Hello! In 2019, I had a major mishap with an oral surgery gone wrong which resulted in me not being able to eat for over a month. I still can’t see a bottle of Ensure without shuddering! Prior to this incident, I always hated going to the dentist but afterwards, I was even more fearful and flat out refused to go. After a lot of feet dragging, I ended up in the care of a wonderful periodontist who told me that we had a lot of work to do because my gums were in such bad shape.

Every visit to my new doctor was a little bit better than the last and I ended up buying the recommended tools to help me achieve better oral health. My first purchase was an electric toothbrush and while things had improved, we still weren’t there yet. Next, I bought my Waterpik (Which I love!) and have been using it diligently for the past half a year morning and night.

This past week, I had another appointment with my periodontist and I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t nervous. I thought that my mouth was doing better but, then again, I’ve thought that before and had less than impressive results to show for it. Which is why I could have burst into song when the hygienist took her first look at my teeth and gums and said that they were looking good!

Her confirmation of my hard work was the first time I had heard a compliment from someone in the dental health field in literal years and it felt great. My periodontist even said that I had come a very long way and if I keep up the good work, there is probably nothing more that they can do for me after my next few visits. Trust and believe that the hallelujah chorus was singing at full blast in my mind.

This may seem like a small accomplishment but it was huge for me and I felt so proud of myself. After such a traumatizing experience that resulted in trips to the ER and drinking water from a huge syringe, I vowed to never step foot in a dentist’s office again. My periodontist helped me get over my fear and I am so appreciative to him because I knew that my teeth and gums were in bad shape but he and his team never made me feel judged about it.

After leaving my appointment, I was walking on cloud nine because I got over a massive phobia and I had excellent results to show for it. I still have a ways to go but my gum health is no longer in the danger zone and it feels good to be taking much better care of myself. GOOD FOR ME!

Do you have any phobias? How did you overcome your fear? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah