Please help me see sense about tooth - be kind!

[choixduroi]

I take insanely good care of my teeth because of bad experiences as a child. For the past few days had an ache in my back teeth which woke me up at 4 this morning and couldn't get back to sleep. It is not a severe pain but nagging. Can't see anything although have a very old (30 years) filling there which dentist remarked on last time. Have an appointment in a week's time as my dentist is on holiday. My huge fear is that by waiting a week, any decay will grow so the whole thing will become very serious. AIBU, should I not worry and just make it through to the appointment or should I just bite the bullet (worst analogy ever) and try to get seen by her replacement? I was so anxious about it I couldn't really enjoy my birthday at the weekend. I KNOW I'm lucky to have a bloody dentist and to have so few problems in general...

The decay won't progress at that speed, OP! Just wait for your appointment, you will be fine. :)

The pain may get worse and you might need antibiotics, if there's an infection. I would get it checked straightaway. But not because the tooth is rotting away rapidly.

If you have pain and are anxious I would ring in and ask if someone can see you sooner. They should have “pain slots” they fill on the day if you ring at 8am (or whenever they open) tomorrow.

If you are in pain I would try to see the replacement, although I doubt that it will get a lot worse over the next week. You could try oil of cloves as a short term measure, it will numb it a bit. Use soaked q tip, only as an interim. My dentist recommended this a while ago.

Thanks @CrunchyCarrot and @Silverbirchtwo . Yes I suppose I'm just as worried about an infection, basically anything which could risk losing the tooth or having to have a root canal... Maybe will see how it is by this evening. Supposed to be having a weekend away and don't want to be a twitching wreck :)

Yes as the other posters have said tooth decay is not rapid so the decay won't get significantly worse in just a week. However the ache could be from the old filling or you may have an abscess or something under the tooth. If the pain is enough to stop you sleeping that is quite bad. A dentist won't do any work on an infected tooth until you have had antibiotics so it might be worth getting an emergency appointment this week so the issue could be treated before your appointment next week.

OK she can see me Friday. It's ridiculous the levels of anxiety. I've given birth twice but just the thought of any tooth issues reduces me literally to a nervous wreck.

NEVER use clove oil like this. It is an acid and can burn through gum and cause ulcers. I have had to take a tooth out where clove oil had burnt through to the bone .
The proper place for clove oil is in the bin.
If you want to see pictures of what clove oil can do follow the links here https://ihrjournal.com/ihrj/article/view/222/778

NEVER put clove oil in your mouth.

Of course now I have the appointment fixed it's not hurting at all, but this has been the pattern, hurting at night and morning, then fine in the afternoon and evening. In any case very grateful to have the appointment.

If it's decay it won't get worse in a week. Equally, if they can offer you an appointment with a different dentist, there's no reason not to take it. They will treat the problem in exactly the same way as your usual dentist would.

If it's an abscess you will very soon be in a lot more pain and you'll need to ask for an emergency appointment - again, it doesn't matter who the appointment's with.

It might not be decay at all, but pressure from grinding your teeth at night. I get quite severe pain very occasionally and it’s because I grind my teeth when stressed. I have to make a conscious effort to relax at night and wear a mouth guard.

Thanks for replying. I have had a mouthguard at night for the past 8 years and do tense up a lot.. Also have all my wisdom teeth sitting around occasionally grumbling and pushing the other teeth, which might also be the issue here, but I'm too scared to have them out.

I think the issue is a lot of really old fillings (good NHS ones from the late 80s), combined with the crowded grumbling wisdom teeth, but on the other hand paired with neurotically good dental hygiene, not eating between meals or sweet drinks etc, flossing, high fluoride toothpaste once a week etc. Haven't had a filling for 10 years and that was due to a bit chipping off from a stone in rice. I think however careful I am, inevitably things go wrong at times. What bothers me is not that but the level of anxiety, like spending the morning of my birthday crying and worrying about it. Rationally I know it's completely ridiculous but it's getting ever worse.

You poor thing. How stressful. Well done for making an appointment and addressing it.

I hate the dentist too - I had a lot of fillings as a child and teen with no pain relief, my dentist believed in making it uncomfortable to get us to brush our teeth. It's made me terrified about going.

Sounds like there's a lot going on - andyes old fillings can just fail.I had 2 replaced last year, it's so annoying when you take such good care of your teeth.

Good luck!

It may start hurting if there's an infection but decay takes years not days, esp with good hygiene. If you're hyper nervous see the other dentist sooner, it will do no harm if you feel anxious. But if no pain, blood, swelling it can wait til your regular one returns. I've recently had 3.5k of dentistry (had no choice, life savings gone) so I know what it's like. My wisdom tooth fell out the other day, lol. Another dentists visit Monday!

Update: she replaced the filling today and it was apparently not a deep one. I did embarassingly burst into tears while she was giving me the injection - here in Germany they often don't bother giving injections for smaller fillings but I said I wanted it. I have to say the needle seemed overly large and it really really hurt, but other than that it is over. Now full of intentions to stop drinking capuccinos between meals, snacking etc, so as to keep my teeth healthy, and booked for deep clean.