So I've known that two of my teeth need root canals for about a year and a half now (and the fact that I haven't gotten them done is probably why I have the abscess I wrote about in my earlier thread) but I haven't gotten them done, mostly out of fear. I've heard some real horror stories about root canals, and even though my dentist says that they are no worse then a normal filling I'm still scared. So what I want to know is, are root canals really that bad, or am I scared of something that I have no reason to be scared of?

The first root canal I got was so painful! After getting that one done I was so scared when I found out I needed another root canal. I talked to my new dentist and told him how much pain I was in while getting my first root canal and he told me I shouldn’t have been in pain at all while they were doing it and they must have done something wrong and he assured me that I wouldn’t be in pain. When he did the root canal he numbed me up a lot and during the whole thing he kepted asking me if I was okay. When he did the root canal, I was totally fine, no pain, even afterwards I hardly had any pain, just needed some mortion and I was fine.

I am going to get another root canal tomorrow and I’m not nervous because I know he will do a good job. If you are in any pain, let them know! The first time I got a root canal I told the woman I was in pain and she said that was just the pressure, but whatever it was, it hurt and they need to know that so they can numb you up more. The longer you push off the appointment the worst the tooth can get and the more work you might need.

My advice to you would be to just talk to your dentist about your concerns and they will listen. Best of luck!

I had my first root canal last week. My BIL is an endo but lives out of state and I couldn't get there to have him do it. So, I asked him lots of questions!
I'm lucky enough to live in the city where the dental school my BIL attended is. He knows the dean so I called him for a referral. The guy I went to was great and everything went off without a hitch. They told me it would be tender for a week or more. It is still but not like last week. So, I wouldn't be concerned if I needed another one.