Will the dentist tell my parents?

I know about all the awful things bulimia can do to a person's teeth. I've been at it for two years, with some extended "off" periods, and just looking in the mirror I can see that the enamel of my teeth is thin and that I probably have some cavities (I've never had any before).

I might be able to play it off in the dentists' office, especially since I've always had thin enamel anyway, but I don't know if I want to. He'll be able to do more for my teeth if he knows, right? I'm getting pretty freaked out about them. Permanent damage like that is scary, and I want to cut my losses.

So my question is, will the dentist tell my parents? I'm 20 years old and on my parents' insurance and all that, so I'm wondering if he'll feel obligated. I could just tell him about the bulimia-- I can pitch it pretty well and tell him I quit a couple of months ago, or that I'm in counseling, or something like that. (Just for the record, I really HAVE been making big efforts to stop lately.) But telling would be a big gamble.

The point is that my parents can't find out. I'll discuss it with my friends or even strangers, but I just can't tell my family. It will hurt them, and I love them too much. They can't know.

Do you think I can trust my dentist?

I can't say for SURE, but assuming he knows you're 20 years old, he's gong to highly reccomend that YOU tell your rents. Because, if you do tell him you've HAD Bulimia and you're getting better, he might think that they already know, but if you tell him you HAVE Bulimia but you''re going/getting treatment, he's going to ask you if your parents know. I think he might tell them if he decides that your teeth are in definite need of having work done and he needs your rents to approve of the cost and whatever he has to do to fix them. Then, they'll definitly find out because he's going to have to tell them why/how he's going to fix them for you.

Hope I didn't confuse you.

Hey,

If you are 20 then he cannot legally tell them without your permission. Also, you do'nt have to tell him anything either. His sole job is to repair your teeth, irrespective of how they became damaged.


Kevster