Like a good little girl I headed off to the dentist this morning and was poked and prodded with shiny implements. Thanks to a sadistic dentist I had as a child I’m not the biggest fan of the field of dentistry. For years I was the adult blubbering like a child in the patient chair whenever I had to visit a dentist. I only went if something had gone horribly wrong and I had to go. Like when I broke a tooth eating a piece of pizza. Being a genetic freak with no adult teeth – baby teeth are not designed to last into your thirties – I need to visit the dentist frequently for preventative maintenance and other fun treatments.

Thanks to a recommendation from Nana when I was living in Winnipeg I lucked upon an excellent dentist. He was patient and careful. Often his attentions were almost painless. I think he’s the reason I don’t turn into a bundle of jelly when ever I have to visit a dentist now. I can honestly say I was sad to loose him as a dentist when we moved from the ‘Peg to Club Ed.

After breaking another tooth at work shortly after I landed in Edmonton I asked my friends and co-workers for a recommendation. They all spoke highly of a dentist that shared office space with the company I was working for. Everyone said he was wonderful and most brought their entire families to him for appointments. When I called he was booked solid and instead recommended a young dentist who was also located in the building. No one I worked with had ever heard of him.

Desperate, I called the young dentist and set an appointment for a few minutes later. I toddled down the hallway and landed in his chair. He was smart enough to pick up on both the severe pain and the fear. So he sat down beside me and explained everything he needed to do, what I could expect, and loaded me up with enough freezing medication to ensure I was feeling no pain when the drill started. Needless to say he did a great job. I’ve been returning to his offices multiple times a year. We’ve been through cleanings, reconstructions, and crowns together. In a few weeks, we’ll start the fun of crowning 2 new teeth (our insurance will only cover the cost of 2 a year).

I’m such a glutton for punishment that I scheduled the first appointment 1.5 hours after I finish my exams.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.