Anxious transplant seeks Durham dentist referral (moving to, gas, dentists)

[hackwriter]

I am moving to Durham in December. I have a wonderful Peruvian dentist here in NJ who bought my former dentist's practice this year. I am having a crown replaced before I move, and a regular cleaning. But he says I need a deep cleaning because of some gum pockets. I am heading into older-middle-age so that's not uncommon. In my family, still having all my own teeth is some kind of miracle.

So here's the thing: I have had nitrous oxide with dental work since I was a kid. My childhood dentist did JUST the gas; no novocaine for fillings. So for over a half-century, that feeling of "Oh. It hurts. Isn't that interesting? La la la la la...." has gotten my teeth to age 60. You can't stick a needle in my mouth until I'm in la-la land.

I know a lot of dentists don't use it anymore. But with the move toward sedation dentistry, it seems to be coming back a bit. I have found some dentists online who use it (sedation with Versed, or worse, propofol, seems like overkill to me), but if anyone has personal experience with a dentist who's well-versed in saving aging teeth rather than making sure everyone has those white-blue choppers, and is not averse to using gas for anxiety, I'd love to have a testimonial from a Real Patient.