Being a life-long dental phobic, when told I needed a root canal, I panicked. I had always heard horror stories how they hurt really bad, wouldn't get numb, took hours and hours to complete, etc. I waited until it absolutely had to be done. My dentist scheduled me with Dr. Mickens. From the minute I walked into his office, I was put at ease. His receptionist, Beth, was wonderful and assured me I had nothing to worry about. Still....When getting my tooth x-rayed, the technician was very gentle and took her time to make sure it was done right. Still...I was still a little apprehensive... Then I met the Doctor...He shook my hand and also assured me I was in good hands - he applied a topical before the injection - I never felt a thing. The whole time he was working on my tooth, he explained what he was doing and what to expect - very compassionate doctor. What amazed me was it only took around 45 minutes - start to finish - and I had a really difficult tooth to work with. Did I mention I never felt a thing? Truly. Totally painless. I was amazed - this experience was nothing like I had been warned about. There was some pain after the numbing wore off because my tooth was infected, but I was given medication to knock the pain out. Today, the day after, I'm totally pain free, just a little sore. Dr. Mickens called me twice to check on me - that showed me that it wasn't about just doing the work and shooing you out the door - he truly cares that it's a positive experience and that he's taken care of the problem. I can't say enough good things about Dr. Mickens and his office staff. Very professional - I wouldn't hesitate to have another root canal, as long as Dr. Mickens was the one in the chair beside me. Plus he has great music on his radio... :) Thanks to all of you, I truly appreciate you!