I'm new around here, and see a lot of threads with patients complaining about refused painkillers. Well as the saying goes, there are many like it but this one is mine. A little background that distinguishes me in some ways from your "average" patient. I was tortured with needles for over a decade as a child. I have a PTSD level conditioned panic response to anything sharp touching me. You CANNOT get a line in me while I am conscious, and that pick is going to be a problem. I have had many horrible experiences with dentists who think they understand panic, when what they actually understand is nervousness and fear. When faced with a total panic response, despite my best efforts to inform them beforehand, they have no idea how to handle the situation, and I have been called many things, told the problems are all in my head, etc. Well, yes, I have several problems in my head right now, they are called teeth. Due to these experiences I generally avoid dentists and doctors in general.
Lest I come across as bashing the entire profession, I dont think that way. My experiences overall have been negative far more often than positive, but the good ones have been there. The last good one was a few years ago when one understanding soul suggested "clearing the upper decks and going for a denture", in the view that if they were going to put me through the psychological hell that is surgery for me, they were only going to do it once. Life happened and I was forced to move out of that area. Shame, really, I actually liked that dentist.
Which brings us to recent weeks. First, I brought visual aids.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/127754010@N06/15454470316/
Tour guide mode, as you can see theres problems everywhere. But if you look to your right and turn your attention to what is left of the 2nd molars top and bottom, this is where the excitement starts.
Both have rotted out to shells from the chewing surface down (or up) directly into the tooth. These craters extend deeper than the gumline, in fact the upper one has gum tissue growing into the crater through holes in the tooth. Essentially a hernia through bone, and trust me, its less pleasant than it sounds.
This shot was taken 2 weeks ago when agony forced me into a dentist. I had infection spreading through my gums causing swelling and pressure on nerves. I was prescribed an antibiotic. When I asked for something to manage the pain so I could function, I was looked at icily and told "we will address this with antibiotics, not painkillers" I'll admit I am not a doctor, but the last time I checked the two were not mutually exclusive, and in fact compliment each other in providing both relief and resolution, no?
I was referred to a surgeon for extracts. I have a consultation on the 29th with him. His office also told me no painkillers would be prescribed, that I'd have to go through the original dentist for those. The antibiotic is done with, and yes the teeth that were hurting only from the infection, no longer hurt. Meanwhile that lower molar has me literally writhing, cursing, and clutching my face as I type this. I get that no one wants to face the DEA witch hunt, I really do. But its hard to sympathize when I'm the one in agony and being told theres nothing they will do for me.
I am taking 800 mg of ibuprofen, 1000 mg of acetaminophen, 1690 mg of aspirin and 130 mg of caffeine (BC powder). An hour later I am still writhing. I'm also applying clove oil at full strength, but its not getting deep enough. I explained this to the dentist, he apologized but still refused to prescribe something that would grant actual relief. Considering my mother died of renal failure, I am really not liking the idea of long term ODing on the OTC stuff.
I'm not going to rant on this dentist, or the image he presents of the profession, though I'm sure some of you will forgive me for having less than pure thoughts on the matter. What I am asking for is advice, what more I can do for some pain control that is legal and wont use my liver as a punching bag down the line?
Lest I come across as bashing the entire profession, I dont think that way. My experiences overall have been negative far more often than positive, but the good ones have been there. The last good one was a few years ago when one understanding soul suggested "clearing the upper decks and going for a denture", in the view that if they were going to put me through the psychological hell that is surgery for me, they were only going to do it once. Life happened and I was forced to move out of that area. Shame, really, I actually liked that dentist.
Which brings us to recent weeks. First, I brought visual aids.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/127754010@N06/15454470316/
Tour guide mode, as you can see theres problems everywhere. But if you look to your right and turn your attention to what is left of the 2nd molars top and bottom, this is where the excitement starts.
Both have rotted out to shells from the chewing surface down (or up) directly into the tooth. These craters extend deeper than the gumline, in fact the upper one has gum tissue growing into the crater through holes in the tooth. Essentially a hernia through bone, and trust me, its less pleasant than it sounds.
This shot was taken 2 weeks ago when agony forced me into a dentist. I had infection spreading through my gums causing swelling and pressure on nerves. I was prescribed an antibiotic. When I asked for something to manage the pain so I could function, I was looked at icily and told "we will address this with antibiotics, not painkillers" I'll admit I am not a doctor, but the last time I checked the two were not mutually exclusive, and in fact compliment each other in providing both relief and resolution, no?
I was referred to a surgeon for extracts. I have a consultation on the 29th with him. His office also told me no painkillers would be prescribed, that I'd have to go through the original dentist for those. The antibiotic is done with, and yes the teeth that were hurting only from the infection, no longer hurt. Meanwhile that lower molar has me literally writhing, cursing, and clutching my face as I type this. I get that no one wants to face the DEA witch hunt, I really do. But its hard to sympathize when I'm the one in agony and being told theres nothing they will do for me.
I am taking 800 mg of ibuprofen, 1000 mg of acetaminophen, 1690 mg of aspirin and 130 mg of caffeine (BC powder). An hour later I am still writhing. I'm also applying clove oil at full strength, but its not getting deep enough. I explained this to the dentist, he apologized but still refused to prescribe something that would grant actual relief. Considering my mother died of renal failure, I am really not liking the idea of long term ODing on the OTC stuff.
I'm not going to rant on this dentist, or the image he presents of the profession, though I'm sure some of you will forgive me for having less than pure thoughts on the matter. What I am asking for is advice, what more I can do for some pain control that is legal and wont use my liver as a punching bag down the line?