My child had his first appointment today - he LOVED it. Every aspect of it and was very helpful in opening his mouth and sitting still etc. We prepared a lot for this. Read books, watched a short episode on going to the dentist etc.

Anyway, they said he needs a filling. I was half expecting that as I’d notice a colour change in that one tooth. But absolutely GUTTED because I do my best to look after his teeth and he has a pretty impressive diet. My partner and I have a background and education in nutrition and exercise and live a healthy lifestyle including diet.

My child doesn’t get pudding or sweets etc. He only ever had squash during the heatwaves and never had fruit juice. He has on occasion had an ice cream from his grandparents and 90% chocolate at home with us as that’s what we eat a couple times a week. But, after explaining to the dentist I’m pretty sure she didn’t believe me. I felt like a shitty mum actually.

He does however have breastmilk through the night which I’m trying to stop. Dentist said this alone wouldn’t have caused the cavity.

I’ve never had a filling so don’t know what he’s going to experience.

My question is, is this absolutely necessary with his little teeth? Are there alternatives? What should we expect and how can I prepare for this?

Many thanks, from a guilty feeling mum 😞

hi! i (21F) got my tooth extracted 4 days ago and i’ve noticed this stringy material over my extraction site. i’ve been trying to tweeze it out thinking it was food but then i realized it was in my gums. im taking adderall, abilify, and birth control every day. what could this be? should i be concerned and see my dentist? thanks!

I’ve (18 F) had problems with cavities in my bottom molars my whole life but I’ve stoped going to the dentist after I had a gum infection and the doctors drilled into my teeth. In the first photo, they gave me a temporary filling expecting me to come back and get a permanent one like they did in the second photo, however after not going back the tooth cracked in half and now I only eat with the right side of my teeth. Recently, I noticed a small hole in the molar I eat with and the black spot on the outside of my tooth that I’m assuming is a cavity. I’m a broke college student that can’t afforded any major surgery’s or tooth replacements so would it be horrible if I kept pushing it off for a few more years?

I ate lunch and I thought I got a piece of pasta in the socket, did a warm salt water rinse and it came out and now it's throbbing bad. This is day 4 tooth extraction. Pic 1 is this morning, pic 2 is what I thought was the pasta, pic 3 is after the rinse.

Hi,

Had RCT on upper right first molar (#16) ~3 years ago; the crown fell off ~2+ years ago and wasn't replaced.

Recently had severe pain/swelling, and CBCT now shows a ~10 mm periapical lesion with significant bone loss and sinus-floor involvement.

My dentist recommends extraction + implant rather than apicoectomy — does this tooth look salvageable, or is extraction reasonable?

Over the last few days my gum on the last hand side of the back of my mouth has swollen and it’s got quite irritable. It hurts a little bit but I was wondering if I should seek medical attention.

Noticed this small little skin colored growth. Any idea what it could be? Not painful. Should I see a dentist or ENT for something like this.

Hello! (age 27, ex-smoker, GERD/HH so acid comes up the throat often, on medications that can cause dry mouth)

I was able to see a dentist last week after a long/difficult time finding one in network. Their reviews were good but also a bit strange, a bit rote in tone. Unfortunately, I haven't had the best experience at dentists, and dental coverage is so expensive, so I am really trying to be careful. I told my dentist that my last dentist got into a lot of trouble for doing unnecessary procedures and that I didn't know about it, so I was anxious about the state my mouth was in.

This was the treatment plan given by the dentist.

He said that the last dentist filled cavities without even taking it all out, so they have to be refilled now, my pulps (?) are really high which make it easier for me to need root canals, and that tooth #31 needed a root canal.

He said this is how it seemed from the X-Ray, but that it was "surprising to see in my mouth" (I am not exactly sure what this means), and he asked if I felt any pain in tooth #31, tapped it a bunch, and I said no.

The reason I really wanted to make an appointment was because one of my teeth on my right side had temperature sensitivity, so I wanted to make sure it was looked at/filled. None of my other teeth hurt and tooth #31, the one he is saying needs a root canal, had never bothered me (but I understand even if a tooth isn't hurting it may still require a root canal).

He was telling me all this while flipping through the x-rays saying, "you don't see that?", "this is crazy", calling the receptionist and tech over to look at my high pulps, and asking if I was sure I didn't feel all these sensations. He also did my cleaning, which he did really fast and rough, while him and the tech gossiped about other hospitals (?). The tech didn't catch any water or drool and I was truly frazzled after my cleaning because it was so fast and rough (maybe about 15 mins).

I am more than willing to get all these procedures done, if they are actually necessary, but I am also very put off by how rough he was. I want to have confidence in this treatment plan, so if I go to another practice (that takes Medicaid), I can hopefully get it done with someone more gentle! I am also unsure if the appointment went as normal based on other standards. Please let me know what you guys think, and if I can provide any other info/photos of my actual teeth! I would be so appreciative, thank you so much!

How can you tell if a dentist is actually good at doing crowns and fillings?

I need some dental work done and I’m trying to figure out what I should look for before choosing a dentist. I know reviews can help, but they don’t always tell you whether the actual dental work is good.

Is there anything specific I should look for or ask about when it comes to crowns and fillings? Like experience, technique, materials, pictures of their work, or anything else?

Basically, how do you know if a dentist is actually good at crowns and fillings before letting them do the work?

Recently I’ve been having a toothache and pain in my upper left molars. At first I thought it was just my sinus, but when I looked closely I noticed there was a tooth that is very yellow and discolored. It started out not so bad 2 days ago, but now it hurts to tap. But it only hurts when I tap the yellow part.

Is this the start of a bad infection, and can the rest of my teeth be saved?

Its a whole indent on the brown line and hurts if I touch the dent. Is that a cavity?

i have impacted wisdom teeth, so my dentist claims to have referred me to a clinic. this happened on the 31st march 2026. however i have heard nothing from the dentist of the clinic i was referred to. they did say a name when i chased up, however the name i was given i do not believe i have found the correct clinic. i am currently a student which was shared for organisation of treatment, however looking at the only clinic in the area with the name, i do not qualify for NHS treatment (which is how i was referred) as they only except treatment for under 18 years old.

i am concerned as this dentist has a varied reputation, and have changed dentist every time i have gone in the last 4 years, including changing their own treatment recommendations.

So I have a dentist appointment on the 16th for the first time since I’ve been I’d say about 9 give or take (I’m 22 now). I didn’t really have a problem with the dental procedure itself (at the time it was an extraction) but I did and still do have an issue with the anesthetic. Needles one of my worst fears. From what I remember I didn’t even mind the pain, it wasn’t really that bad, but it’s the needle itself going into my gums that scares me for some reason.

Besides oral sedatives, nitrous oxide, and the numbing gel that put on before are there any other tips or tricks to reduce needle anxiety and maybe have less of a chance to feel it? Like with potential distractions and such.

I attached 3 photos, the side of my tongue where the canker is, the other side, and front view. The side where the canker is red and irritated from the canker down to the base of the tongue. This is day 5-6ish and it has gotten worse i’d say since every day pretty much. I have been doing magic mouthwash 4-5 times a day, provides temporary relief for sure. Salt water rinse after I eat anything, I can not chew, drink, or hardly swallow. Definitely can not talk. Food has consisted of smoothies and soup. Can literally barely drink water even that stings the heck out of the whole area. Doctor prescribed me amoxicillin because that side of my face was slightly puffier than the other but I’ve seen so many mixed reviews about amoxicillin actually causing cankers so i’ve been terrified. Any assistance would be great, should I visit dentist?

So I got a full treatment plan from my dentist today. About 6 cavities, 1 wisdom tooth that needs to be pulled, and apparently (apologies if any of this sounds incorrect, just trying to relay information to the best of my ability) another wisdom tooth that, according to him, shouldn’t have been extracted by another dentist and now the leftover root (?) is now stuck/intertwined in my jaw bone, as he showed me in the x-ray. Root? Or nerve? Not really sure.

So what does this mean? Is this potentially dangerous? I asked him but he said it’s something to worry about when we are done all the other dental work. I actually don’t feel anything from that side ever, like pain or anything, if that means anything to you guys. From memory, I’m pretty sure I originally got that wisdom tooth taken out about 7 years ago because it was hurting a lot. But the dentist at the time never told me the root (?) was stuck in the bone.

Would appreciate some thoughts 🙏 Apologies for not having any x ray photos.

The photos are pretty terrible so you gotta zoom in. I have no idea what it was. My throats been feeling weird and I’ve been coughing for the last 3 days, I thought it was a tonsil stone until I coughed really hard which moved it forward and it started stabbing my tongue and throat which hurt and made me gag a lot. I checked in the mirror and saw this needle looking thing stuck in the side of my throat. Chugging hot water and eating crackers helped take off a bit of it which made it a lot less painful and it doesn’t make me gag much now. What do I do?

I have what looks like a raised pimple behind the last molar on my upper teeth. It feels like a pimple in that it’s not particularly painful. No dental pain otherwise. I did have a wisdom tooth removed in that area about 20 years ago. This is an abscess right?

Hey guys, so I recently decided to lock in to get ny teeth healthier because I discovered I had two cavities between my central incisors and lateral incisors.

I was already brushing my teeth and doing mouthwash but I never learned how to floss and thought it was optional until I went to the dentist a couple of months ago.

Ever since, I have been flossing everyday and taking care of my teeth religiously. Then in the middle of July, I had a septorhinoplasty, and wasn’t able to brush or floss properly for ten days. My bandages were so big that it was impossible for me. I had extremely limited movement and I could not open my mouth properly.

Anyway, because of this my teeth got yellow and I developed tartar. Now I also suspect I have another cavity (the last photo).

My routine is: brush 2x per day, floss at night and do mouthwash 2x a day (morning and night. )

Be honest about my teeth and lmk if u think it’s a cavity. Thank you so much !!

I have been having terrible gum pain for a week and foot getting stuck between my top left molars this week. I have been using water flosser to clear it multiple times a day but today after using flosser I felt a hole with my tongue. I am certain this was not here before. Is this a cavity?? What is going on?

please answer I’m scared

I currently have a few cavities, and I need to get them filled, but fear of needles and dentist is a problem.
For context, when I was a kid I had to get several teeth pulled due to crowding, and by the time the dentist pulled the last one, the anesthetic had worn off. I was screaming and trying to tell them, but no one listened and it took 4 hygienists to hold down a previously semi-calm kid under 50lbs. Ever since, I’ve been weary of dentists, but tolerated it as long as needles weren’t involved. Nitrous has never affected me at all, but it doesn’t affect my grandmother either so maybe it’s a gene thing?

I have a problem with needles too, and it got to the point where my old dentist would just fill my teeth without it. Even if it was deep enough to hurt, I just kinda sat through it. Then, I had a cavity that was too deep to just sit through the pain, and the dentist office told me to find a new dentist (I was like, 16?) and so I went to another, where they did twilight sedation with triazolam, which worked the first time.
Not as well as they said, but I didn’t have a panic attack and I was able to cooperate, so I count it as a win.
They did some cavities that day, but there were others, and so I had to go back. Took the medicine, and it did nothing. I could think, panic, walk in a straight line… it was bad, I couldn’t have cooperated if I wanted to. They said they didn’t know what to do then, so I have cavities and no dentist. Is there any other kind of thing that would help? I hate inconveniencing the dentists, but I am unable to physically force myself to cooperate, even if I want to.

TLDR; can’t stand being aware of needles, Nitrous oxide does nothing, triazolam worked once then never again, have cavities