I am trying to find places that offer some dental help. Long story short, my teeth are bad. They did not become bad until after I was in college. My teeth rot from the inside out, not the other way around. I had teeth pulled a few years ago at the the dental school and it cost 600 or something for 2 teeth. I was told all my teeth will need to come out. My father had all his teeth pulled when he was 20ish and my sister had her’s pulled a year ago. My brothers do not have this problem, so I think my dad passed it on to the girls only. The pain is getting worst to the point I am ready for an all liquid diet. I know that will not help,but I am just so done with taking aspirin all the time. Today another tooth chipped and I am just done. My bottom teeth are the worst and I feel at times it may be hindering me from getting a job. So if anyone knows where I can look for help, let me know.
If you have dental insurance (with that kind of family history I’m PRAYING you got some), your insurer can tell you where some good dentists are that they recommend. If you don’t have insurance, you need to try to find something because what you are talking about gets away from dentistry and goes into orthodontics which equates big bucks (even compared to the $600 you previously stated).
A thought occurs after saying this: when you say “dental help” do you mean good dentists or someone that will help you pay for your conditions?
I have no insurance and have not had any since my freshman year in college. I really have no idea what I am going to do, the pain has recently just gotten worst and I highly doubt I can get a loan to pay for it, but I can hope if I need to. I know I need to get something done, because it really is hindering me from getting a good job and I really mean that…my teeth are that bad. They were not actually that bad when I had insurance and only got worst after I had no insurance. I was one of those brush 2 to 3 times a day, floss, mouth wash, and do not eat a butt load of sugar people and that is why my sister’s went faster then me I guess. She is older, but her’s was much MUCH worst then mine. She has insurance and should be getting her dentures soon.
If you truly are that destitute, you may be able to get federal aid. If you can’t wait for that, then you need to just start figuring out what you can do without to make some more money (i.e., I’ve seen people hock their computers to get some cash to buy suits to get a job then just get a better computer afterwards… not health related, but similar principle).
I mean, unfortunately in situations like this, if you choose not to carry insurance, your options are limited (and sometimes it takes someone just saying it to help the process continue). If you have no income and your family doesn’t have any to assist, then I’d think you’d have a good chance of getting some federal aid. I’d also mention something to your church since most of them have assistance funds.
It is not a choice to have no insurance, my first two jobs after college I was laid off from before insurance kicked in, so yeah. My dad lost his job, so I was kicked off the insurance and he became a consultant and could only afford a plan for him and my mom. Now he is trying to get aid since he has no insurance and him and my mom are really sick. Stupid being poor. Plus I have some nice suits…but when your teeth look like mine and you begin to talk…companies do not want to hire you to deal with people. Monica has seen my teeth, not recently, but she can tell you what they looked like the last time she saw them probably.
Hmm… I think you missed the point about the suits. Look, the reason you don’t have insurance really doesn’t help you find “dental help” right now so… yeah. You can get federal aid. There are cheap, high-deductible insurances that are for expensive operations like this, but I don’t know if you can get any of these if you are saying you need something right this second. There are lots of options out there, they just aren’t right in front of your face.
Like I said, contact your church and read over that info on the page of Medicaid. There is a lot of information on there about how people in truly needy categories can get help on these sorts of things, especially in a case like yours where it’s arguably hindering your ability to be self-sufficient. If you are looking for help… there you go. If you need some cash in the mean-time to see a dentist and start knowing what the plan is (have you seen or talked to a dentist to even know what step 2 is, medically?), then you already admitted you have “some nice suits” and I’m guessing you have other things you could sell to get some cash. Its an investment. For that matter, and branching off of the “have you even spoken to a dentist yet about your long term plan” thing, if you tell a dentist that you’re concerned that you can’t pay for future treatments, trust me when I say that these doctors and their nurses/hygienists/secretaries know every nook and cranny of where to find money for these procedures. Asking goes a long way. Give some of that a shot, THEN you are least know what the “score” is rather then just saying “well, I need a mountain of work done and can’t pay for it!”.
Hey Gail I don’t know how big of a city you live in, but around here there are dental places that carry their own insurance type of thing. They get you pretty inexpensive deals and work with you to make payments. Unfortunately in this area, a lot of those places suck as far as patient care, but they do exist. I understand dental problems and lack of insurance. My teeth are really starting to get bad as well. Mostly because I need my wisdom teeth out and can’t afford it. I’m still trying to deal with my atrocious hospital bill from having my son. I think your best bet is to find a dentist that would do payment plans for you, and even better if they’ll do it on a sliding scale according to your income.
I do know there are dentists in some areas that actually do work for free, they like gather together on one day a year and help people out. Let me know where you live and I’ll try to help you do some research to find those places. My roommate has a friend that is a dental hygienist, she might have ideas too. Even if you’re in a small town, to save the money on dental work, it’d maybe be worth your time and gas to drive a little bit to get some work.
I live in a big city, well on the edge of it. I am in Baltimore City, MD. I been trying to do some research, look at some websites, but I know getting any dental help, even with insurance, can be a pain!
You know, Carrie mentioned/reminded me of something. I know one of the big hospitals in NC actually has their own staff of dental specialists and have satellite agencies that do a ton of stuff (they took my wisdom teeth out). If you can find a hospital that has a dental connection, they can do pro bono work at their own discretion. I am sure that if Charlotte has some mega-hospitals like this, Baltimore does.
Even if the wisdom teeth come in straight, all your teeth continue to “move” slightly throughout your adult years and even as a senior. These wisdom teeth are large and bulky meaning that don’t move cleanly. If they tilt or compact with the adjacent molars, it can cause cysts to develop and cause rotting. A lot of the times, teeth rot is the result of cysts/cavities of blood developing under the roots leading to a sugar build-up on the interior/sub-surface parts of the teeth. These can be prevented through orthodontics if you have your keeps checked out as their adult teeth come in. Its worse in some people then others, but this is a big result of what can happen to kids who DO have braces/retainers if they don’t have them put on. There is a reason why we don’t have George Washington’s walking around with wooden teeth anymore…
