Cavity?

A few things first- I have been going to the dentist every six months for most of my life. I have never missed an appointment. I brush my teeth at least twice a day with anti-cavity Crest. A few years ago I had those cavity protectors placed on all of my back teeth (which I fully understand do not always protect against cavities). My last appointment was in April of this year and everything was fine.

For the past couple of weeks, I have noticed that sometimes whenever I am eating and food goes into a certain spot on one of my left back bottom teeth (I can't figure out which tooth it is for some reason) I get this weird feeling. It's not so much a pain; kind of like a pressure. Sorry, it's hard to describe. I don't feel it if I just bite down; only if there is food there. There is no pain or anything when I press on any of my teeth. If I eat sweets I don't feel any pain except if it is candy corn but that has bothered my teeth for years. I have been told I have sensitive teeth, I kind of have a bad bite, and I also grind my teeth. I am not a dentist, therefore I don't know what exactly to look for, but I don't see anything wrong with my teeth. No spots (just stains that have been confirmed by the dentist), no feelings of holes or anything. But I am worried this is a cavity and from what I read on the internet, I am terrifed I would need root canal. Any idea whether this could be a cavity or not? Thank you so much.

[Avas Mom]

I dont know what it is, explain it to your dentist. I just wanna say i was terrified of a root canal before too from all the stories and actually i prefer a root canal to a filling(not time wise tho because they last too long) It doesnt hurt at all and they put a dental dam over your mouth it just makes it more comfortable to me and i dont know why??

[love1221]

From what you're describing I don't think you would need a root canal.  If you can narrow it down to a general area, the dentist can take a single x-ray to diagnose a problem.  

[OneBananaShort]

Hi, thank you both for answering.

I still cannot figure out which tooth it is in. Seems like it could either be the first or second molar. For a few days it seemed to disappear and now it's back again. I also noticed the same pain in various teeth through out my mouth that all come and go.

Avas Mom, yeah I am sure a root canal is probably not that bad. I just hear of the horror stories and get scared. Getting a cavity filled is really not that bad (heaven knows I had it done plenty of times when I was a kid!) but for some reason, it still freaks me out when I have to get it done. I'm always a nervous wreck right before I have to get it done.

I have a dentist appointment in a couple weeks and I am really hoping it's not anything because I have no dental insurance and while it's not too big of a deal paying for my appointment, if I have to pay for something else, I am absolutely screwed.

[love1221]

As far as the money issue goes...you could apply for something like healthcare credit line or care credit.  I'm sure you can look them up online to find out more information about them.  But basically they're like a dental credit card that allows you to pay the dentist the full amount and then make payments to the credit card.

[OneBananaShort]

Yeah that is something I could look into. My mother used a payment plan like that last year when she had to have a crown done.