Hello!
An annoying event from today has inspired a future blog post. About a year ago, I was meant to be having a teeny tiny filling at the dentist. I have what is known as medical phobia, i.e. a generalised fear of anything medical, including dentists, hospitals, injections, blood…, so obviously this was NOT something I was looking forward to. I insisted that I had the drilling and filling done without anaesthetic, owing to my severe needle phobia, and the dentist (a new dentist – my lovely old dentist who used to compliment me on my pristine oral hygiene had moved on) went along with this. I was doing fine, and it was a bit uncomfortable, but then I flinched a tiny bit when he moved the drill quickly. He then spent the next ten minutes trying to trick me into having the injection, and I kept refusing the injection, until he FINALLY finished my filling in a huff, anaesthetic-free. He really rushed it, and I knew it didn’t feel right as soon as I left. Recently, it’s been feeling really dodgy, and today it just fell out. So now I have this whole rigmarole again in two days. I’m feeling massively anxious already. I’d never ever had any trouble with dentists before, and going for check-ups never bothered me, until this incompetent, unconscientious man spooked me with the threat of an (unnecessary) injection.
So, to the point: I will be writing a piece about phobias. My only phobia is this medical phobia, but it’s pretty severe. I never go to the doctors, I can’t get my nose pierced, and even blood from shaving cuts can turn my stomach. As phobias go, it’s one of the worst, as obviously you can’t get through life without some sort of medical assistance. And, typically, medical phobia (and specifically haemophobia) is considered to be a biological response present in a small percentage of the population which can’t be ‘cured’ in the way that, say, arachnophobia might be. I’ll cover that in my future post though. If anyone has any ideas to calm me down fo Thursday (other than my idea of turning up drunk), they’d be HUGELY appreciated! I’m very worried I’ll have to endure the drilling/ injection charade again. Oh, and if you have any phobias, let me know! I’d love to hear from you.
In other news, I’ve been applying for ‘just-in-case’ journalism jobs, just to see what the response is. I’m still freaking out that I’ll never get a job in journalism. Self-doubt seems to be a constant theme when applying for jobs with the title ‘Journalist’. I feel like a fraud. I feel underqualified. I feel like I won’t know what I’m doing, and I’ll be found out and laughed at by all the real journalists. Hmm.
Kayleigh
Hello Hygge 
I have the same phobia ever since I was little. Of course, mine was also induced by a horrific dentist nurse. I was about 6-7 years old and I had to have a tooth removed, so my mum took me to the dentist, despite all my begging and panic. While I waited patiently on that doomed chair, the nurse said ‘ Let’s go, I promise it won’t hurt at all, I’ll put this ELEPHANT SPRAY in your mouth so you don’t feel a thing! ‘ . The famous elephant spray was just a regulat numbing one , but it came in a little container with an elephant on it . So, naive as I was, I believed her. Imagine my shock and hate towards her when I felt the horrible pain of the extraction. I cried, blamed the lying ‘ elephant’ lady and ever since , I removed my teeth at home, by myself ( so proud of that!). Bad news is, because of my fear of doctors&hospitals, i don’t even know my blood type.. Oops !
It’s a bit worrying that so many dentists get away with this behaviour! I really think something needs to be done, as there’s obviously something very wrong if so many people have had so many bad experiences!
I tend to feel awkward about any medical prodecure too, so you’re not alone there, although it certainly seems more severe in your case. Mine probably wasn’t helped by the fact my last doctor (prior to my current lovely one) was an arsehole who didn’t care.
Is there any other kind of anaesthetic they can give you that doesn’t involve stabbing you in the gums? I’ve never needing extensive dental work, so I wouldn’t know, but it’d be worth asking. Although it does sound like your dentist is like my old doctor.
Actually, turning up drunk would be a good idea. If nothing else, the smell of alcohol on your breath would be payback for the hell he put you through last time :p
Fortunately I’ve switched dentists (based on that bad experience), so tomorrow will be my first meeting with him. If he’s not nice I’ll hyperventilate! I’d never had any threat of injections or anything before, so it’s very unfortunate that my first (near) experience was such a terrible one. Dentists are supposed to use numbing gel before injecting, and the last guy got that far before I managed to persuade him I didn’t want it done. And what’s worse is that the gel didn’t even work and I could still feel everything!