I had a root canal done on my number 12 bicuspid today. Since it wasn't my first root canal I sort of knew what to expect. My usual dentist referred me to an endodontist because he said it may be complicated.

It started out well enough; he shot me up with novocaine and then left the room to see another patient. He said he'd be back in a few minutes. While he was gone I pondered the pain I was getting ready to experience and mentally prepared myself for it. I studied the palm-shaped grab handles on either side of the chair and wondered what they were for.

He returned About 30 minutes later and went to work. "Raise your hand if you feel any pain." And then he started drilling.

All was well until he hit bottom; a bright light of pain exploded in my eyes as if someone had just popped a flash bulb in my face. Instantly I found out what the grab handles were for. I raised my hand. He stopped drilling.

"Did you feel that?"
I nodded.

"Here, let me give you another shot; this one is going straight into the tooth."  My toes curled up and I squeezed the grab handles until my knuckles turned white as the needle penetrated the depths of my now open tooth.

About an hour later he finished up as the last of the novocaine wore off. He wrote me a prescription for Vicoden and penicillin and I left. As I pulled out of the parking lot the pain went into maximum overdrive. While standing in line at the Fort Jackson pharmacy the pain hit a gut-wrenching level. After about 10 minutes I couldn't stand it any longer and headed for the nearest store which was a shoppette down the street. Just when I thought it couldn't hurt any worse the pain reached a new level of intensity; it literally took my breath away.

All they had was Advil. I grabbed a bottle and stood in line to pay for it, the whole time doing a kind of writhing and pacing. Looking back I am sure I looked like someone who had to go to the bathroom real bad.

Finally, I reached the cashier and cashed out. After swallowing two Advil I headed back to the pharmacy to finish filling my prescription. After about 20 minutes the Advil began to kick in and the pain settled down to a manageable throb.

I got my drugs and went back to work.

How did your root canal go?

Not near that bad. Did it in 2 visits though. Gonna have to go back for another one. Sucks.

No pain, but......

that little file going "wickie, wickie, wickie" up and down and up and down inside each root (I guess to clean it out and open each root up?) drives me apeshit crazy.  I hate going to the dentist to start with and root canals are teh mega sucketh.

I've had a number of them and the first was probably the worst.  Not really any problem with pain after that first one.

Now have them drill into your jaw to insert a couple of pins to put an implant on.  Thats some pain.

I have had so much dental work that it is hard to believe!

First few root canals were awful but the technology is a lot less painful now

I've had several root canals, the shots hurt, but after the Novocain kicks in...no more problems, and a great relief from the pain of the infected tooth before the dentist does his work.

Root canals hurt if you do not take care of the problem and wait till your gums swell up.  By then, you are screwed.

I had a root canal last year.  To be honest, getting fillings was more discomfort.  My root canal did not hurt at all.

You shouldn't feel anything if he did it right.

I've had at least ten. I had a good Dentist doing the work so there was VERY little pain.  There was no reason for that kind of pain being felt by you, especially by an Endo. Find another Dentist or Endo.
Josh

They are not bad.

Try gum surgery.. I had that yesterday...You want pain?  Try it.. Youll wish you didnt.

height=8

Quoted: You shouldn't feel anything if he did it right. Mine went smoothly. My dentist also told me if you have severe infection the pain can override the numbing effects of the novicane. Maybe one of the docs here will explain that more.

Mine went about the same as yours.  I remember him drilling to the bottom of my molar and then sticking needles laced with something in my roots to kill them

My biggest complaint though was that it took two weeks to finish and I had to have a temporary crown or filling on it till they could get a permanant one made.

I had a double root canal once.

It wasn't too bad so the dentist must of done it right.

The contraptions they put in your mouth are kind of annoying though.

I've done quite a few root canals as a dentist. I never felt a thing.

My 6 year old just went through one last month...she did great!  I just hope we don't have to go through that again

Quoted: Quoted: You shouldn't feel anything if he did it right. Mine went smoothly. My dentist also told me if you have severe infection the pain can override the numbing effects of the novicane. Maybe one of the docs here will explain that more.

Yep, I've had two and didn't feel a thing either time.

I'll do my first one in the fall of 07.  Anyone wanna volunteer to be my first?  At school we are told to tell patients I've done tons of these if they happen to ask (yea tons on already extracted or fake teeth in simulators).

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: You shouldn't feel anything if he did it right. Mine went smoothly. My dentist also told me if you have severe infection the pain can override the numbing effects of the novicane. Maybe one of the docs here will explain that more. Yep, I've had two and didn't feel a thing either time.

+1

Out of the hundreds of dental problems I've had, it was the easiest.

Quoted: I've done quite a few root canals as a dentist. I never felt a thing.

Quoted: You shouldn't feel anything if he did it right.

had 2 at the same time....teeth were damaged in an accident and the roots died in a week. no novicane at all...never felt a thing.


but the drill vibrated the hell out of my head....that smell too was terrible.

Quoted: Quoted: You shouldn't feel anything if he did it right. had 2 at the same time....teeth were damaged in an accident and the roots died in a week. no novicane at all...never felt a thing. but the drill vibrated the hell out of my head....that smell too was terrible.

yes but if they do it wrong its liked getting kicked in the balls repeatedly if your balls were located where your jaw is

I've had a few.........well, five. The first one was just a bit nerve wracking (I guess there's pun intended), but it didn't hurt before, during, or after. By the third, the doc had to block my mouth open cause I kept falling asleep.

Had 4 done in one day along with 2 fillings and a crown. 5 hrs. in the chair.

I went shooting the following morning,

No real pain, just a little discomfort from holding my mouth open that long.

My dentist rules

I've had two of them. The first was when I was in the Navy (boot camp) and the dentists in training FORCED me to get a filling changed. I went back to KP duty and when the Novocaine wore off and I was in tears from the pain. Apparently, the dentist drilled too far and placed the new metal filling on top of the now exposed nerve. They gave me huge amounts of Novocaine and Codiene to no avail. They could not get the pain down to start the procedure. I went through hell as they drilled out the nerve as I could feel every bit of it. At one point my leg kicked involuntarily and knocked the tool tray so hard that a few of them stuck in the ceiling.

The second root canal was over year ago and it was needed because another dentist drilled too far again when changing a filling. The actual root canal was a piece of cake for the actual procedure, but the tooth has been hurting for 15 months since. They say sometimes it takes a while for the tooth to calm down. The alternative is to get it pulled.

Dentists are not my favorite people.