Would you resort to DIY Dentistry?

ManofLeisure_2

Would you resort to DIY dentistry? 20% of people say they would pull their own teeth out because they can't afford a dentist.

(From a survey of more than 2,000 people by the British Dental Health Foundation)

Toothsmith

'Can't afford' is often a get out answer when people really mean 'too scared'.

BucksLady

Toothsmith wrote: »

'Can't afford' is often a get out answer when people really mean 'too scared'.

I think that's a really good point Toothsmith.

I wouldn't mess about with my own teeth - but have a friend who does. She actually 'fills' her own teeth. This isn't because of money problems - a visit to the dentist terrifies her (by her own admission).

I've seen a couple of YouTube clips where people burst their own dental abscesses etc - the mind boggles .

elsien

My brother is a dentist. He had a chap turn up one day requesting an extraction, and as the gentleman didn't want any metal implements in his mouth he'd helpfully brought along his own bit of string. Would that count as DIY?

BucksLady

elsien wrote: »

My brother is a dentist. He had a chap turn up one day requesting an extraction, and as the gentleman didn't want any metal implements in his mouth he'd helpfully brought along his own bit of string. Would that count as DIY?

Found that really funny :rotfl:

welshdent

BucksLady wrote: »

I think that's a really good point Toothsmith.

I wouldn't mess about with my own teeth - but have a friend who does. She actually 'fills' her own teeth. This isn't because of money problems - a visit to the dentist terrifies her (by her own admission).

I've seen a couple of YouTube clips where people burst their own dental abscesses etc - the mind boggles .

Problem is, bursting an abscess doesnt fix it. It will keep coming back until the cause of it is addressed.

brook2jack

Unfortunately I have seen many people attempt diy dentistry. Crowns stuck in with superglue,fillings from kits purchased on the internet, trying to take teeth out with mole grips leaving the tooth still in but serrations in the bone and gum , all with no anaesthetic other than alcohol.

In every case it has not been economics but sheer terror, ironic when the amount of pain and damage they've done to themselves is by several factors worse than anything a dentist would do. Trying to take a tooth out, unless it is already loose , is a skilled job that needs an anaesthetic.

The folks I've seen who've attempted diy extractions have left themselves in terrible pain and an even worse mess.

donnac2558

My granny used to pull teeth for people in the area. It was of course in the days before the NHS, and ordinary working class people could not afford to go to a dentist.

ManofLeisure_2

Thanks to all who have replied - really interesting.

For the life of me, I can't understand why anyone would attempt any kind of work on their own teeth. However, not everyone obviously feels the same.

Callie22

My gran used to do her own dentistry. She was absolutely terrified of the dentist and used to pull her own teeth out using the string and door method. It was very sad really, as the last few years of her life were made so much more miserable because of her dental problems - she struggled to eat, for example, because her few remaining teeth were in such a mess and she wouldn't go and get her dentures sorted out. I'm not exactly fond of the dentist but the one thing that gets me through the door is remembering just how much my gran suffered with her teeth.