My teeth hurt just listening to this.
I actually had the same thoughts about visiting the dentist after years of not going, mainly because of a lack of insurance. Same outcome too. Only a handful of cavities and some plaque build up after over a decade of not visiting a dentist. Don't do it tho...not everyone is so lucky and there's no reason to chance your teeth health.
i went a decade without seeing a dentist and when i finally got my shit together and went back i needed 3 root canals, 12 cavity fillings, and learned for the first time in my life that i was born with 6 wisdom teeth and all of them would need to be removed.
still waiting on the wisdom teeth but i got all the other shit done, and out-of-pocket at that (didn't get dental insurance at my old job, but also didn't have many financial obligations at the time, so it worked out). i actually got one of the wisdom teeth out when it finally emerged from the gums (having engaged in an epic, years-long struggle with the additional wisdom tooth occupying that corner of my mouth). it'd spent so long just barely poking out of the gums that the gums served as a sort of blanket for bacteria and plaque to hide under, and when it finally came out, it was so severely decayed that the tooth had exposed nerve endings that i could touch with my tongue.
here's my hot take on exposed nerve endings: don't
just don't
you have no fucking idea