I’m not afraid of being at the dentist. I’ve gotten to the point where I can sit thru some dental procedures than make people really squick.
For me, I’m afraid of having gone. My life has been rather upended more than once… ‘Right after’.
This is along the lines of, Whenever you see a cat with a striped tail, someone in your family dies. You’re honestly not afraid of a cat with a striped tail, but at the same time.. the idea of going to get one is just like tempting fate.
Thus, the whole, “Gentle doctor”, “Valium”, “Breathing exercises” is not the suggestions I am looking for. This is deeper and more psychological/magickal if you will.
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The bias against dentists is based on experience. It won’t go away without repeated counter-experience. Try going to the dentist astrally for a few dozen appointments.
In that case, i’m sorry to say, it’s something that you need to do for yourself. My only suggestion is to mediate on it and find a way to release the fear.
When I see a cat with a striped tail, my reaction is the same as when I see any other cat:
“kittykittykity oh kitty mushmushmush kisskisskisskisskiss”
Why not do some magic to take the jinx off? To kill an imaginary snake, you use an imaginary mongoose.
You ask for thoughts? I’ll give you thoughts. At first I didn’t think I had any about this, but suddenly my wanding mind does have a few things. Take it or leave it.
Just a stab here, but it could be related to some 5th chakra issues. Expression, intake of nourishment. Or, think if the teeth, not only as agents of mastication but as a line of defense from our more feral history.
The throat area is one of the most vulnerable areas on the body with a historical muscle memory of being cut, hung by a rope, and otherwise offended in the name of keeping people silent.
I may be incorrect, but I beleive you said that the needed dental treatment was a result of too long without dental care or some old dental work that went bad? You really NEEDED the work. Could there also be a correlation with some long NEEDED upheaval and change in your personal life?
Being that the start of the dental care corresponded with huge upheaval, if this is the case, you may be able to look forward to more calm and controled dental care corresponding to more calm and controlled changes in life. Beginning the work is often the most difficult step.
Losing a job, getting married, moving states, getting new work, having a baby. Yep, you had a big shift, and it got you where you are. Do you regret any of it? And things will continue to change. Perhaps now it will be with more control and finesse now that you have the confidence of knowing that you can handle it. Just like how now that you know more about your dental problems and the potential problems bad dentist can inflict you will have a better experience.
My .02
I do 5mg the night before, 5mg the morning of. Powered dental instruments give me migraines even with maurcaine, so having enough valium to actually fall dead asleep WHILE the dentist is drilling is a blessed blessed thing. It’s like magic: shoot me up with maurcaine, stick in the dental dam so that I don’t gag, adjust the light, start drilling, and the very next thing I am aware of is the little squee squee squee of amalgam being stuffed into a tooth. Mind you, the VA doesn’t use gas because they say too much leaks into the dentist’s face.
I am not afraid of the pain in my jaw — I am petrified of the migraine I know will ensue within minutes due to the vibrations, we’re talking tunnel vision, can’t breathe, full blown panic attacks just sitting in the chair. I had one VA doc try giving me Halcion — when I was writhing from the migraine within minutes as predicted, he caved and finally gave me 2x5mg’s valium for the next visit. Now they even concede and give me both valium and maurcaine for cleanings. I have unfortunately typical Eastern European teeth. I am shocked that they don’t have any other migraineurs who get migraines from having their jaw rattled, quite frankly, I don’t believe it…