If you are in pain now, you will love it when they are finished with the root canal. I have had six of them over the years, and every time I went from feeling absolutely horrible to 100% in the 1 hour it took them to do the operation.

The only thing that is not comfortable are the initial numbing shots.

Make sure they get you good and numb. If you have any doubt as to whether you need another shot, just get another shot.

After 3 or 4 or 5 shots of numbing agent, you won’t feel a thing.

Once the numbing wears off you will feel totally fine.

It’s really not that bad, much better than living with tooth pain.

Also, ask for a big gloop of topical anesthetic where they are planning to do the injections, it helps a little bit.

Lastly, ask for 10 milligrams of diazepam if you have someone to drive you. A little benzo to take the edge off goes a super long way and dentists have no problem prescribing it. Have the dentist prescribe it and take it 1 hour before the appointment. I am 200lbs and 10mg does the trick.

I had one on an incisor as a teenager (a wrestling match knocked it loose and it formed an Abscess). It isn’t exactly fun, but it won’t hurt much except the needle at the beginning. I was only under local, but i hear sometimes you get the option to get laughing gas, I would take the gas if you can. It was significantly more painful before the operation than during. The vibrations are pretty intense at times and you have to stay in a pretty uncomfortable open mouth position for an hour (although they prop your mouth open for you). My least favourite part was when they clamped a uv lamp around the tooth, which felt like a big pressure for me. My mouth and tongue also got very dry, and the squirts of water they provided didn’t do much to make that better. I don’t remember much of the after care but it wasn’t bad.

10years later fwiw, my root canal developed an infection and I needed dental surgery to clear it out. During this the local numbing was ineffective for some reason and the dentist had to go in 3 times to try and renumb it, but it never really worked. That really really hurt, but it is not exactly a typical case.

I heard the horror stories but from older generation. My root canal was easy.

They took xrays to view how deep the tooth went.

Froze area flattened a spot drilled in, and would stop and measure depth compared to xray and go again.

Dentist explained, too shallow and they would miss infected material, too deep and they could damage bone and nerve in jaw.

They cleaned it with a flexible metal tool, like I imagine as a tiny baby bottle brush, and a solution that smelled like bleach.

Filled it with a rod of material, and then did the regular filling type stuff on the hole.

Zero pain after, and abaolutely no after affects or pain.

As far as fearing pain: I got drugged up enough as I assume most did that you can’t feel a whole lot—& we aren’t talking anything beyond local anesthesia + strong paracetamol (just make sure you take something before bed or GG sleep). I will never get used to getting needles in gums tho.

If possible, seriously try to get a one-shot appointment. Mine had 5 1-hour visits every 2 weeks (not what I expected or would have signed up for) & each time they would spend like 15–20 minutes of that clearing out & reapplying a temporary resin. In this state your tooth is quite compromised state. My tooth ended up getting a fissure all along it after the penultimate visit—which ended up being irrepairable. Which meant they had to do an entire extraction for an implant wasting more money & time. I do not wish this on anyone.

Adding fuel to the shit fire was after visit 3 I had massive pain on the other side. They were going to start a root canal on that one too but I begged for a temporary filling (was supposed to hold up 2 months but has been a year) so I could still eat. Tooth 18 was under repair so I had moved all chewing to 31 as my mouth favors putting a majority of pressure on these 2 molars. I don’t think I could have reasonable eaten anything enjoyable for months if both sides were out.

Of note: the root canal isn’t like a finalized thing either. They seem to inevitably, eventually break down & will likely require an implant anyways in a few years. When my right side goes out—which it is—I may just consider doing another implant there too since it can be done in just 2 visits here.

I’ve had two. If there’s an infection and the dentist get’s a person on antibiotics several days beforehand, then the procedure has a pretty limited amount of pain. Usually less pain than a typical filling. As others have pointed out, the local anesthetic shots are often the gardest parts which aren’t that bad. Don’t avoid the local anesthetic. If you need more, speak up. Basically, if you can handle a few seconds of being pinched then a root canal is no problem. There are also bad dentists out there.

I have “tight jaws” problems so a trip to dentist generally is a pain for me, even without surgery. There are hygienists and surgeon dentistry. You only want to have regular business with the first. So brush brush mouth wash.

I learned the hard way that after root canal there is a chance you loose your tooth if you don’t get it cared over fully promptly. (if a temp cap has any problems it’s an emergency.) I think numbing the tooth is the worst part because for a root canal they have to (and you want this) kind of over do it. After this, no problem. Always tell beforehand if you have fears of the operation, so they can adjust how they work.

Due to poor life choices, I’ve had six.

I had a really good dentist and none of them were a big deal in terms of pain or discomfort. Just boring sitting there for long periods waiting for it to be done. I closed my eyes and meditated into a half doze. Good luck!

Don’t worry. I’ve had a lot of work done on my front teeth due to an accident when I was a child. Eventually needed root canals on both.

Honestly those root canals weren’t even as bad as cavity fillings.

Most painful part, as others have said, will be the numbing injections. If you still feel pain, let them know and they’ll give you more (different people have different levels).

Make sure to ask for a bite block so you don’t have to hold your mouth open, that’ll help a lot.

They might even let you listen to music, audiobook, or podcast, depending on your dentist.

Here’s what you’ll experience:

They’ll put you in the chair, and they’ll use a q-tip to apply some local anesthetic to your gums. They’ll give that a bit to kick in, then they’ll inject your gums with a tiny little hypodermic needle to really numb them. This is the only part that hurts. I find if I grip the arm of my chair and focus on that, I get through it easier.

They’ll likely do 2-3 injections around the area, depending on the tooth and where the nerves are located. But the first is the worst, because the numbing agent will start to take effect for the others. Also your body is gonna flood with endorphins because of the pain, so the injections following the first won’t be nearly as bad. Then the dentist will probably leave the room for a few minutes while they let that kick in. If the assistant is there, strike up a conversation! In my experience, the relief that the injections are done, along with the aforementioned flood of endorphins, almost feels like a mild high.

The dentist will come back and ask how you’re doing. Your lip will feel huge right now (though it isn’t, it’s just the way the nerves interpret not being able to feel what’s going on).

Here, if they haven’t given you one yet, ask for a bite block. Seriously, it makes the process so much easier.

They’ll start working by drying the area with some air. Then they’ll probably begin drilling. If you feel any pain at all, let them know. They’ll be looking for it, and may even ask you. I’ve only ever had to get an additional injection once or twice. By this point, the injection won’t really hurt because the area is so numb.

When they’ve drilled in they’ll begin using tools to clean out the inside of the tooth, clearing as much of the infected tissue as possible and removing the nerve. The work and the drilling all feel kind of weird, because the area is numb but you can still sense pressure in other parts of your mouth. You can also hear it, unless you choose the music route. I actually find this kind of fascinating.

Once they’ve cleaned the area, they’ll put in what’s called gutta percha, which they use to plug up the canal. This will feel funny, you’ll definitely feel the pressure. It won’t hurt though.

Then they’ll plug the hole with some bonding material or cement or something. This will probably be UV cured.

And then you’ll be done! Unless you’re having the whole tooth replaced with a crown. In that case, they’ll have made a mold beforehand for a temporary and permanent crown. They’ll drill away more of the tooth and put a post in to hold the crown in place. Then they’ll put the temporary crown on while they send the mold out to make a proper one.

Then you get to go home. Take a sick day if you get them, not because you need it but because it’s a good excuse and your co-workers will all feel sorry for you. 🤣

Don’t fret! You’re gonna do great. If you have any questions or concerns don’t hesitate to ask!

I’ve had one. The only pain I felt was the needle prick for the anaesthetic and then later sore jaws from having to hold them open for an hour.

I agree with the other comment - root canals aren’t as terrifying as years ago. I had 2 done in the past year and the edodontist was so skilled that I didn’t even feel the anesthesia injection. The entire procedure after that was painless, and there’s literally no pain to deal with afterwards because the nerve is gone. Compare that to when I was a kid in the 90s and it was excruciating.

I’m late to the thread, but just wanted to reiterate what others have said. The “pinch” of the anesthetic injection was probably the worst pain. The process was relatively quick, especially if they’re only doing one tooth. Heck, the real pain was covering the costs that my insurance didn’t cover. :)

My guy did have me use a bite block to hold my mouth open. Very handy, definitely made it easier. When the process was all said and done, my jaw was a bit sore from being in that position for that long. But that past very quickly.

Be sure to communicate with your dentist and be honest. Before, after, and during the procedure. You’re the patient here, and they need to listen to you especially as it pertains to what you’re feeling. If you’re still feeling anxious (and who could blame you), you might ask to have one of those heavy xray blankets. It acts like a “weighted blanket” and can really help with some of those nerves.

I have a long involved horror story that led up to me needing a root canal that I decided not to post here because it probably isnt nteresting to anybody but me.

For the most part, a root canal is kind of minor. They numb your gums where they’re going to inject a numbing agent, then they inject a numbing agent, worst case they go a little nutso and try to inject a few places in there but the pain is there and gone in 5 seconds. If at any point you feel pain they can do a better job of numbing you. Honestly, any pain caused in the numbing process goes away pretty quickly when they successfully do it.

They poke around, there’s a little drilling, some bad smell maybe heat maybe cold a lot of spitting out little sandy chunks of debris. If the tooth is still in pretty good shape they just pack it back up and you’re good to go.

If you end up needing a crown there’s a good bit more drilling a good bit more spitting a good bit more smoke. But it’s really just the same thing prolonged.

It won’t kill you, it will annoy you and it’s marginally unpleasant, The anxiety of being there in the anxiety of not knowing what’s going on is much worse than the actual procedure. Meditate, chill, roll with it you’ll be fine.

I’ve had several, performed by good dentists. By far the worst part is administering the anesthesia. Second to that is the long boring wait in the dentist’s chair.

I had a double root canal a few months ago, no anesthesia, and literally couldn’t feel anything. The nerves on both teeth were already completely dead, there was simply no sensation at all.

I’ve had several, due to childhood trauma making me not take care of my teeth.

It’s a lot better these days. They numb, and if I say it still hurts, they get more novacaine into the tooth. They also listen when I say I need more than typical because of genetics.

Also my primary doctor gives me xanax. It helps.

For me it’s three visits for each root canal. First is the drilling, second is the temp plastic cap, third is the permanent cap. Third is very quick cause is just putting it in basically.