The dreaded Dentist

Toffee in Jandals · July 31, 2018

... Just had dental surgery, set me back around $800NZD. I'd been putting off going to the Dentist for years, more the fear of the pain in the wallet than the physical pain.

Glad though to get it over and done with. What's your dental horror stories? How often do you go, if at all? Anyone ever done a "Dental Holiday" to get cheaper care overseas? Pineapple on pizza?

Discuss.

Tramps_mate · July 31, 2018

I love going the dentist. Seen the same one on and off for 32-33 years. He was a new graduate when I first went, now hes mid 50's. Top bloke!!

larbert toffee · July 31, 2018

I'm 58 now and still have nightmares about my visits to the dentist when I was a kid, went through so many fillings and extractions under gas, I'm sure they were at it in those days to get NH payouts. Nowadays it's an absolute doddle, I'm fortunate to still have all my own teeth and all I require these day's is an odd filling replacement and a scale and polish.

Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian · July 31, 2018

if you don't go regularly these days then they strike you off, they aint too interested in NHS patients either but if are I reckon they take the micky with unnecessary appointments & 'treatment.'

PhilM · July 31, 2018

I'm not squeamish in the slightest and it's been remarked that I have a relatively high pain threshold, so I never had an issue with the dentist through to my adult life.

That was until I was butchered (that's being a bit unfair to your local butcher) by a new dentist I had; she was ruthless, no compassion and made a big mistakes.

I started putting off going even though the best option would to have simply moved to another dentist, and it's something I started to regret as had some issue.

Eventually moved to where my wife goes and he's great and feel totally at ease again. Just goes to show that one person can quite easily put someone off!

AndyC · July 31, 2018

Toffee in Jandals said:
... Just had dental surgery, set me back around $800NZD. I'd been putting off going to the Dentist for years, more the fear of the pain in the wallet than the physical pain.

Glad though to get it over and done with. What's your dental horror stories? How often do you go, if at all? Anyone ever done a "Dental Holiday" to get cheaper care overseas? Pineapple on pizza?

Discuss.

A bloke in our local gym needed major dental work and was quoted something like £9000, so he ended up going to Hungary to get it all done. Says including the flights and hotel costs over two visits, he paid a total of less than £4000.

Maybe it does pay to shop around if you have a major dental issue ?

Methuselah · July 31, 2018

I'm lucky to have most of my teeth. Keep them in a jar in the cupboard. No, only got two missing. Don't mind going to the dentist. Recently had an implant (one front upper tooth) The old one was slightly wonky due to the elbow of a centre forward in the 1960's. It finally gave up and the replacement implant is brilliant. Go for a check up every six months, can't remember when I last had toothache.

Connor · July 31, 2018

Regularly in and out of the dentist as a kid as I always found a way to ruin my teeth.

Then I left school and they wanted 200 quid for an appointment so I'm never going again.

sageyefc · July 31, 2018

Don't mind the dentist tbh, hated it as a kid though and the old gas masks they used to put you under

evertonandchelmsford · July 31, 2018

someone at work recently had a dentist appointment scheduled for 2.30 and to everyone's surprise they'd never heard of the joke. How many times a day do the dental receptionists get that one?

.....! · July 31, 2018

sageyefc said:
Don't mind the dentist tbh, hated it as a kid though and the old gas masks they used to put you under

The hallucinations of those gas masks when you were going under were something else. I always struggled when I was going under and had to be held down which made it worse. It was absolutely horrible.

chrismpw · July 31, 2018

My sister's a dentist. Her son is a dentist, he married a dentist, her father is a dentist.

All of this came into sharp focus to me when I had an abscess, and my local NHS man had retired, and I could find nobody in the area taking on new patients other than the butcher chain of practices in north Grimdon.

Sister had just retired, son works for the RAF miles up north, where his missus and her father live.

I ended up having to pay privately for treatment and a filling. It was the only filling I've ever had to have re-drilled again within a few months because the abscess came back as it hadn't been properly cleaned out. The guilty practice refused all correspondence, but fortunately, by then i'd found an NHS toothpuller within 30 miles. :rant:

Eggs · July 31, 2018

...my niece owns her own dental practice, my family all have teeth like Firmino.

Blue 1 · July 31, 2018

There was a dentist in my former hometown known as "Donovan the Butcher".

He once glued my friend's thumb to one of his incisors.

bigjonny · July 31, 2018

AndyC said:
A bloke in our local gym needed major dental work and was quoted something like £9000, so he ended up going to Hungary to get it all done. Says including the flights and hotel costs over two visits, he paid a total of less than £4000.

Maybe it does pay to shop around if you have a major dental issue ?

I did the opposite and paid the £9000, I was too worried about complications in the future.