Like said by many others, I have a huge fear of dentists - and of course pain.

I have a tooth that broke (bottom left hand side - middle) and has been open awhile - recently as in a coulpe days ago it is swelling below that tooth. Reading alot on here it is starting to sound like an abcess however there is no pain whatsoever, I can bite down on that tooth with no problem and the swelling has gone down a little. I know I have to get up the courage and go to the dentists but I do not have any vacation or sick time until mid-June.

Is there anythign I can do about the swelling? What do I do next even when I can get into the dentists? I do not want some archeaic guy witha hammer & chisel in there causing more pain then what I statred with. As bad as it sounds I have no problem losing this tooth but I am afraid this swelling wontt go away!

Decayed, broken teeth cannot be left alone. Your swelling could be the start of an abcess, but if it isn't you might very well have a nasty one soon. The fact that you can bite and chew on a broken tooth could mean you're just lucky, or it could mean the tooth (and nerve) is already dead. Just call the dentist and go for an evaluation... getting in there for that might give you the courage and peace of mind to finish whatever treatment he or she recommends. Realize it's better to get treated now than when (not if) things get worse.