Has anyone taken Halcion before dental work?

[sajetto]

The last time I had work done they gave me TWO Halcion and TWO Meglapran (is that how you spell it?) Let's just say that I took it 10 minutes before the appointment, I remember stepping into the office, but I sure as heck don't remember stepping out. My DF said that I was so loopy it was hilarious. I don't think its typical to give someone that much, but I was in there for 8 hours having 8 fillings done, a cap repair over a root canal, and some other minor work.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Wow, these stories are making me thinking of all the years I gave halcion to people when they requested it for sleep in the hospital. Now I understand why we no longer use it, LOL.

Shelly, love the Gilligan's Island story...

 

[lsyorke]

Wow, these stories are making me thinking of all the years I gave halcion to people when they requested it for sleep in the hospital. Now I understand why we no longer use it, LOL.

I can remember people being TOTALLY NUTS after a dose of Halcion at work. We were very happy when they stopped using it in hospitals.

 

[missypie]

I am not trying to minimize your fear....it must be horrible for you. I will say, as a dental professional I have never come across this and I can tell you that it is outside of the norm. I do think you have a phobia (such as fear of social situations, spiders, etc) and a therapist could probably do wonders.

Hugs sweetie....I would never want anyone to feel that way when I was cleaning their teeth.

Can you imagine how you would feel if you were standing around talking to someone and they yanked open your mouth as far as it would open and then put their hands in there for half an hour? Ick! That is SO personal. Then if they took a sharp object and started SCRAPING your TEETH with it. Ick! I'm glad there are people willing to be dental hygenists, but in my mind that's one of the worst things you can have done. And you're supposed to volunteer to walk in and have this done every six months...and pay for the privilege!!!

 

[Buckalew11]

You're laying back, and there are four hands...IN YOUR MOUTH! They pull and they drill and then they put stuff in your mouth that makes you not be able to open your mouth (impressions). They come back, they scrape, they prod...and that is not invasion? I, too, would go to my GYN any day before the dentist.

I admit that I hate sitting and having anything done to me...haircut, manicure, eye doctor, etc.. It's the lack of control..HAVING to be there while something is done. Not too far from torture in my mind. But the dentist is absolutely the worst.

Also, the last appointment (after which I sobbed) lasted about three hours....I had two crowns, then had my teeth cleaned. It was all way too much for me to handle. How can anyone not feel invaded when four hands have been pulling and stretching their mouth for three hours?

Missypie, I can totally relate. I remember the dentist asking me what I was afraid of. I remember telling him I didn;t like laying all the way back in that chair. I feel like I am standing on my head! And I wouldn;t be able to get up quick enough from that position! He said, "Well, where do you think you're going to go?" I was like, "Well, if I want to run out of here or something."
I have actually had a panic attack while getting my haircut. (And I cut hair for a living!) It has something to do with feeling trapped and not in control. I have a GC for a pedicure and, lo and behold, I am worried about sitting in THAT chair too! Good grief! I know I'll be fine in those situations but in the dental chair...maybe NOT!!!

I had my 4 front teeth crowned (2 front teeth have had crowns since friend knocked them out with a baseball bat at 8yo) and during that long drawn out process, I had 12 impressions made. 12! I should have been a pro at it by the end but it is still a horrid procedure to me (ie. torture).

Tiggersmom, I admire you all for what you do, and probably assistants even more. Please work on that impression thing. I'm think the way we do it now should only be used in torture chambers...

 

[Streetglide103]

My Dentist gave me a prescription for Halcion told me to take the night before so would know what it feels like. And take one the next day on my way to my appointment. Well i never made it to my appointment because i wound up shooting myself in the knee and almost killing myself. It was like i was outside my body watching what was going on but i had no control or couldn't stop myself. That was 6 months ago and i'm getting ready to go back to work. So i wouldn't take that stuff ever again.

 

[akcire]

My Dentist gave me a prescription for Halcion told me to take the night before so would know what it feels like. And take one the next day on my way to my appointment. Well i never made it to my appointment because i wound up shooting myself in the knee and almost killing myself. It was like i was outside my body watching what was going on but i had no control or couldn't stop myself. That was 6 months ago and i'm getting ready to go back to work. So i wouldn't take that stuff ever again.

Oh my

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

Thread!

Strange first post.

 

[kmb584]

Funny story: Last time I had an early morning appt. My husband brought me home and waited with me until the late afternoon. He then had to go out of town for work so he left me home alone. He said I was awake and talking normally so he thought it was fine. I don't remember him leaving nor do I remember being online, but I must have been because a couple of days later some items started arriving via UPS and USPS. I had apparently been hungry because orders arrived from both Schwans and Impromtu Gourmet. I guess I was also bored because a package arrived from Amazon.com with the complete third season of Gilligan's Island on DVD. I'm still pretty sure I'm the only person ever to order that item -LOL. I also got some new clothes from a couple of different companies. Lesson of the story - make sure someone is watching over you to make sure you and your credit cards are safe.

My aunt did that once about 10 years ago when she had a benign tumor removed from her stomach. The doctor prescribed Vicodin for the pain and less than a week later all sorts of goodies from Tiffany were being delivered. She doesn't even wear jewelry aside from a simple pair of earrings!

 

[MIGrandma]

Zombie thread or not, I'm glad to see this as I'm another one who is super afraid to go to the dentist and haven't been in many, many years. I gave birth twice with no medication whatsoever and I would rather do that again than sit in a dentist's chair.

However, I know I'm going to have to go soon. I have a mouth full of problems and I can't keep putting it off.

If I could go and not remember it, that would be awesome!

The other part I hate is paying the bill.

 

[undertheradar]

An almost 8 year bump.

 

[minkydog]

I'm a horrible dentistry-phobic. A tooth cracked and of course, that led to pcitures that showed other cracked teeth, etc. etc....I've had three appiontments in the last month. After the last one, I got in my car and sobbed for 20 minutes because the sense of assault and invasion was so strong.

ANYWAY, my dentist is actually very sweet (too bad I have to hate him) and the next appointment (to do the other side of mouth) will be under the influence of Halcion.

It scares me to death...they say you can't remember the dental work...but you still have to go through it at the time. (Freaking out here.)

ANYWAY, my question is, for how long afterwards will I be insanely loopy? I am to take the pill at 6:45 am for a 7:45 appointment. Will I be functional again by, say, 6 pm?

I am extremely dental phobic, to the point of vomiting and panic. A few months ago I needed a crown. I was beside myself. My dentist offered this sedation with Halcion. I was very skeptical about it--I mean, I am seriously phobic. But I decided to give it a try, since there wasn't really a better option.

That stuff is amazing. This is how it went down:
I showed up and they moved me to the dental suite. They gave me some Halcion, a blanket,some nitrous oxide, put on some soothing music and turned the lights down. I don't know how long it took to go to sleep but I don't think it was more than 20-30 min. I remember very little about the procedure and I had NO PAIN. Every now and then I would come a little bit awake and they'd give me little more Halcion crushed with a bit of peppermint so it was palatable. Then I'd go back to sleep. When I woke up I walked out to the car under my own power. When I got home I went to sleep for awhile. I think I was pretty with it by about 2pm. I don't remember.

I wouldn't hesitate to do this again. The one thing the dentist should insist on is that you have a driver and they need to stay with you for the rest of the day. Other than that, you may need a little narcotic pain relief later, depending on how much work they had to do. My recovery was uneventful.

ETA: Ack! Zombie thread.

 

[Buckalew11]

Ha! A zombie thread and I was reading it like I had never read it before!

I replied 3 times. And yes, all my answers were the truth. I still agreed with it all.

I have started going to a new dentist since this thread and I go every 4 months. Things are much better with this dentist and I had a lot of dental work to catch up on. 6 crowns, gum lengthening surgery, 4 root canals (+2 others too) and I did it all with nitrous and a xanax. I go every 4 months for a cleaning because I am taking great care of these 6 crowns, darn it! Thankfully they let me have nitrous for a cleaning.

 

[aprilchem]

I am not trying to minimize your fear....it must be horrible for you. I will say, as a dental professional I have never come across this and I can tell you that it is outside of the norm. I do think you have a phobia (such as fear of social situations, spiders, etc) and a therapist could probably do wonders.

Hugs sweetie....I would never want anyone to feel that way when I was cleaning their teeth.

Can I gently say that maybe you've just never recognized it? I also have a dental phobia, and I know LOTS of people who feel the same. Mine stems from two different really bad (probably legally actionable, actually, although I didn't sue either) experience with dentists, but I know a few people who are phobic with no really bad experiences whatsoever. I can't even take my children to the dentist because I get so anxious that I can't stay in the waiting room; DH has to do it.

 

[GraysMom]

I am extremely dental phobic as well. My dentist from birth through college would immediately bring to mind Steve Martin's character in Little Shop of Horrors . I have had very sensitive teeth this I was little and that has only increased with age. My original dentist filled my cavities but didn't get all the decay, so by the time I was in my early 20's and got a new dentist, all of the decay had gone further into the teeth, necessitating huge fillings in 11 teeth . That dentist did good work but totally couldn't understand my dental phobia and I would be so sick to my stomach starting the night before every appointment.

Flash forward to one of my brothers graduating from dental school and joining a practice near my parent's home. He does great work and totally gets just how scared I am. He gave me Xanax to start but the lowest dose didn't do anything to relax me, so we moved on to Halcion. I've taken a pill an hour before each appointment since then and it does help to relax me, but I think we need to up the dose a little. It doesn't help that I have a lot of tooth pain and even just a cleaning is very painful due to root issues. I am pretty much aware of what's going on and able to hold a conversation, though I look pretty out of it. Even with the Halcion I am still nervous (which is why I need a higher dose) which cause the steptocaine(?) they use to wear off very quickly. I always need at least one, sometimes 2 boosters of steptocaine during a procedure or I can feel everything. It also helps that one of my brother's dental hygenists had the same dentist I did and also has a dental phobia as a result. My brother always assigns her to me if she is working when I am there because he knows she has a calming effect on me.

When I went in for my root canal I used the Halcion and listened to an iPod through one earphone (so I could hear any instructions from the endodontist with the other ear), but the music at least covered up some of the dental noises and distracted me somewhat.

I am always exhausted after an appointment, but part of that is probably because I don't sleep at all the night before an appointment. Definitely get someone else to drive you to/from the appointment and plan on sleeping afterwards.

 

[DebbieB]

Wonder if the OP made it to the concert (8 years ago)?

 

[Deborah Lampman]

I have periodontal disease and I am having my 20th extraction at 9am tomorrow. I have so many horror stories you wouldn't sleep for a week. Dentistry is barbaric. Thank God for Halcion and gas. I am taking my Halcion right now before bed and another one tomorrow!!! Drugs are good people.

 

[rwdavis2]

As a hospital nurse, we used to use halcion a lot as a sleeping aid, but honestly we haven't used it in a number of years. I would be concerned about driving to and from the dentists office under the effects of halcion since it is a sleeping pill.

Here is an article I found for you - they seem to be calling this "oral conscious sedation" which is very concerning in a dentist's office and not in the controlled setting of a hospital (if you needed to be intubated or resuscitated for an adverse reaction). According to the article, they haven't seen any problems with adults before, but I certainly wouldn't want to be the first. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5446489/

I sympathize with your fear of dentists. But personally, I'd try to find a safer route to effective dentistry. Off the top of my head, I don't know what other options you have. But maybe someone here might know. Is there somewhere like a hosptial setting that does dentistry under anasthesia or intravenous conscious sedation? What about gas - is that still being used? I remember having that myself as a kid.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

I tend to agree. Being sedated in a dentist's office with no resuscitation on hand can be risky. Problems are rare but if they occur can be catastrophic. My dentist won't use it and refuses to use gas (nitrous oxide) as well. Not trying to scare the OP but needs to be fully informed. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[Micca]

I think we can assume the OP''s halcion days are over.

 

[ols386]

Halcion is a benzo, just like valium, xanax, and some other meds. A central nervous system depressant.

When I had my wisdom teeth out, many years ago, the dentist gave me valium to take one hour before the procedure, and advised to have someone drive me home afterwards.