That dentist would have been on the floor! I've had 3 root canals and have had my wisdom teeth pulled without being under and none of them hurt during or after the dentist visit. You should have been put on an antibiotic before the root canal. I've had to do that twice because they were infected. I've had good and bad dentists (a bad dentist was the reason I needed my first root canal at the age of 15). I hate to hear that people fear the dentist. I feel they do more harm than good sometimes but I have a friend so afraid that she will not get regular exams. When her teeth hurt too bad she gets them pulled. She's 26a yrs old! So sad.