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Dentistry for the faint-hearted
I have receding gums and my teeth are somewhat exposed toward the root. It is with considerable trepidation that I face cleanings from a dental hygienist. One cleaning I had back in Dundee had my teeth still aching for a couple of days afterward.
My present dentist is quite excellent. It was only through unusual luck that I was able to land them as an NHS rather than a private patient. Given my past experiences, what we do is: when a cleaning is due, they do half my mouth in a session: four injections to numb one side, then the cleaning is under local anæsthetic and, so far, after the anæsthetic wears off a few hours later, I remain pain- and ache-free. That, I could get used to.
I wish that I had been born a little later when we could just adjust our bodies to keep on producing teeth, or at least when we could grow clones of our teeth that can be popped in when the current are in poor shape. I remain impressed that our cells organize themselves into the structures of our various teeth.
My present dentist is quite excellent. It was only through unusual luck that I was able to land them as an NHS rather than a private patient. Given my past experiences, what we do is: when a cleaning is due, they do half my mouth in a session: four injections to numb one side, then the cleaning is under local anæsthetic and, so far, after the anæsthetic wears off a few hours later, I remain pain- and ache-free. That, I could get used to.
I wish that I had been born a little later when we could just adjust our bodies to keep on producing teeth, or at least when we could grow clones of our teeth that can be popped in when the current are in poor shape. I remain impressed that our cells organize themselves into the structures of our various teeth.