<s>[INST] I ve had this fairly large hole in the back side of one of my back teeth for over a year. It s gotten a little bigger over time and used to get sore once in a while, but I almost never feel any pain from it unless something gets deep inside it. It s large enough that some of my gums below the tooth are exposed. I only chew on my right side because sometimes food gets caught in the hole and I get it out asap. It only seems to bleed if it gets poked, and it s not a lot. It s really annoying and honestly very embarrasing, but I ve had some horrifying experiences at the dentist and I m so afraid to go. I know it is something that I need to do and will be a huge relief but I m not sure what to expect ,..is the operation gonna hurt much ??!! T_T [/INST] hello, the condition you had described seems to be deep proximal caries in your tooth with gingival polyp in the cavitated region..  its good that you are cleaning your infected tooth properly but you need to consult a dentist soon... as your chewing on one side will harm your jaw joints.. your past experiences might be bad but now a days with lots of advancement in technology the dental treatment has become very comfortable too.. the treatment options for your tooth involves- removal of carious lesion , gingival polyp and root canal treatment of the involved tooth .. you can take anti-anxiety medicines prior to dental appointment or can also opt for conscious sedation.. dont worry about pain.. your problem will stop as soon as your tooth gets treated.. IOPA radiograph is needed to check for any periapical pathology that requires special treatment like surgery.. Root canal treatment is simple procedure where infected pulp within canals is removed, tooth is cleaned from canals and is refilled till the tip of the root apex.. dont worry.. meanwhile use antiseptic mouthwashes and brush twice daily.. take care.. </s>