Can being Queasy be a problem?

[Jim224]

Hey, I am a big lurker here. I am always on here reading through the different forums, all of them; pharmacy, optometry, PT, dental, etc.

But I recently became pretty certain that my main goal is to become a dentist. So I will probably be posting here more often 😛

Anyway, I have been watching some procedures on youtube like wisdom tooth removal, and I kinda get sort of queasy...it's not terrible though, and actually a sort of unique and good feeling lol, I guess I'm weird like that.

But as for the really heavy duty cutting of the gums and stuff....I am pretty sure i would have a tough time handling that. Even thinking about the front gums below your bottom front teeth being cut/messed with is painful to me, and forget about watching that/doing it.

I just wanted to know, if I became a general dentist, how much heavy duty surgical blood and guts stuff would I have to be doing, like beyond pulling teeth(which I think I would be fine with)? Also, do you get used to that queasy feeling? Or did you never feel queasy to begin with?

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[DDSperio]

Well, it depends on the type of practice you are working in.
Usually, most of your work will be restorative and maybe endo too. if you find extractions to be OK, then you are good to go.

One of my friends passed out before doing his first extraction
He finished dental school, but I can't say he's qualified, because he's always scared, and this will not help at al l😉

I can't but wonder, if you feel "Queasy" from stuff like gum surgery and extensive extractions, then why are you thinking about dentistry as a profession in the first place? You will definitely have hard time in dental school in many classes, anatomy, oral surgery, periodontics to name few. Even in restorative and prosthodontics, you might see some blood in some cases.

I think pharmacy might be a better option, as it's still a medical profession, but with out the mess you get if you become a dentist or a physician.


Best of luck for you

 

[Jim224]

Well, it depends on the type of practice you are working in.
Usually, most of your work will be restorative and maybe endo too. if you find extractions to be OK, then you are good to go.

One of my friends passed out before doing his first extraction
He finished dental school, but I can't say he's qualified, because he's always scared, and this will not help at al l😉

I can't but wonder, if you feel "Queasy" from stuff like gum surgery and extensive extractions, then why are you thinking about dentistry as a profession in the first place? You will definitely have hard time in dental school in many classes, anatomy, oral surgery, periodontics to name few. Even in restorative and prosthodontics, you might see some blood in some cases.

I think pharmacy might be a better option, as it's still a medical profession, but with out the mess you get if you become a dentist or a physician.


Best of luck for you

Thanks for your input!

Well, I really don't think pharmacy is for me. I am pretty confident dentistry is the right choice for me.

I guess my questions are just, did anyone here go into dentistry a little queasy, and get used to it?

And, how much cutting of the gums will I be doing if I am just a general dentist?

 

[mike3kgt]

Thanks for your input!

Well, I really don't think pharmacy is for me. I am pretty confident dentistry is the right choice for me.

I guess my questions are just, did anyone here go into dentistry a little queasy, and get used to it?

And, how much cutting of the gums will I be doing if I am just a general dentist?

If you timid, it may be tough getting through dental school just because you need to perform surgery and bloody procedures to get through. I do know of several students who were not comfortable with blood still make it okay.

As a GP ("Just a general dentist" is such a defeatist thing to say... be PROUD of being a GP), you can integrate a total "supragingival" practice. What I mean by that is you stay North of the stuff that may cause bleeding... i.e. direct restorations, simple crowns, dentures, cosmetics.

There, however, will always be bleeding throughout basic procedures that you should be comfortable handling because you can fall into a rut of being a slop care dentist if you avoid doing what is necessary to restore a tooth properly (i.e. subgingival preps or tissue retraction) just because "you're queezy".

Think about it seriously before you start taking BIG money loans... plenty of medicine that doesn't get bloody, dental is not one of them.

 

[aphistis]

If you timid, it may be tough getting through dental school just because you need to perform surgery and bloody procedures to get through. I do know of several students who were not comfortable with blood still make it okay.

As a GP ("Just a general dentist" is such a defeatist thing to say... be PROUD of being a GP), you can integrate a total "supragingival" practice. What I mean by that is you stay North of the stuff that may cause bleeding... i.e. direct restorations, simple crowns, dentures, cosmetics.

There, however, will always be bleeding throughout basic procedures that you should be comfortable handling because you can fall into a rut of being a slop care dentist if you avoid doing what is necessary to restore a tooth properly (i.e. subgingival preps or tissue retraction) just because "you're queezy".

Think about it seriously before you start taking BIG money loans... plenty of medicine that doesn't get bloody, dental is not one of them.

I completely agree, there's nothing "just" about being a general dentist, unless you make it that way yourself. All different kinds of general dentists are here on SDN alone, from your more conventional bread & butter dentists to guys (e.g. me) whose careers have gone way off the beaten path. There are just too much opportunities in the profession (including opportunities that don't require getting your fingers bloody, OP), if you're just willing to look for them, to ever consider yourself "just" a general dentist.

 

[rocknightmare]

you can overcome being Queasy from bloody procedures with time; as an example is myself, i use to faint from seeing an IV being placed to almost fainting in couple of OR cases that i been to; now i can see a scalp flapped opened w/o dripping a sweat --- so u can overcome it just start slow with you are seeing and make sure you have ate before seeing anything that will make you faint.

 

[Alexanderplatz]

Queasy ?? emm ....
I finished dental school and I was having such this feeling ....
actually it depends on the work u do, per say to be GP u have the choice to refer the complicated extraction and perio cases to specialists.
for other works restorative, endo , prosthesis there is no valuable bleeding to be fear of.
I still remember I assisted an oral surgeon in a trauma case , while he was stitching and examining the wounds I got that phobia turned on and I felt nauseated ... well it does happen even to medical students at first.
BUT you have to balance between what you can deal with and your desire.
and remember most GP work does not have that much bleeding to deal with so do not inflate this issue.
Then you have to know something ... when you are doin the job u no longer think like this , U will find yourself focusing on what u r doin and the safety of your patient. u r not viewer , but you r the doer. and with time I believe u will get used to it.
If you have hand skills and desire I tell go ahead , dentistry is rewarding field and more enjoyable than pharmacy ...

 

[jk5177]

you can overcome being Queasy from bloody procedures with time

I agree. There are behavioral therapies that can help you overcome this.
Personally, I get excited with all the blood and gore, quite the opposite, and had fun dissecting during freshman anatomy.

 

[jk5177]

There's also optomtery, or the medical field that doesn't have much exposure to the gore (say radiology, or dermatology). In dentistry, there's orthodontics that sees little blood. There you go!

 

[toofache32]

Blood is an acquired taste. If you actually like it the first time you see it.....THEN you have issues. I also got "queasy" my first time in an oral surgeons office prior to starting dental school.

 

[GoGatorsDMD]

You definitely get desensitized with experience

 

[bigbadaboom]

you can become orthodontist and not see blood.
but they're not really dentists. ask dr. gordon christensen, he'll tell you why not.

 

[CMistry]

Blood is an acquired taste. If you actually like it the first time you see it.....THEN you have issues. I also got "queasy" my first time in an oral surgeons office prior to starting dental school.

This is exactly how I feel. The first time I saw an extraoral incision I remember feeling very queasy. Now the smell of cautery excites me... I'm pretty sure I am the one with a problem!

 

[tinman831]

TNow the smell of cautery excites me... I'm pretty sure I am the one with a problem!

ew?

 

[keeneye]

I agree. But, since you are aware of this "queeziness" and you want to pursue dentistry, then exposure to the profession may be helpful.

Shadow a dentist.

One that performs not only restorative and endodontics but extractions as well.
Maybe you'll even get to suction the blood during the procedure!

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

Hey, I am a big lurker here. I am always on here reading through the different forums, all of them; pharmacy, optometry, PT, dental, etc.

But I recently became pretty certain that my main goal is to become a dentist. So I will probably be posting here more often 😛

Anyway, I have been watching some procedures on youtube like wisdom tooth removal, and I kinda get sort of queasy...it's not terrible though, and actually a sort of unique and good feeling lol, I guess I'm weird like that.

But as for the really heavy duty cutting of the gums and stuff....I am pretty sure i would have a tough time handling that. Even thinking about the front gums below your bottom front teeth being cut/messed with is painful to me, and forget about watching that/doing it.

I just wanted to know, if I became a general dentist, how much heavy duty surgical blood and guts stuff would I have to be doing, like beyond pulling teeth(which I think I would be fine with)? Also, do you get used to that queasy feeling? Or did you never feel queasy to begin with?

Hi there,

How about insertion of surgical obturator in the OR or removal of surgical obturator and delivery of interim obturator for oral cancer patients? If you can make through this, you can make through anything in dentistry! DP

 

[Blue Moose]

you can become orthodontist and not see blood.
but they're not really dentists. ask dr. gordon christensen, he'll tell you why not.

gordon christensen.... so many things wrong with this statement

Gordon christensen also thinks you should be bridging natural teeth with implants

 

[bigbadaboom]

gordon christensen.... so many things wrong with this statement

Gordon christensen also thinks you should be bridging natural teeth with implants

Ask Dr. Christensen

In this monthly feature, Dr. Gordon Christensen addresses the most frequently asked questions from Dental Economics® readers. If you would like to submit a question to Dr. Christensen, please send an e-mail to [email protected].

Q I have been told that implants should not be attached with fixed bridges to natural teeth. However, I have made several bridges, attaching natural teeth to implants, without any problems. Should implants be connected to natural teeth?

A The answer to your question is both “yes” and “no.” There is very little research that has been accomplished on this important subject. I will provide my own conclusions for you, based on hundreds of implant-supported fi xed prostheses I have accomplished personally.

There is no question that making a fi xed prosthesis and cementing it with provisional cement to an implant and a natural tooth is asking for trouble. I learned this as I had some very expensive failures about 15 years ago. Provisional cement is weak and often breaks loose, allowing the natural tooth to intrude into the bone. I have observed natural teeth intrude up to one-half inch after breaking loose from the abutment crown. This intrusion requires only a few months and usually requires removal of the affected tooth and a new, more extensive restoration.

Another technique has also given me signifi cant trouble. Early in the history of root-form implants, some clinicians suggested placing precision attachments or keyways between teeth and implants. This sounded like a logical concept. Again, I have had natural teeth intrude up to one half inch when keyways were placed between implants and natural teeth. The only solution to such a problem is usually extraction of the natural tooth.

There are situations where natural teeth and implants need to be connected because of inadequate bone in potential pontic areas, or to avoid placing more implants for financial reasons.

The following technique is successful if carried out exactly as outlined below. For our example, I will assume that one natural tooth is being connected to one implant, with one missing tooth being replaced with a pontic:

Make a full-crown tooth preparation on the abutment tooth. The preparation should be parallel and as long from the occlusal to the gingival area as possible.
Place an appropriate abutment on the implant. The abutment should be as parallel as possible with the abutment tooth.
Make the fixed prosthesis.
On the cementation appointment, make relatively deep rotary-diamond scratches on the tooth preparation.
Make sure that the abutment is securely attached to the implant.
Cement the fi xed prosthesis with strong bonded-resin cement.
Adjust occlusion carefully, placing heavy occlusal forces on the articulation marking ribbon or paper, and reducing the marked areas to allow equal load on the implant and tooth-supported restoration and the adjacent natural teeth. The implant will not move apically, but the tooth can move slightly apically. Inadequate occlusal adjustment can cause premature failure.
Expect successful service from the natural tooth/implant-supported fixed prosthesis.