Dentist
Today I went to the dentist. Seems when I had my cleaning a month ago, they found that not only did I have a cracked filling that would have to be replaced with a crown, but I had broken off a corner of the last molar on the upper right and had to have that filling replaced. Yippee.
So this morning I duly presented myself at the dentist for the work. $1100 worth of work. Since it's a back molar that is getting the crown, I opted for the ever-fashionable white gold instead of the more pricey ceramic over noble metal -- it's about $100 cheaper that way (go figure). This dentist is very good at giving shots, didn't really feel them much (and he doesn't do topical anesthetic before needling you). I think I had a little bit of a side effect (he gave me three shots) -- I felt really shaky for a few minutes, but it went away. Looking at lidocaine side effects, I don't see anything that precisely addresses this. It was almost like I had low blood sugar, which wasn't likely since I'd eaten about an hour previous.
Anyway, first they carved my poor tooth down to a peg (after taking x-rays and impressions so the crown could be made), then moved on to the filling. They had to drill out all the old filling, then drill out the decay, and then fill it. Probably the last time it can be filled too, the dentist said there's not a lot of tooth left.
And of course, just to be difficult, my last molars are tilted out towards my cheeks. This makes it almost impossible to get a toothbrush in there to get them cleaned good, because the joint of the jaw gets in the way. I asked the dentist what next, another crown? He said no, he could certainly put one back there, but because of the way my tooth is oriented, I'd get decay under the crown sooner or later. So when this filling fails, that tooth will be pulled.
Happy happy joy joy.
Actually, this dentist is really good, didn't have any referred pain and he is quick and detailed in what he does. I get my lovely crown July 2nd; til then I have a plastic temporary. Now my jaw is sore from being held open for 2 hours and being poked and prodded around. I'm going to take a hydrocodone and go to bed.
So remember kiddies, sometimes it doesn't matter a rat's big ass whether you brush and floss, if your teeth sit in your jaw stupidly then you'll probably get rot in them anyway.
So this morning I duly presented myself at the dentist for the work. $1100 worth of work. Since it's a back molar that is getting the crown, I opted for the ever-fashionable white gold instead of the more pricey ceramic over noble metal -- it's about $100 cheaper that way (go figure). This dentist is very good at giving shots, didn't really feel them much (and he doesn't do topical anesthetic before needling you). I think I had a little bit of a side effect (he gave me three shots) -- I felt really shaky for a few minutes, but it went away. Looking at lidocaine side effects, I don't see anything that precisely addresses this. It was almost like I had low blood sugar, which wasn't likely since I'd eaten about an hour previous.
Anyway, first they carved my poor tooth down to a peg (after taking x-rays and impressions so the crown could be made), then moved on to the filling. They had to drill out all the old filling, then drill out the decay, and then fill it. Probably the last time it can be filled too, the dentist said there's not a lot of tooth left.
And of course, just to be difficult, my last molars are tilted out towards my cheeks. This makes it almost impossible to get a toothbrush in there to get them cleaned good, because the joint of the jaw gets in the way. I asked the dentist what next, another crown? He said no, he could certainly put one back there, but because of the way my tooth is oriented, I'd get decay under the crown sooner or later. So when this filling fails, that tooth will be pulled.
Happy happy joy joy.
Actually, this dentist is really good, didn't have any referred pain and he is quick and detailed in what he does. I get my lovely crown July 2nd; til then I have a plastic temporary. Now my jaw is sore from being held open for 2 hours and being poked and prodded around. I'm going to take a hydrocodone and go to bed.
So remember kiddies, sometimes it doesn't matter a rat's big ass whether you brush and floss, if your teeth sit in your jaw stupidly then you'll probably get rot in them anyway.