn’t change that £60 is unaffordable to loads of people

I love it too , feels so lovely afterward, I like the abrasive tape part
and for what it’s worth I bought a waterpik and I hardly use it I think I wasted money on that
better results with teepees, mouthwash before and after brushing and the inerspacial Braun oral b heads along with the regular heads, plus I have to use it in the shower as water gets everywhere, I just don’t get on with it , feels gimmicky to me
I hardly have any plague two visits a year, she takes great delight in showing me what’s come off 🤮

Take this as a sign to just book that appointment.

It won't be as bad as you think. I thought mine was going to be so terrible today, but it really wasn't.

Yes of course my gyms aren't in great shape. It's been a couple of years. But this is the first step to get them back on track. Now I can start being more diligent again and they'll heal up in no time. I've been there before. By Christmas they'll be so much better.

You can do this !