Valium before Root Canal

Root canal? Yes. valium? No.

You are going to be numbed and have a bite block put in your mouth. This will be the worst part because it gets frustrating to not be able to close your mouth for such a long period of time.

Valium? Really? For a root canal? I really don't agree with it but if he is going to use a benzo, I would think ativan is more reasonable as the half life is only 18 hrs vs valium half life is up to 48 hrs.

The way you worded your post makes it sound like your dentist thinks he/she should take Valium before performing an upcoming root canal. Probably not the best practice, though I'm sure it happens all the time.

If your aim is simply to relax your own jaw muscles whilst your dentist does a root canal on you, you might want to consider a muscle relaxer like Skelaxin (metaxalone) or Flexeril (cyclobenzaprine).

Are those OTC or would I need a script?

They offered me a valium before I had all my teeth removed for dentures. I declined...I knew they were going to give me 36 injections anyway.

A root canal is no big deal. Suck it up, buttercup.

Prescription. Which your dentist should be able to provide. Do you take Magnesium supplements? They help with muscle relaxation and many people with TMJ and similar issues take them nightly, though you have to be careful not to overdo.

Also, there are various kinds of topicals that can be applied directly to your face where/near the TM joint is that might be of help. Such as magnesium cream, gel or spray; the NSAID Voltaren (diclofenac) in gel form; Lidocaine patches (which you can cut to fit) or lidocaine gel; Arnica gel.

I have found the OTC patches called SalonPas extremely helpful for various kinds of facial pain including TMJ. But everyone is different. Good luck.

Yes, I was given it years ago for a root canal, but not for pain, more for calming my mind from claustrophobia and from sitting still with all that stuff in my mouth for a long time. I wasn’t sure what it might do to me, but I was fine and seemed normal, but it did quiet the anxiety’s enough for me. The root canal was not bad otherwise.

Just do the nitrous gas -it’s the best option. Have used it for wisdom tooth extractions, root canal, crowns -it’s my go to for all things dental. Wears off quickly and you can drive home afterward.

What does this mean? Almost everyone has TMJ. In fact, the vast majority of people have two of them.

NO to valium, and absolutely NO to a root canal. A root canal leaves the dead rotting tooth in your jaw, to continue rotting not only the rest of your jaw but also the rest of your body! Getting a root canal is a scam perpetuated so people keep having problems and to keep making more and more $$$ ca-ching ca-ching!!! for the a--hole dentists.

When you have a dead tooth, either just let it dissolve, or else have it pulled and be done with it.

For tooth pain, instead of using a noxious drug like valium, use the centuries long well used beneficial herb valerian root. I had severe tooth pain in a tooth and a dentist wanted me to wait until the pain was gone until he would pull it. Duh, it wouldn't need to be pulled if there was no pain.

That night the pain was excruciating when I lay down to sleep, so I finally got up in the middle of the night and blended some valerian root that I'd never used before. I thought it wasn't working when I was still feeling the pain 15 minutes later, but by 45 minutes it was gone and I was drifting off to a very welcome relaxing sleep. The pain was still gone the next morning.

I drank valerian juice all that day, the pain never returned, I cancelled the dentist appointment and never again had a problem with tooth pain.

Valium!!! 24/7

Agreed. Valium is pleasant, but gives a slight chemical hangover. Ativan is almost as pleasant and feels cleaner.

Only take the benzodiazepine if prescribed from the dentist

Have had five of these.

Can't get your jaw comfortable is it. Valium? Buttercup.

I had gum surgery. They have me some kind of pill to relax me - might have been valium. Recovery from gum surgery is kind of rough, so if there was a hangover of any kind, I think that was way less of a problem than the pain from the surgery itself.

In any case, if someone offered me valium for a root canal, I would say yes. You're not having root canals every day. It's going to be unpleasant. Why not make it a bit less so?

Triazolam, then titration with nitrous

Put it this way, you dont need valium ( a big stick, by the way among benzodiazepines) for a root canal. It will last a long time! Usually when anyone suggests valium or ativan they picked up on your apprehension about the procedure? Is that possibly the case? Did you say you were nervous? In which case that is very common then. We see it as a sort of step down from sedation...something we can use for an in-office procedure on a hyped up/anxious patient (or autism, or behavioral issue/developmental delay etc...

I dont know if there is perhaps evidence that it helps with post procedure pain in those with TMJ? That could be? bear in mind they may be giving you a very low dose like <<10mg. As someone suggested, my only critique is that it is so long acting. But, it is valium ("mother's little helper"), and is very common and very predictable and safe. Maybe just request the lowest dose they are willing to give if you are worried about the dopiness.

My Dad has practiced dentistry for 37 years and said this is not out of the ordinary for some dental procedures. There are some so-called "knockout" dentists who will give patients who have very high anxiety about visiting the dentist Benzos so that they aren't nervous and don't freak out during procedures but the Valium isn't used for pain nor are they muscle relaxants. Valium is often prescribed to treat TMJ as it relaxes the patient and one of the causes of TMJ can be too much clenching of the jaw muscles which is often caused by stress. In this way Valium would be given as a sedation aid in lieu of nitrous oxide and in addition to your local anesthesia i.e. novocaine.

Whether to use valium varies by dentist and depends on the patient. Some people do fine with just local anesthesia and others want to be sedated. Some dentists prefer nitrous oxide and others frequently use valium. Some dentists use Ativan and some use valium and some it depends on the procedure.

Regarding why Valium vs. Ativan, as others have noted the latter has a shorter half-life but while this is an advantage for some short procedures it isn't for longer ones b/c the sedation effect of Ativan is ~30-45 minutes whereas Valium's sedation effect is 10-12 hours. In other words the Ativan might wear off too soon during a long procedure.

Valium is for mental pain, not physical, don't even make sense.