The Blog of Trevor

We've had dental insurance for about 4 years now, since I got my current job. SisTrev and I have just never made the effort to establish a dentist that we can go see on a regular basis. I kept waiting to hear of good reports at a dentist or how happy someone or other I know was with their dentist. Having never heard a great recommendation, I never knew who to go with.

Finally, I broke down. The tooth I had a root canal done on ages ago has been flaring up, and I wanted to get it looked at, so that once and for all, I'll never FEEL this tooth again.

Flipping through our dental plans book, to find someone close to home, I selected a nearby dentist. I've at least HEARD of this dentist, and some people I know work there. (which could make it weird - someone you know sucking water out of your mouth) So, I set up an appointment.

Let's take a historical journey right here. I have never had dental insurance up to this point. So I don't frequent dentists. They are quite expensive, and I've tried to take good care of my teeth. My limited exposure to dentists has been thus:

1) I've had my teeth bleached. Insurance doesn't cover this anyhow, and I had these NASTY stains on my front teeth. So I had that done.

2) I've had a root canal, and associated work (crown and such) done on said tooth.

So, taking that history into account, we can envision the normal dental visit for me. I go in, I sit in the chair, they take an x-ray if the NEED to, and the dentist looks at my teeth and tells me what I NEED. Never have I had something done to my teeth that I didn't need. The only time I've been to a dentist is when there was something SPECIFIC to do.

Ok, back to present day now. So I make an appointment at the dentist, telling them I want this tooth looked at. I show up for my appointment, fill out the associated paper work, and someone who bills herself as a "hygenist" takes me back. She proceeds to stick these plastic things in my mouth and take about 20 x-rays. It's ok, I'm used to x-rays. I figure they need to establish a footprint, (or is that toothprint?) of my teeth so they can track my progress or whatever.

After the x-rays, I'm fully expecting to see the dentist...have her look at my tooth, and tell me what things I should think about doing to take care of the problem, and I fully expected to be told to floss more, etc.

Instead, this hygenist pushes me back in the chair, and proceeds to grab her little tools.

"it's ok," I think to myself. "she's probably just taking a look to give the dentist a preliminary report.

She then began to get real physical with my teeth. She has this pointy scraper thing that she proceeded to scrape my teeth with. It felt like I wouldn't have much left of my teeth when she got done.

"What is going ON??" I'm think to myself..."maybe she's cleaning my teeth?"

"Can I ask a qesshon?" I ask to the hygenist.
"Sure"
"hut ar oo ooing?"
"I'm cleaning your teeth. Hasn't anyone scraped your teeth before?"
"Ot wiff one o ose"
"Have you ever had your teeth cleaned before?"



"I see."
"Uh silence is eafening? I've ad em eached efore"
"They should have cleaned them with a scraper."
"Ust me, if ey ould ave one his...I ould ave ee-em-ered"

She continues then to scrape my teeth with various tools. Then she begins to polish them with the swirly pink thing. She tells me I have great teeth really, that they're a shade whiter now, how happy I'm going to be with them, and how impressive my teeth were for never having been cleaned really. Obviously, I've been doing something right for the most part.

Finally, the woman gets done poking various tools in my mouth and generally prodding my teeth around, and she washes my mouth out and such.

"How do your teeth feel now?" She asks.

I can only guess that she expected a "Oh, my...they feel so clean!" response. Instead,

"Like they've been poked and prodded for a half hour!" I reply.
"Well, at least your honest! "

Then she proceeds to try to tell me she's going to teach me to floss. Nope, I can't use a flosser she says. I inform her of my arms limited motion, and that really, it's almost impossible for me to floss the right way. She ends up just flossing for me, and tells me what I have to do with those flossers, and that's it's going to be really hard to do it right. Not much I can do about that. Finally,

"Do you have any questions for me?"

At this point, I figure she's about to tell me to go home. There's this final feeling going on. I'm rather bewildered at this point. I just wanted my tooth looked at because it was hurting. Sure I expected they'd RECOMMEND I come back and have my teeth cleaned some time. I didn't think they'd throw me down and just do it.

"Do I get to see the dentist?"
"Oh, yes, she'll be here just after I finish up."
"Ok, no, I think I'm good."

Anyone know what would have been a good question at that point? I had no idea. Still can't think of any.

So the dentist walks in.

"Hi, I'm dentist so and so"
"Hi, I'm Trevor, nice to meet you"



She then proceeds to look at my teeth and talk to the hygenist

"D.O. 15 MOD 12...." and it continued like that for a minute or two.
"He's not attached to those, btw" (She meant my wisdom teeth)
"Well, if that one bothers him, we'll have it taken out. Wow, He has GREAT teeth"
"Doesn't he tho, and he's never had braces!"

At this point I'm thinking..."Hello!! I'm right here!! Please quit talking ABOUT me and talk TO me"

"Ok, Trevor, you're all set. You'll have to come in and get those filled."
"Get WHAT filled?"
"You have 6 cavities. We can do it all in one day if you like, but I don't like to do the bottom teeth on both sides, makes it real uncomfortable. Thankfully, you only have cavities on the bottom on one side."
"Oh, ok, so you're going to drill off parts of my teeth and fill them? Will it be the whole tooth or what?"
"No no, we just take out the decayed part, and fill it, but don't worry we use tooth colored filling here."



Finally... "Well, any questions for me Trevor?"

"YES, what about this tooth back here that hurts??"
"Oh, who did the root canal for you?"
"Dr. Schuler, the endontist down the street."
"Oh, well, you'll have to go over there and have him look at it."

Me in my mind: "AAAARRRRRGGGHHHH!!!!! That's the only reason I CAME here."

So, I run over there with my x-ray of that tooth they gave me. Two people over there know my name, but it takes me a minute or so to recognize them. This totally added to my bewilderment, because I'm like "did they call ahead or something from the other place?" Then I was so confused I didn't know who knew me, and who didn't. It felt like they all knew what was up, and were in on a little joke. All the dentists were callaborating to get me confused, and to send me here, there, and everywhere to get my tooth fixed."

Of course, the nurse/whateveryoucallem at the Endontist's office took the x-ray back, and comes back with a grim expression.

"It's going to have to be extracted. But we don't do that here, we have to refer you to Dr. Cook, the oral surgeon."

"ARRRRRRRRRRGHHHHHH"

So the game continues. I haven't gone to Dr. Cook yet. I bet he'll tell me I need to go somewhere else tho.


Join us next time for:

The Dental Visit

or

Let's send this guy to other dentists for non-existent procedures!