Dentist

[elionwyr]

I finally got up the nerve to go to a dentist.

It's been maybe 9 years..I honestly can't recall. It was before I lost my job at IMS; I thought I had a cavity, but it ended up being an earache.

The problem, obviously, is that I don't really know what a cavity feels like. I've had one bad one, in a wisdom tooth, that I suspect would have been a root canal had they not just pulled the tooth. Other than that? I've had some small cavities worked on, but nothing major. And I'm lucky in that my dentist in Philly decided to not use metal fillings because I'd never had any up to that point. (I was in my 30s.)

But I've had discomfort on the right side of my mouth, and felt like a tooth had actually moved. I've been terrified to find out what was going on, and especially terrified that I'd get bad news about my gums, which have always been not so good. My teeth? Apparently made of steel. My gums? Not so great. I blame Florida.

And I'm self conscious about my teeth. One is chipped because of an ill placed slap by my stepmother. (Which is weird..a slap with a ring broke my tooth, but getting smacked in the mouth with a crank on a truck last autumn did nothing..) I've an overbite because the people that raised me didn't think braces were necessary. (Obviously, I disagree.) I should really have cosmetic work done to my teeth, to get past my issues with them.

But first steps first..I had to go to the dentist. I went largely because Bones has been encouraging me to go for over a year. My terror wasn't making much sense to him. It wasn't logical, and I wasn't telling him how friggin' scares I was that I might have Something Bad going on with a molar or two.

So I went, and I asked them to treat me like a 12 year old. The hygienist indulged me. :) She praised my x-ray; she coddled me through my cleaning (which was terrifying..24 hours later, I still feel like someone is scraping metal against my teeth); she gave me cotton to bite on so I'd stop jumping and referred to it as my 'blankie'; and gave me a spiffy sticker before I left.

She also wasn't going to push me to get all my teeth cleaned, but I was determined. (Ow..)

And..no cavities. NONE. We're assuming my pain was sinus related. (Yay?) I had her double check, and I asked the dentist to check both the X-ray and to take a look. Nada.

Made of steel, I swear..

Still. After quite a battery of exams and tests over the past five months, I'm pretty danged healthy! Yay!

Posted via LiveJournal app for iPhone.

Comments

[oneagain.livejournal.com]

<3

[harkalark.livejournal.com]

I went through something similar a few years back, having not been to a dentist for about ten years. (My father was a dentist. And he died. So there's that.) The only thing that made me go was that the plaque on my bottom front teeth built up and calcified so much that I couldn't distinguish it from my actual teeth, and then a piece of it broke off, and I was terrified that my teeth were going to fall out. Turns out all I really needed was a deep cleaning.

So yeah, it's a nice feeling to finally get past that fear, get checked out, and find out that you're actually okay.

[elionwyr.livejournal.com]

Gah..! I admit, I'm kinda creeped out by the changes in textures in my mouth. It was described as being smooth, but all I feel are unexpected curves and ridges..

Also? *hug*

[harkalark.livejournal.com]

Yeah, and what's weird is that that's how it's supposed to feel, but when you go for so long and all that crap builds up, you get used to that instead.

*hug back*