Fears Anyone?

Hello. My name is Tina and I have a dental phobia.

There I said it.

I know some of you would be totally disgusted by how long it has been since I have been to the dentist. I get complete anxiety about it and therefore block out that responsibility from my head all together. Normally I am a smart person but when it comes to the recommended care for my teeth I ignore it all. I should say that I do every once and a while think about making that appointment but my palms start to sweet and my heart starts racing and I figure I can make that appointment tomorrow.

And then you hear stories about people who have infections that attack their hearts due to a decaying tooth or heart disease caused by gingivitis. Scary - and all you have to do is visit the dentist once or twice a year. Not hard right? Still don't make the appointment.

Then I can came across an article yesterday that talked about a link between gum disease and premature births and associated low birth weights. The article said that women with gum disease are SEVEN times more likely to deliver prematurely! SEVEN TIMES! That sparked my attention since having another preemie is one of the biggest fears of getting pregnant again. Could I have contributed to Anna's premature birth just because of my "fear"? I did go to the dentist shortly before I got pregnant with Anna with a diagnosis of only slight inflammation of the gums. But the article also says that some women's poor gum condition can increase dramatically during pregnancy. I never went to the dentist while I was pregnant. Who knows?

What I do know is reading that article got me on the phone so fast to my dentist! I called and they said they couldn't get me in until August 27th. Hmm. That was too long to wait. I desperately wanted to go to the dentist! Weird. But wait, there was a cancellation for that day at 6 pm. I'll take it!

So, last night I went to the dentist. I had a great hygienist who was patient and understanding of my anxiety and I had a great dentist that took the time to talk to me. The good news is that I still only have slight inflammation of the gums but it was good that I went in when I did because it had been a while since the last cleaning; they had a little bit of work to do!

As I reflected afterwards on my fear I just don't understand why it makes me feel that way. I inherited great teeth from my mom. Never had a cavity. Never had braces. Had a good family dentist growing up that even shared my birthday which I always thought was cool. Mom and Dad were really good about annual cleanings and check ups. This phobia has been developing as I get older and older.

Maybe it is the fear of something actually being wrong and needing work that scares me since I haven't been there before? I have always hated the scraping and the sucking and the sound of those tools! But the backwards thing of it all is that the more often I go in the less of those items need to be used. So you would think that would be motivation to go in more frequently?

Well, I am vowing right now in front of the whole blogesphere that I will go to the dentist once every six months. And most importantly, I will not instill this fear of mine into Anna.

Anybody volunteer to be my sponsor? Someone that I can call on when the anxiety of going to the dentist creeps back up and I consider cancelling my appointment! I may need someone to talk me through it!