I've had two; one for an infected root and another to fix the massive fuckup where my dentist drilled way too far and hit the nerve. Personally I feel that they were lifesavers,but I definitely understand why others would feel different
I grievously wounded a finger in the wood shop and needed a bunch of stitches. My nerves were 'unusual' there -- super preemie kid too? I remember a fraction of your pain and sorry for that experience.
When I was about 8 or 9, I ran face first into a dumpster and chipped my two front teeth. I had to have a couple of root canals as a result. One of them developed an abscess 5 years later and caused my face to swell up like a balloon. I was hospitalized for a week and had to have two surgeries to fix it.
If you think you may have an abscess you should definitely get that checked out. sometimes they'll clear up on their own, but other times they go bad and can have complications. I was told when I had mine that it could have killed me, but mine was not minor, it was quite bad.
i dropped a drill on my toe, fell bit side down. punctured and broke it at the same time. dont know if this helps or hurts you root canal - best wishes for a speedy recovery ❤️