my rotten teeth

[desperate]

I have rotten teeth. hi. i just began surfing the net about rotten teeth and support for them. my entire life i've had bad teeth. it all began when i was a kid old enough to look in the mirror, and in school in that age group where kids start making fun of others. as baby teeth were falling out, my incoming adult teeth were coming in yellow. my mom told me it was because of the forumula i drank as a baby. as a kid i was able to deal with yellow teeth. heading into adolescence, i needed braces. my orthodontist carelessly put braces on my teeth when i had unattended cavities. as a teenager i had braces for about 6 years. it was a long process to get all my teeth straight. the day i had my braces removed, when i was about 17, my orthodontist told me not to look in the mirror. my teeth were discolored where the braces were. spots on them, orange and yellow.
back then, all that was available was bleaching, and it was too expensive for my parents.
i went into adulthood. my teeth began to decay more and more. i'm almost 30 years old, and i have the worst teeth i have ever seen. the top two front teeth almost have holes in them at the top. in a matter of months, maybe a year, i assume they will rot completely away. my molars are falling apart. i remember one time a few years ago i was talking to someone and i could feel the molar pieces rambling around in my mouth.
the smell is horrible. my breath is always bad. i can't get close to people even right after i brush my teeth.
i have a full time job. i have coworkers. i know they talk about me. i believe i've lost several other jobs as a result of my teeth.
i try to look on the brightside and think to myself that i am a great person inside. but it's affecting my life,it affects how people treat me.
i have a loving boyfriend who never mentions my teeth to me. he is very handsome, i am surprised he is with me.
i rarely go to events related to his job because i am embarrassed for him. i don't want his peers to know his girlfriend has disgusting teeth.
i'd rather them think i am just antisocial.

i know people talk about my teeth when i walk away. i was able to hide it for a long time, but now it's more than obvious. i am not conceited but i think my face is very attractive. i know i could feel better about myself if i had good teeth. or even mediocre teeth.
i have no health or dental insurance.
i have not been to a dental office since i had my braces removed when i was a teen. i am too scared, too embarrassed. i don't want a lecture. i feel terrible already. i just want someone to say "okay. let's fix this" and be on with it. i do not want a dentist asking me why. i'll be compelled to lie to him and say it's because i was bulemic or it's because i was stranded on a deserted island for years. i am so ashamed. i dont know what to do.
i have close friends. i know they know i feel pain inside. but no one mentions it to me. they're just being polite.

just once i'd like to laugh out loud, and not feel smaller than a pea for doing it.

does anyone have any suggestions for someone like me, a female, almost 30, with terrible teeth, and fear of embarrassment? i don't fear pain, i figure it'd be worth it.
i'm at the end of my rope. the condition of my teeth is killing my well being. it's making me a hermit. i'm too ashamed to leave the house but to go to work.

i'm afraid if i go to a dentist, they'll make fun of me too.

tonight i've been looking on ebay for dentures and false teeth that i can construct myself, because i am so scared of a dentist.

[jamesy]

Hello,

Glad you found your way here. I know it takes a lot of courage to type that initial post, so good for you for putting your thoughts into words. The trick now is to relay these fears and thoughts to a dentist.

Are there any recommendations from coworkers or from your boyfriend that you could get regarding a dentist? You are going to want to find someone you feel comfortable with who will also respect you and your fears.

It may be scary to think about, but I feel you should be upfront with whatever dentist you choose. Letting them know in advance will only allow them to help you better. You don't even have to tell them the entire story at the first visit if you don't want to. Take your boyfriend to your visit if you think it will help; utilize that support system anyway you can!

Dentist see all kinds of different teeth in different stages of health everyday. No dentist should ever make fun of you. That is where trust comes in; if you can't feel like your dentist respects you and wants to help you, then find a new one. But dentist are much better these days about taking patient's comfort more seriously.

And, as odd as it may sound to you now, you may actually leave the dentist with peace of mind. You haven't been to the dentist in years, so you are assuming that you automatically need to go straight to dentures. This may not necessarily be the case. The only way to know for sure is by seeing a dentist.

Hope everything goes well with you. And keep us up-to-date if you'd like!

-James

[Flosser47]

I had some similar problems. Both my sister and I had our permanent teeth come in yellow. We were told it was a side effect from all the Acromycin we took back in those days as an over-prescribed antibiotic.

My orthodontist put braces on my teeth when I had the worst case of gingivitis. It was amazingly painful. Not only that, my gums worsened so bad that I had to have oral surgery just to remove the gum tissue to get the braces off 5 years later. When they came off, I had two black holes on my two front teeth where the bands had been. Your orthodontist sounds like mine --- she never removed my bands for cleaning every year. My brother had an ortho who did, and his teeth were fine.

I've seen a co-workers teeth become beautiful in the last year. She also had a mouth full of bad teeth. She now has a beautiful smile. It took many months of dental work, but she's very happy now.

The only advice I can give is to find another full-time job that has dental and health insurance to it. You can't afford to be without it these days. Once you have the dental insurane with a new job, sometimes you can start a type of account with your employer where you put in money before it is taxed. This account is for paying the dental bills that exceed the dental insurance payments.

Also --- if a dentist insults you, walk out. You don't need a dentist like that. Find one that is caring and supportive.

Good luck. I hope this nightmare is over for you one day soon.