Really stupid root canal question?

Here's the backstory: Woke up one morning to find that what had previously been a tiny cavity (was going to get it filled in Feb), had chipped off and now there was a gigantic hole in the tooth. Made an appointment with my dentist today. She kept scraping at the tooth, finding more and more soft parts, and kept asking me, "Are you SURE this tooth hasn't given you any problems?" I said no, it hadn't hurt at all. And then she said that the nerve was exposed and that she was going to have to give me a temporary filling. She actually SHOWED me the nerve that she removed. So, I went to pay for the procedure and schedule my appointment for the root canal, when the receptionist said that the worst of it was over. I thought that was odd, so she said that the first part of the root canal was always the toughest, and the second appointment would be easier. I thought that removing the nerve %26amp; the temporary filling was just to hold me UNTIL the root canal. Anyone have any opinions about this?

Really stupid root canal question?
Yes, you're in the middle of a root canal at the minute! The first stage of a root canal is removing the nerve and placing a temporary filling to allow the tooth to "settle down" and any inflammation etc to die down. Then at a later date, when they're sure any inflammation in the tooth has settled down, they'll remove the temporary filling and replace it with a permanent one. And yes, the receptionist was right - the worst part IS over!!!
Reply:I just had a root canal. It was a 3-appointment process. The nerve was removed, then the temporary put in (there are technical names for all this) and then the crown was placed over it. The worst part was the first part. The second part was not nearly as bad. The last part was nothing.





My root canal was $1200, luckily insurance covered all but $400.