"My Kingdom for Perfect Teeth"

Yesterday afternoon I had a dentist appointment. Now, we all know how much I loathe going to the dentist. I'd rather go to the gynecologist. Yes, it's that bad.

But, I really like my dentist. I had to switch dentists this year and my mother recommended this one to me. She did a great job because he's very kind, makes you laugh, and is very laid-back. In fact, his entire office is that way. While I was sitting with my mouth stretched open, the dental assistant and the dentist and I were all laughing. That's a good thing.

And really, the only bad part about the whole ordeal was the numbing process. For some reason, I need more than one shot of novacaine.

The first time the dentist put the drill to my tooth (I was in for a crown prep), I said, "Whoa! Not numb yet!"

He said, "Serious?"

"Oh yes. I'm very serious," I replied.

So he gave me another shot, which didn't hurt because the site was already numb. Then he commenced to drilling and I didn't feel a thing.

I walked out of the dentist office feeling pretty darn good about myself. I'd survived quite nicely, thank you very much. I could do this again, no problem. (Note to self: wait until novacaine wears off before making such outlandish claims!)

Since I'd taken the afternoon off and had an hour or so before I had to go pick up my daughter from school, I went shopping. I was still numb, so I didn't feel anything. But soon after I picked up my daughter, that's when things started to go downhill.

I tried to drink my beverage and could feel it dribbling down my chin because I couldn't open my mouth wide enough to get my lips over the top of the bottle. Not a good sign. The numbness started to wear off and my cheek, jaw, and yes, tooth, began to ache. Suddenly, all I wanted to do was crawl under a blanket and take a blessed nap. So when I got home, that's exactly what I did.

I slept more than two hours and when I woke up, I was starving. Out came the tomato soup and crackers since anything more solid than that wasn't going to work.

The sad part about this? I have to go back in two weeks and get more work done - specifically, I have to get the new crown put on my tooth. But I also have to get two cavities filled, so more novacaine and more drilling will commence.

I am so not looking forward to this.

I don't remember the dentist affecting me this bad when I was younger. I could go to the dentist and then go back to work no problem. But the last few times I've been in, I just can't handle it. Maybe I'm just getting old. *grin*