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> (it doesn’t hurt!) It doesn't hurt for you. Some people, including myself, have had root canals that have almost caused worse pain than when I was in the ICU

> (it doesn’t hurt!) It doesn't hurt for you. Some people, including myself, have had root canals that have almost caused worse pain than when I was in the ICU.

Invictus0 5y ago
That's the parent's point: the tools and methods have changed so that now it no longer hurts.
- imglorp 5y ago
  Even now, sometimes it does hurt, plenty. Local anesthesia can be somehow negated by bacterial infection, something involving the pH getting altered. My endo apologized but had to keep drilling to reach relief.
  - dawnerd 5y ago
    I had to suffer through one as well. They have me the max number of shots after being on antibiotics and the pain was still unbelievable. Worst part… the dentist messed up and the whole root canal was for nothing.
- monoideism 5y ago
  This was 5 years ago. We're all different. Some people respond poorly to root canals, some feel moderate pain, some feel absolutely no pain. And to be clear, the pain has been after my root canal, not during (even though ostensibly, the nerve is gone). My worst root canal was infected, but the endodontist claims that it usually doesn't cause that much pain (perhaps, but not for some people). My mother and uncle have had the same issues. My father has never had issues.
Waterluvian 5y ago
Yeah it took me decades to learn that the pain of getting a cavity filled isn't normal. I thought the freezing helped and that the ice pick jab causing lightning of pain down my spine was what everyone suffered. A dentist finally slowed down. Noticed my tears. Asked. Had a conversation. Tried freezing me in other places. Worked perfectly. She guessed that my nerves are anatomically weird.
- tomcam 5y ago
  I feel your pain, literally. No local anesthetic works at all for me. I need to be put under general anesthesia. Costs an extra $6000 or $7000.
  - tonyedgecombe 5y ago
    >Costs an extra $6000 or $7000. I'd find that more painful than the treatment.
    - tomcam 5y ago
      Worth it to me. Dental pain is incredibly rough for me. Not sure why. And I have lots of experience with high levels of pain.
  - mattlondon 5y ago
    I had the same for years, and eventually just said "get on with it" without any pain killers and basically just try to withstand the pain as much as possible. Eventually one dentist suggested trying the injection 15-20 mins before the filling started. I'd go in, get a jab, then go back out and wait while they saw another patient. Now there is no pain at all. I could literally fall asleep in the chair. What a difference.
    - tomcam 5y ago
      Very cool! Doesn’t work for me.
- RyJones 5y ago
  I'm with you. Cross innervation[0] is hell! [0] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11505257/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11505257/
- ornornor 5y ago
  I was very surprised when I went to a dentist in Europe to fill a cavity: they don’t freeze anything by default unless you really want. I thought I’d try without anesthesia and it turned out surprisingly bearable. Plus I didn’t have half my face frozen for half a day.
EMM_386 5y ago
> It doesn't hurt for you. Some people, including myself, have had root canals that have almost caused worse pain than when I was in the ICU. I am just going to have the tooth pulled. They argued either try to save it, or just have it taken out. I dread dentists, and especially endodontists/root canals. There are enough reports of severe pain and I want no part of it, unless I go the expensive sleep dentistry route.
- cableshaft 5y ago
  I've had two root canals done with local anesthetic and no real problems. I was real nervous for the first one and went to a specialist and they used a lot of local anesthetic that I couldn't feel anything but a little pressure. But the second time I just had my doctor do it with his anesthetic, and it wasn't much worse than a filling for me. A little unpleasant but not unbearable. On the negative side, either that or some other dental work I had done close to the same time must have damaged a nerve and now I haven't been able to really taste anything in the front half of my tongue the past three years (still can on the back of my tongue, at least, thankfully).
0xbadcafebee 5y ago
You don't ask for drugs? Ask for drugs. I always get Xanax and it basically puts me out through the whole thing. I have, err... had a lot of root canals. I'd think the bigger concern with a root canal is the not-insignificant likelihood they will break your jaw. Or not get the whole root out, causing an infection and need to get the procedure done again. (Never have a dentist do your root canal, folks)
- kstrauser 5y ago
  I generally don’t need pain meds for dental stuff. But if I thought for a moment that I’d be feeling any pain at all, yes, give me all the meds. I’m not proud: given a choice between pain and no pain, I’ll take the second option any day of the week. I know that some people have specific reasons for avoiding meds, but absent that, why put yourself through it? You don’t get bonus points for suffering.
- knicholes 5y ago
  If not you dentist, then who would do the root canal?
  - bruckie 5y ago
    Typically an endodontist, at least in the U.S.

> (it doesn’t hurt!) It doesn't hurt for you. Some people, including myself, have had root canals that have almost caused worse pain than when I was in the ICU.

Invictus0 5y ago

That's the parent's point: the tools and methods have changed so that now it no longer hurts.

imglorp 5y ago
Even now, sometimes it does hurt, plenty. Local anesthesia can be somehow negated by bacterial infection, something involving the pH getting altered. My endo apologized but had to keep drilling to reach relief.
- dawnerd 5y ago
  I had to suffer through one as well. They have me the max number of shots after being on antibiotics and the pain was still unbelievable. Worst part… the dentist messed up and the whole root canal was for nothing.
monoideism 5y ago
This was 5 years ago. We're all different. Some people respond poorly to root canals, some feel moderate pain, some feel absolutely no pain. And to be clear, the pain has been after my root canal, not during (even though ostensibly, the nerve is gone). My worst root canal was infected, but the endodontist claims that it usually doesn't cause that much pain (perhaps, but not for some people). My mother and uncle have had the same issues. My father has never had issues.

Waterluvian 5y ago

Yeah it took me decades to learn that the pain of getting a cavity filled isn't normal. I thought the freezing helped and that the ice pick jab causing lightning of pain down my spine was what everyone suffered. A dentist finally slowed down. Noticed my tears. Asked. Had a conversation. Tried freezing me in other places. Worked perfectly. She guessed that my nerves are anatomically weird.

tomcam 5y ago
I feel your pain, literally. No local anesthetic works at all for me. I need to be put under general anesthesia. Costs an extra $6000 or $7000.
- tonyedgecombe 5y ago
  >Costs an extra $6000 or $7000. I'd find that more painful than the treatment.
  - tomcam 5y ago
    Worth it to me. Dental pain is incredibly rough for me. Not sure why. And I have lots of experience with high levels of pain.
- mattlondon 5y ago
  I had the same for years, and eventually just said "get on with it" without any pain killers and basically just try to withstand the pain as much as possible. Eventually one dentist suggested trying the injection 15-20 mins before the filling started. I'd go in, get a jab, then go back out and wait while they saw another patient. Now there is no pain at all. I could literally fall asleep in the chair. What a difference.
  - tomcam 5y ago
    Very cool! Doesn’t work for me.
RyJones 5y ago
I'm with you. Cross innervation[0] is hell! [0] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11505257/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11505257/
ornornor 5y ago
I was very surprised when I went to a dentist in Europe to fill a cavity: they don’t freeze anything by default unless you really want. I thought I’d try without anesthesia and it turned out surprisingly bearable. Plus I didn’t have half my face frozen for half a day.

EMM_386 5y ago

> It doesn't hurt for you. Some people, including myself, have had root canals that have almost caused worse pain than when I was in the ICU. I am just going to have the tooth pulled. They argued either try to save it, or just have it taken out. I dread dentists, and especially endodontists/root canals. There are enough reports of severe pain and I want no part of it, unless I go the expensive sleep dentistry route.

cableshaft 5y ago
I've had two root canals done with local anesthetic and no real problems. I was real nervous for the first one and went to a specialist and they used a lot of local anesthetic that I couldn't feel anything but a little pressure. But the second time I just had my doctor do it with his anesthetic, and it wasn't much worse than a filling for me. A little unpleasant but not unbearable. On the negative side, either that or some other dental work I had done close to the same time must have damaged a nerve and now I haven't been able to really taste anything in the front half of my tongue the past three years (still can on the back of my tongue, at least, thankfully).

0xbadcafebee 5y ago

You don't ask for drugs? Ask for drugs. I always get Xanax and it basically puts me out through the whole thing. I have, err... had a lot of root canals. I'd think the bigger concern with a root canal is the not-insignificant likelihood they will break your jaw. Or not get the whole root out, causing an infection and need to get the procedure done again. (Never have a dentist do your root canal, folks)

kstrauser 5y ago
I generally don’t need pain meds for dental stuff. But if I thought for a moment that I’d be feeling any pain at all, yes, give me all the meds. I’m not proud: given a choice between pain and no pain, I’ll take the second option any day of the week. I know that some people have specific reasons for avoiding meds, but absent that, why put yourself through it? You don’t get bonus points for suffering.
knicholes 5y ago
If not you dentist, then who would do the root canal?
- bruckie 5y ago
  Typically an endodontist, at least in the U.S.