The cost was rough, but I guess if it means keeping more of my own tooth, it’s worth it? Crowns always seemed so final to me.
I totally get what you mean about crowns feeling “final.” I remember sitting in the chair thinking, “Wait, you’re just going to shave down my whole tooth?” That’s why I ended up with an onlay after my root canal last year. My dentist said pretty much the same thing—if there’s enough healthy tooth left, why not save it?
Honestly, I still get a little paranoid about biting into anything crunchy. I’ve had mine for almost three years now and it’s holding up, but I’m always low-key worried about something cracking. Have you noticed any sensitivity with yours? Mine was a bit touchy with cold drinks for the first few months but then settled down.
Insurance barely helped with mine either. Not sure why they make it so difficult when it’s supposed to be a more conservative option. Do you ever wonder if you should’ve just gone with a crown anyway? Sometimes I second-guess but then remember how much I hated the idea of losing that much tooth.
Yeah, the “final” feeling with crowns is real. I keep picturing my tooth as a little tree stump after they shave it down. I ended up with an onlay too, mostly because my wallet was already crying from the root canal. I still get nervous about biting into anything harder than a sandwich, honestly. Sensitivity-wise, mine was weirdly zingy with cold stuff for a while, but now it’s fine. Insurance barely covered mine either... I swear they just make up the rules as they go. Sometimes I wonder if I should’ve just done the crown and been done with it, but then again, I like knowing most of my tooth is still there.
I totally get the urge to just go with a crown and be done, but honestly, I’m glad I stuck with an onlay after my root canal. The idea of grinding down the whole tooth always freaked me out a bit—like, yeah, the tree stump image is way too real. For me, keeping as much of my own tooth as possible felt worth it, even if I had to baby it for a while and second-guess every crunchy snack.
That said, I know a couple friends who went the crown route and don’t worry about what they bite into at all. They say it feels more solid, less nerve-wracking. But I kinda like that my dentist didn’t just jump straight to “let’s cap the whole thing.” Plus, the sensitivity faded for me too after a month or so... though I still flinch at ice water sometimes.
Insurance is such a wild card. Mine covered almost nothing for the onlay either—made me wonder if it’d have been cheaper to just do the full crown in the end. But hey, there’s something nice about knowing most of my real tooth is still hanging in there.
The idea of grinding down the whole tooth always freaked me out a bit—like, yeah, the tree stump image is way too real.
Honestly, I went with the crown because I just wanted it DONE and didn’t wanna stress every time I ate something crunchy. I get wanting to keep your own tooth, but man, that “tree stump” thing didn’t bug me as much as the thought of the thing cracking in half later. My dentist basically said the crown was like armor, so maybe I just liked the idea of my tooth going full Iron Man mode. Insurance was still a pain though... it’s like they want us to pick between bad and worse sometimes.
Yeah, the grinding freaked me out too. I dragged my feet for weeks because I hated the idea of losing so much tooth. Ended up with a crown after my root canal anyway, but honestly, I still get nervous eating hard stuff. Insurance barely covered it, and the whole process just made me more anxious. Sometimes I wonder if an onlay would've felt less drastic, but my dentist didn’t give me that option. The “tree stump” thing is real—wish there were more middle ground choices that didn’t feel so permanent.
