I ♥ my dentist

I have more fillings than I could ever count. I've even had 4 or 5 at one time and that went on for months. I was going to the dentist every 3 months at one time in my life. I have two crowns and three root-canals too. How does that work exactly? Well I have a filling IN a crown, which took another root canal. Fun huh? This sounds like I don't take care of my teeth right... wrong. In fact, people who don't floss, brush their teeth only when reminded, eat anything they want, and visit the dentist every 5 years with ZERO cavities....ZERO plaque... ZERO anything.... kill me!

I probably didn't take care of them exactly how I should have as a kid, but I did brush a lot and flossed often. I used fluoride rinse and fluoride paste and got sealant put on my teeth probably once a year. But I do have a family history of horrible teeth and I never ate meat. Well the lack of meat may not have as much to do with it as what I did eat instead. No meat meant more carbs and I later learned that carbs are worse for your teeth than chocolate! B/c they are so sticky.... so all those bagels I ate as a teenager... yep... I'm paying for it now... literally.

So I love my dentist. Really I do. Mostly because the first time he told me I had to have a root canal I went into straight hyperventilating hysteria and he handled it pretty well. He walked me next door to the endontist (that is awfully convenient isn't it?) and didn't run away like most men do at the sight of a blubbering girl. He is just the nicest man.

I even told him one time that the real reason I didn't take care of my teeth was so I could keep coming back and seeing him. Seriously, I thought this was going to come out hysterically funny.... but his face turned red and I think I became his favorite patient (It's either that or b/c my parents and I have paid for both his kids to go to college).

Well, I've had two 6-month checkups cavity free! Woo! Until last week.... Apparently one of my previous fillings fractured.... and I didn't know it, so... not my fault! He scheduled me for a filling. 7am, today. I show up, a veteran of dental work, without lipstick on (it doesn't usually look very pretty when they get done) and ready to go.

As he is drilling on my tooth I see him get a puzzled look on his face. He tells me to turn my head towards him and gets another tool that looks pretty painful... and keeps on working. He pauses for just half a second every once in awhile and I'm thinking to myself, "Oh... crap.... please don't send me next door, please don't send me next door." He continues on, gets out the little white filling stuff, then the hair dryer tool and I'm relieved, but still looking at his face (that is all of 1-foot from mine) not convinced.

So he finishes up and says, "Let's talk about this tooth.... (This is his way of eeeasing me into it and his hopes to avoid the hysterical mess I turned into last time)...." I said, "I knew that was coming.... I saw it on your face." He is a little taken aback and tells me, "Hmm.... I think that means you come here too often if you can read my facial expressions.... I don't have any other patients that know what I am thinking....but back to this tooth..... remember it was broken.... and it got waaaayyy down to the nerve (feel free to cringe).... so if it still hurts...." Me: "...I need a root canal." He paused to see what was going to happen which made me laugh and he sighed relief. I told him I was expecting it after his hesitation and that I'd call him....

Well.... my novocain has worn off and guess what..... my tooth hurts.