The Morning (it's gross)
Yesterday, I went to the dentist.I've been pretty lucky with my teeth. They're durable. I haven't had any accidents. I think I've had one cavity in the last decade (or two decades).
A few weeks ago, I felt a jagged edge on one of my upper molars. I thought I just chipped it or something--no big deal. And since I had a cleaning appointment coming up, I figured I'd ask about it then.
My dentist is organized. Super organized. Anal retentive organized.
I know, it's not from a label maker, but trust me, she's Conan the Organizer.
So I asked about the chip, and she took a look and said, "That's not a chip. That tooth cracked and you lost quite a chunk."
I'm sure that's not great at all.
That tooth already had a filling, from years and years ago. Instead of a crown, though, which basically replaces almost all of the tooth, she said we could do something else. I forgot the name, but they save more of the tooth this way.
Okay, fine.
She also said that instead of having to wait for an appointment, they actually had one opening at 9 a.m. on Wednesday (today).
Whatever.
I don't like the dentist. Not her, specifically--she's great--but just the whole practice of dentistry in general. I'm glad it exists, and I go faithfully for my cleanings, but I really, really don't like the process.
Still, though, getting this taken care of quickly sounded like a great deal.
So I was back this morning at 9:30. She said it would take ninety minutes, and I assumed she would take off that little sharp edge off my tooth.
Um, not exactly.
Instead, she basically used a circular bone saw (DISCLAIMER: I know teeth are not considered bones. But teeth are even harder.) for ten minutes to take all of the tooth except the front.
I was not expecting this.
I'm sensitive to noise, and smell, so having that whirring drill in my mouth, and the delightful smell of decay (because when a tooth cracks, bacteria gets inside and gets all nasty), was harsh. Damned harsh. Plus my mouth got stretched in about fifty different, highly uncomfortable, ways.
Here's what it looks like without the "imitation rest of the tooth" cemented in place (hell, yes, I got a picture):
What's left of it is a nice white tooth.
What, you were trying to eat lunch? Have you learned nothing in the last ten years?
So I have a temporary imitation tooth cemented in place until the mold gets duplicated into the real imitation tooth.
I feel pretty crappy, really, but after I came home, I read up on crowns and root canals, and it sounds like I was pretty lucky. I didn't have any pain after the tooth cracked, and nothing at the root was fouled up.
I thought I was in the ending of Brazil for a few minutes, though.
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