Aspen Dental

I would love to be involved in this lawsuit if it's still possible or any future lawsuits as I'm positive there will be more. I've never had such a terrible experience at any dentist in my life. I'm only 35 and experienced a several year long depression, during which I did not take proper care of my teeth. I also did not have dental insurance until 2022 so I couldn't afford to pay out of pocket for any needed work. I had been experiencing pain in my gums and decided to finally get some help for it. I made an appointment for June 22nd 2023 with Aspen Dental because I had read and seen advertisements stating they were a judgement free zone. I went in knowing I'd have severe gum disease and would most likely need to have some teeth pulled. My fears were confirmed by the dentist when he stated I would at the very least need my top 4 front teeth and my bottom 4 front teeth pulled. This was devastating to hear but not surprising. I sat down with their finance person afterwards to discuss future steps and the costs etc etc. I was told I would receive my temporary partial dentures at my appointment after my teeth were extracted. Then I was told I'd need to come back for 2 "hygiene" appointments, after the second of those I was told I would receive my permanent partial dentures. My appointment for the extractions was scheduled for July 5 2023 and my 2 hygiene appointments were scheduled for July 12th and July 17th 2023. I work in child care and it is very difficult to take time off, not to mention it's hard financially for me to take time off but I was able to secure those days off at the extreme reluctance of my employer. When I arrived on the 5th of July for my first appointment, I was met with confusion and asked if I was a first time patient because I wasn't in their system. I was brought back and told that there had been a "glitch" in their system and my appointment(s) had been erased. They told me there was no way they could fit me in that day, but they could fit me in the next day July 6th 2023 at 7am. I forgot to mention that due to unavailability at my local Aspen Dental, I had to travel an hour away to another office. I reluctantly agreed to come back the next morning for my extractions. I also asked them at this appointment would I be able to get a prescription for anti anxiety meds as I know they don't provide any gas, only local anesthesia. They were unable to give me a prescription because my doctor was on vacation. When I arrived the following morning I was understandably petrified. I was about to have 8 teeth pulled and I knew I would be totally aware but I was hoping that the novocaine would do it's trick and I would be fine. This turned out to be so wrong. The only thing they numbed were my lips, my gums were untouched by the novocaine so when she started to "loosen" my teeth, I screamed in pain. I could feel everything. I was given another shot of anesthesia and told that I should be fine and it would only be pressure that I felt. At this point I was almost having a full on panic attack. When she started to pull again, I could still feel everything. I know the difference between pressure and pain, and it was pain that I felt. The doctor rolled her eyes at me and said that it's only pressure that I'm feeling and proceeded to rip my teeth out of my gums. When she was finally done I felt as though I had just been through actual torture. I was shaking violently, sobbing and vomiting. I was told I would be given a prescription for pain relievers, but was only given a prescription for ibuprofen 600. When I asked them to send it in immediately due to my severe pain, they scoffed and suggested I should stil be numb and wouldn't need it for a while. After this I was informed that because of the "glitch" in their system, my temporary dentures that were supposed to be ready, had never been made. They told me I would have to come back the following day, for the THIRD time, in order to pick those teeth up. When I finally got back to my town that day I headed to my local pharmacy only to find out they didn't have any prescription for me on file. I had to wait another hour, in agony, for these meds after calling Aspen and asking them yet again to send in the prescription. I go the next day for the third time to pick up my teeth and they are terrible. They are bulky, Ill-fitting, and disproportionate to my other teeth. I tell myself it's ok because I'll be getting my permanent dentures soon and those will surely be better. The following week I get a call from Aspen Dental saying that the machine they use for my hygiene appointment has to be serviced and they will have to reschedule my first hygiene appointment. I tell them I cannot because I've already asked off from work weeks ago and am not in the position to just change it last minute. But yet again I reluctantly agree to reschedule. When I come in for my first hygiene appointment I asked them if my permanent dentures were ready and they stared at me like I was dumb and rudely said that permanents take months and no one ever told me they would be ready at this time. I then told the dentist that I was unhappy with my temporarily and was told that the only reason I was unhappy was because I wanted them to be aesthetically pleasing and that I was upset over the situation not my dentures. I am paying thousands of dollars out of pocket for this because my insurance only covers a tiny portion. I am entitled to being happy with the final results, it was so rude and patronizing of him to think he can tell me how I feel and dismiss my feelings in that way. After this awful meeting with the dentist I'm called back for what I thought was a cleaning. The hygienist then begins to give me shots of novocaine, once again only in my lips. I was confused because I thought that was unnecessary for a cleaning. Then she pulls out a tool that I can only describe as a drill file, and begins drilling and filing my teeth. It hurt a bit but was bearable until she started hitting nerves in my teeth. The pain was like a lightning bolt through my body. I tried so hard to remain calm and not let my anxiety affect the effects of the novocaine, as I researched after my extraction and discovered that anxiety and stress can reduce the effectiveness of novocaine. By the time she was almost done I was shaking and crying just as I had during the extractions, and once again, the lady looked annoyed with me and dismissed me. I asked her If we were done and she said no I think we should talk. I tried to explain to her that I am normally a very easy going patient, I have always handled pain very well and have never had issues like this before. She replied by saying very condescendingly that no one likes mouth pain. I could not believe what she had just said so I just got up grabbed my purse and left. On my way out I informed them that I will not be returning until they have my permanent dentures ready, and I will never be returning once I have them. As soon as I left the office and got in my vehicle I had the first panic attack ive ever had in my life. This should not jave ever happened. After my terrible experience with my extractions I realized that I was genuinely traumatized. Then after the teeth drilling and filing I found myself traumatized yet again, both times I was in a state of shock for atleast 12 hours. To sum all this up my biggest issues are, they were so inconsistent and did not explain to me what they were doing, I had to make several extra trips back and forth due to their own mistakes, they were so unapologetic about their mistakes as well, there was no bedside manner, I felt so much judgment and worst of all, I was completely traumatized in the process. The sheer negligence and just complete apathy they showed me is despicable and unacceptable. I really hope that at the very least they will be penalized for their complete lack of care for their "patients."I will never be a patient of theirs ever again and I will tell everyone I know to spare themselves the hell and trauma I had to go through.