Ha! Wish I'd seen this earlier. I've had seven (!) RC's...by now you know they're not that bad. What hurts is having to have one...the pain beforehand is worse by far.
(Yes, I do brush. I just have genetically bad teeth, and I went to a quack dentist when I was younger...my fillings got decay underneath them, thus all the work. Never, ever, economize on dentistry, is my advice.)
My tips: Just think about something else. My favorite mental scenario is imagining being at the beach instead of in the chair.
- It can take a pretty long time for your mouth to go dead - I need nearly 20 minutes sometimes. So don't let 'em rush you.
- The anesthetic will make your heart pound, so no coffee before your appt.
The upsides I have to all this dental work? Pretty high pain threshhold. No needle phobias, in contrast to Mr. Dive. I won't embarrass him by telling too many stories, but he has perfect teeth - and nearly passed out last year getting a tetanus shot.