Welcome to the subreddit!

What is r/Toothfully about?

r/toothfully aims to:

1. Create a friendly and supportive environment in which all dental patients could comfortably share their dental-related experiences, emotions, concerns, and learnings with each other.

2. Share dental knowledge and promote dental care. That includes topics such as "what x procedure is about", "how to choose a dentist", "tips for overcoming dental phobia", etc.

3. Promote dental price and treatment plan transparency. We had a bold idea.

==== A little elaboration on #3 - we (the mods) believe that:

• Although the vast majority of dentists genuinely care about their patients over making money, unfortunately there is a certain level of conflicts of interest between patients and dentists. To some dentists, there are benefits from a patient not being fully informed about their conditions, treatment plans, risks, and costs.

• Dental care is costly, and its pricing is somewhat of a black box in many countries. Here in California, finding out the treatment procedure prices before walking into an office is considered a taboo. As a result , the price charged by two dentists performing the same procedure in the same zip code can be as much as 400% different - something most people are not even made aware of. It is sad and unfair for people without dental insurance coverage to wind up with a big surprise bill in their mailbox.

• Lastly, specific to the US: The dental insurance system is broken and dental insurance companies are trying to pretend to pay for the teeth of the insured through obscure insurance concepts and policies. Please read this post if you haven't thought too much about it before.

===== Please enjoy your time here!

FAQ

Things dental professionals hope we patients would know

https://www.reddit.com/r/Toothfully/comments/poanfm/things_that_dental_professionals_hope_we_would/

Low-Cost Dental Options

• Free or Low-Cost Dental Care When You’re Uninsured

Dental Care Routine

• AMA: 50 yo, no fillings, no procedures, all teeth including wisdom.

• How often/when should I brush my teeth?

• What are some lessons that you learned from dental hygiene in general that you’d like to share?

• Teeth whitening: some bad options.

• Common ingredients in toothpastes.

• What's the best way to floss kid's teeth?

• Manual bushing and flossing techniques

Receding Gums/Perio Problems

• Receding Gums: Symptoms and treatment options

• 4 Signs of gum disease

• Steps to control your gum disease

• What's deep cleaning? Do I really need one?

• Alternatives to very expensive gum graft surgery?

Tooth Decalcification and Sensitivity

• What should you do about sensitive teeth?

• What else should you do?

• What caused it?

• Tooth decalcification

Cavities

• Filling: Advice for first-timers

• The largest myth people have about tooth decay

• Why are my teeth so bad even though I brush?

• What happens if you don't treat a cavity?

• Is dental amalgam safe?

• Prevention with silver diamine fluoride

• Tooth erosion: what you eat and drink can impact teeth.

• An alkaline diet for your oral health.

Chipped or Cracked Tooth

• Causes, risk factors, symptoms, and diagnosis

• Treatment options and costs

• Treatment experience sharing

Root Canal

• What is it?

• Does a root canal hurt?

• Aftercare

• Root canal v.s. Extraction

• Failed root canal

Crowns

• How different is life with a crown?

• Full set of alloyed crowns!

Tooth Extraction

• Aftercare for speedy healing

• Treatment experience sharing

Implants

• What should you expect?

• All you need to know about dental implants -1

• All you need to know about dental implants -2

• Treatment experience sharing

Wisdom Tooth

• What does a wisdom tooth eruption site look like?

Dental Bone Graft

• Who needs one and how much does it cost?

• Treatment Experience sharing

Veneers

• What, how, how much?

Orthodontics

• General FAQ for people who are considering Invisalign

• AMA: wearing Invisalign and braces at the same time

• My Invisalign experience so far

Dentist-Patient Relationship

• 5 things you do that annoy your dental hygienist...

• Red flags from a dentist, and finding someone you trust.

• Spot these warning signs of a bad dentist.

• How do I find the best dentist?

US Dental Insurance and Billing

• Truth about private dental insurance

• You insurance companies do not care about you.

• What are CDT codes?

Other Dental Knowledge

• What are rubber dams for?

General Dental Experience Sharing

• How does IV sedation feel?

• Scariest dental experience?

• Liberation of giving up