A Tooth Story

I finally managed to enter the dental clinic. Years and years of dental phobia had to be put aside as my tooth was killing me. Normally, I would rather accompany the Death than face a Dentist. The anxiety and fear of sitting in the Dental chair should be worse than sitting on the Electric chair. On an electric chair, I know the outcome.

On Thursday, I managed to visit the dental clinic. No surprises here. I had nurtured a bad tooth for a long time. Tooth number 19 (I had no clue that teeth had numbers) was long gone and it meant that the ultimate procedure of “Root Canal” had to be performed.

“A root canal is a treatment used to repair and save a tooth that is badly decayed or becomes infected. During a root canal procedure, the nerve and pulp are removed and the inside of the tooth is cleaned and sealed. Without treatment, the tissue surrounding the tooth will become infected and abscesses may form.”

– WebMD

My appointment was for Friday at 9 a.m. Against all odds, I managed to get up early that morning, take a shower, pray to the Almighty, dress up and walk out. The weather was as haunting as it could be; foggy with visibility less than 10 feet, low light and sweet silence. I couldn’t get scarier. It was a perfect setting to where I was heading. I was the first appointment of the morning. I sat in the waiting area looking through the misty glass at the parking lot where I could barely manage to see my car. The light from cars on the street dispersed in the fog and I could see the faint yellow candle like flicker each time a car passed by. The eerie silence in the clinic was broken by the radio that played Christmas carols in a low volume. This all made my heart pound harder and faster and I literally jumped off my sit when the attendant called my name.

The assistant calmed me and explained the procedure that I was to undergo today. All I could hear was words like drill, fill, remove, cavity, etc. I am much more scared of these words than words like taxes, interest, bankruptcy, recession, depression. Anyways, after I was scared to death, she placed a happy gas mask on my face. I think this is necessary to get the patient out of the trauma. I guess the gas worked as I was feeling slight numbness and was almost knocked out.

For the next 2 hours, the doctor and the assistant were boring hole in my teeth, digging up stuff, hammering, chiseling and polishing up things in my mouth. I have done most of this on an cast iron block in my smithy classroom during my engineering days. I had no clue all this can be performed on a tooth as well. If you are wondering about me, I was under anesthesia and had least/ no pain at all. The doctor asked questions and I was left speechless as I couldn’t speak even with my mouth open. I was in my own happy land as the artists were working on my tooth. Finally, the doctor was satisfied with the procedure and I was get go. Of course, I had to come back in less than a month for the crown.

I couldn’t feel anything on the left side of my mouth and I knew I was speaking like Marlon Brando from the movie “Godfather”. I had no control over that side as I rinsed my mouth and washed my face. I took my belongings and walked out of the clinic after 3 hours of a surgery. My mouth was still numb and was slightly high as a result of the happy gas.   For the last 2 days, I am having soft food and liquids as a precautionary measure. Nothing is hurting but I can feel something different in my mouth. The dentist did a great job as I have no pain. With the happy gas, anesthesia and pain killers, I shouldn’t complain. It should be a lot better than old times.

It makes me wonder whether I have overcome the fear of dentists. I don’t know. My next appointment is on Jan 6th and till then I will have time to think.