Any Doctors/Dentists around? Question re Diazepam dosage

[TequilaMockinBird]

I have a major phobia of Dentists (as you may already know ), to the point I have panic attacks, hyperventilate, pass out etc. I therefore haven't been for years.

A couple of months ago though I decided to make use of the private dental insurance i get through work and so signed up with a private practice - in order to get my teeth sorted out and hopefully overcome my phobia.

The Dentist is lovely and understands completely about my fears etc and will help me to try and get around these. He has prescribed me Diazepam (5mg tabs) and advised me to take 1 the night before the appt, 1 when I wake on the morning and 1 an hour before the appointment.

Last week I had a scrape and polish appointment and took the tablets as prescribed. However, they only made the tiniest bit of difference and I was so terrified that I would only let her do a little bit of work. I must add to this that I didnt have a panic attack this time but not sure if that was more to do with me controlling my breathing (after googling breathing exercises and learning them!).

Next week I have an appointment with the dentist and he is going to do quite a lot of work. My question is, can I take any more of the Diazepam than he has prescribed? I.e. would it work better if I took say 2 tabs an hour before the appointment? Or will I end up killing myself if I take any more?!

TIA

You can take up to 30mg a day in divided doses, but I would recommend phoning the dentist before your appointment and asking if it's ok for you to take 10mg before your appt.

Thanks Sidge, I will ring and ask. My appointment is 11am though so would I be better off taking 2 when I wake then 1 an hour before or 1 when I wake then 2? I know the Dentist will tell me what I can take but I want to know how it will make me feel IYSWIM. I'd like to be as out of it as possible tbh! My friend is driving me there and waiting for me so no issues with that.

you can take up to 15 mg to help you sleep if you suffer from anxiety...check with you dentist ,but you can probably take 5mg at bedtime and then up to 10-15 g before treatment.

What has made you so scared of the dentist

they will make you feel quite drowsy and you should not drive or operate any machinery until the effects have worn off

alypaly, thank you. Drowsy is good, I'd rather just be asleep for the whole time I'm there! Will definitely ring on Monday morning and see what he says.

No idea what made me so scared, cant remember any specific bad experiences - nor can my mother. It's really awful though, and not just Dentists - Doctor's hospitals etc. too. Basically, anything medical! No idea how I managed to have DD!

that should have said 10-15 mg not grams...otherwise you'd be dead.

If you have never taken 10 mg before,it could knock you out.

you arent going on your own are you...you may need help to walk with that dosage

emc.medicines.org.uk/medicine/18061/XPIL/Diazepam+tablets+2mg,+5mg,+10mg++(Actavis+UK+Ltd)/ open up patient info document and it will give you info

Thanks Aly, no I'm not going on my own. My friend is driving me there, waiting and then driving me home. Last week my appointment was at 11am, I took 1 tablet the night before, 1 on waking (7.30 am) and then 1 at 10am. Tbh I didnt feel any different at all - which is why I wondered if I could take any more. The way I felt last week after taking them, I could never have let the dentist do any work!

Will check that link out, thank you

It does say on that pdf...

Before dental treatment: 5mg the night before treatment, 5mg on waking and
5mg two hours before the appointment.

Except I took 5mg 1 hour before the appointment, not 2.

And it didnt do anything

i think it depends on your level of anxiety how well it works and how much you fight the drug.

I too suffer from anxiety and it is the feeling of no escape at the dentist which triggers it for me. He had to mould my teeth last time I went it was awful, I was stuck there for 6 minutes with this thing in my mouth scared out of my wits!!! So, I do sympathise. Try and relax as much as you can before you go, do you have an mp3 with your favourite music on? something to fiddle with in your hands? anything to distract you will help. My dentist is fab to, he talks to me all the time as he knows I am in such a state. He rang me up and told me about ;tapping therapy', google it and have a look it can be learned in minutes. He also prescribed me valium, which was ok, but not great but gave me a terrible night sweat! I do find distraction can help alot, perhaps plan to do something nice after with your friend as a treat? Good luck and let us know how you get on xx

the pdf is a guide line for most dosages ,check with your dentist,because there is a 10 mg tablet anyway. he may feel that you need more so check

Ilovechristmas, thanks, awful isnt it

I never thought about an mp3 player - would I be allowed to have it on whilst he's working on my teeth though? I'm at work at the minute and had problems with internet yesterday but will google the tapping therapy tonight, thank you.

Alypaly, thanks again, will see what he says when I ring later x

I cant see it would be a problem at all, especially if he knows you have a phobia, he will want to make it as comfortable as possible for you Try and make a bit of time to relax before you go, lie on the bed and do some relaxation. The yoga technique of scrunching up your toes, relaxing them, tweeking your calf muscles, then relaxing them, knees buttocks etc etc, also may help. Be kind to yourself, your not alone and its not a silly phobia To have a fear of the dentist is very normal!! xx

i have a fear of the dentist, but last august i broke my wisdom tooth i went to my dentist who refused to take it out unless i was sedated by iv, to which i refused and said no i could manage with diazepam.

i then found another dentist who specialises in nervous patients, he is one of the top dentists in our county and trains other dentists and also works at the hospital.

i took 5mg of diazepam the night before and then 10mg of diazepam the following morning and also took my ipod. the dentist was lovely, the music helped and the diazepam certainly helped, it was all over and done with in half hour from having the local and an x-ray to having tooth out and then sitting for a bit.

my husband came in with me and the nurse was chatty all the time, by the way ask if they use a numbing gel before injection as this works brillant.

we have since changed to this dentist and he is brillant, i went back for a check up and need a scale and polish, but he is leaving it to me to decide when i feel ready.

you a re not alone, so many more people have this fear than you think, hope all goes well

In the past, I've been sedated i/v for extractions etc. but this new dentist would prefer to treat me with oral sedation as he thinks it will eventually cure my phobia! The i/v sedation was great because I didnt remember a thing!

Tried ringing dentist a few times now but he's always with patients. The twice he's rang me back I've been in meetings or driving and couldn't answer! So I dont know what to do now really, not sure whether to just take what he told me to, or take the extra tablet and hope that works a bit better. Any ideas? Im tempted to just take the extra tbh, just dont want it to interfere with the injections or work that he will do to me!

Hi
I have the same problem, and cannot have anything done at all unless given iv sedation.
In order to go for a check up (perched on edge of chair, quick peek in mouth, no tools near mouth), I have lorazepam. My GP tried me with diazepam, but it had no effect - apparently my high level of stress at the dentist means I metabolise it too quickly. The lorazepam is better, but still not the 'out of it' that I want, it just makes me slightly less likely to bolt for the door or punch the dentist .
I think drugs like these can help, but they don't do as much for you as you would like/need if you are really dental-phobic (in my experience).
Best of luck - I think you are to be commended for trying to sort this out {smile]

ForestFloor, I am really phobic unfortunately

My appointment is tomorrow morning at 11.30am and I am shaking and panicking already. I'm going to have a bath in a minute and then take 1 diazepam before going to bed. I think I'll take 1 tablet about 8.30 in the morning and then another at about 10.30 - does that sound ok? I spoke to the pharmacist today in Boots who told me that if I take 2 tablets at the same time (i.e. 10mg) then I will knock myself out this cant be right can it?

Hand holding may be needed in the morning please if any of you fellow phobics are around

Nobody around to hold my hand?

Not sure if you are still around, but here to wish you well. It WILL be grim, but you WILL come out the other side. It will be over soon and then you can forget about it for a long time. Just keep breathing and remind youself, it will be over soon, it will be over soon...

(if it were me and I had someone to take me to the dentist, then I would take 2 tablets, because I don't think they would knock me out. Under normal circumstances, they would. Under high stress - nope!)

Hope it goes as well as it can. Please report back!

Thanks FF, sorry I didnt report back yesterday, I spent the afternoon in bed .

It wasnt as bad as I thought it was going to be actually, and I sat with my ipod on and my eyes closed until he was finished. I tried to control my breathing and think I did really well. Although there were a couple of points where I nearly lost it!

I now have to go back again next Friday to have the temporary filling replaced with a proper one, so will have to go through this all again next week

The good news is though that because I need so much work done and because I'm so nervous, the dentist is referring me to a special clinic about 40 miles away who will sedate me i/v and get it all done in about 2 visits! They will leave a couple of easy fillings which I will then have done by the dentist, and hopefully will help with my phobia. Yesterday was awful, but I did it, and I cant tell you how proud I feel of myself!

Thank you for thinking of me xx