I finally got half of my teeth problem taken care of today! I have for quite a while been in contact with a dentist who has a very nice practice and caters to people with heavy-duty fears. All the kids have been there this spring, and I had all my teeth checked out and x-rays taken - went fine with a Clonazepam in my system. I had two severely broken teeth that needed root canals, two fillings that need replacement, one filling at the gum line very far back and an upper wisdom tooth that needs to come out.
Then we had to reschedule several times - once me because of hubby's work, and once the dentist because of a mistake in the scheduling. So finally, after months (I think we started out in October last year...) I was ready to go today. This program has helped me A LOT in preparing for it and not getting to where I would freak out and cancel my appointment.
Yesterday, I took two Clonazepams - one in the afternoon and one before bedtime. The dentist gave me two Valium-type pills to take before bed, but I called them yesterday to ask if I could take my own pills instead, since I felt much more comfortable with that, and they were fine with it. This morning, I took one pill the dentist gave me to take one hour before my appointment. It's a generic for Halcion, a sleeping pill with amnesiac properties.
By the time we got to the dentist, I was quite calm (never got nervous since yesterday afternoon, really - I wish I had taken a Clonazepam daily all week, because I think I would have had a better week...)
We waited a few minutes, and I felt absolutely *no* anxiety or nervousness. I could tell that I was a little drugged, but only because of a foggy feeling - no slurring or difficulty communicating, no problems walking.
Then I was taken into the back (which is spacious and lovely, they have a huge room filled with plants and a fountain all over one wall...) and I was made comfy in the chair. They put Lucinda's relaxation CD, which I had brought, in the CD-player. I also brought a couple of vidoes (they have TVs above the chairs), but they had TNT, so I decided to wait and see if Law & Order would come on. I don't know if it ever did - I was out by then! They left me there to relax and let the medication kick in properly.
After two rounds of the relaxation session, I realized I was so relaxed (fell asleep) that I had to make a quick trip to the bathroom
and that I wanted to give my cell phone to my husband, who was waiting (we get business calls to my cell). I got up and asked the reception lady if I could go to the rest room (didn't know if I was supposed to walk alone) and found out on my way back that hubby had left. I went back to the room and turned my cell phone to silent, and while I was doing that, the dentist and his assistant came in and seemed a little surprised that I was up and walking. The assistant felt bad, I think, because she supposed to keep an eye on me... 
The dentist smiled and gave me two more pills to take, one like the one I had already had, and one I didn't know what was. It was clear that I was already quite drugged, because I just took them and didn't ask what the unknown pill was or argue about taking the whole thing and how it might interact with my other medication and if I could look up the side effects on the internet... Turns out that I, the sensitive one who has great effect of a lower-than-minimum-theraputic dose of my thyroid medication, was more resistant to the drugs than anyone the dentist had ever seen in his entire practice! After that, I have very little recollection of what happened, until someone was cleaning my teeth! I knew that my schedule was first the dentist doing his job and then a deep-cleaning, and the cleaning was sometimes a little painful (sensitive teeth tips) and it woke me up every now and then. I also just remembered now that I somethings coughed during this half-awake state because of water spraying and wanted to sit up... The dentist assistant used the suction and I would drift off again. I do not remember seeing the dentist or the tech during any of this, but I was hearing the TV-sound in my ears. Have absolutely no idea what was on! I did respond to what the dental assistant told me to do.
Finally, I was woken up (I assume, can hardly remember anyone being there) and hubby was there to follow me to the reception area. I was a little unsteady, and really wanted to sleep. I can't remember much of what happened during check-out, just falling asleep in the car on the way home. When I got home, I had two sandwiches (couldn't eat after midnight the day before) and went to sleep - slept at least two hours. After I woke up, I felt fine, back to normal, very calm, and thanks to the laser surgery on my gums, hardly in any pain at all. Two Tylenols took care of the little discomfort I started having this afternoon.
I now can't wait (!) to go back in January, when my new benefits kick in, to get the right half of my mouth taken care of. It was amazing, the most comfortable and gentle experience I have ever had at a dentist's!
So my advice to anyone who is putting off dentist treatments because of anxiety: Interview dentists, find one you like who uses gentle techniques and offers conscious sedation. It cost me about $350 out of pocket, but it was absolutely worth it. The other advantage is that you can get a lot more done in one session than you otherwise would be able to, so you don't have to go back several times.
Laser surgery for any gum surgery is also becoming more common and is a very gentle and comfortable technique. I would warmly recommend that to anyone who has to undergo anything like that.
This was a major breakthrough for me - and I hope that my experiences can help someone else who is putting off dental treatment. If I can do it, *anyone* can!
I'm so happy for you and I wish you all the best in everything else you do.