broked toof

Kids, listen here to your Aunt Jenny! Brush your teeth twice a day without fail and get use to flossing even though it’s a pain in the booty and kind of gross. Take care of your teeth. Start now. Make it a daily habit (Also, wash your face before you go to sleep, put lotion on every day, and drink lots of water. Oh and always be a good boy. Don’t ever play with guns.).

When I was a child I had these 4 teeth (the 2nd from the back on the left/right top/bottom) that got cavities. I had to get fillings. When I was 18 my dentist said that those fillings were rubbish (another lesson-ask Mommy, “Is this dentist a good dentist?”). So, I had to have the old fillings plus the new decay carved out of my head (it really felt like the dentist was trying to get to China through my mouth) and new fillings. All of this left those 4 teeth very weak. Several years ago the left bottom one cracked and I had to get a crown. For a while now I have known that the top left tooth was on its last, uh, root. It hurt. It ached. It was sensitive to heat & cold. My wonderful new dentist, Dr. Laurain, told me what I already knew...I needed a crown. Okay, so he really said that I need two crowns. Bottom right needs one, too. Well, I kept putting this off because of money. I just dealt with the off and on pain. Then in October my Aunt Trudy kinda sorta backed into my car. (no big deal...really...her 2006 Honda looked much worse than mine!) A few weeks ago I got an insurance check to pay for the repairs to my car.

On Wednesday I was eating a Spicy Chicken Sandwich from Wendy’s when my tongue met the rough edge of top left. My tooth had broken. Dr. Laurain’s voice rang out in my head, “We need to get a crown on this tooth before you need a root canal!”. Dr. Laurain’s office fit me in and I now have a temporary crown. I’m so grateful they could fit me in. They are so nice there! My friend, Michelle, from high school is a hygienist there. All those years ago when she was singing my yearbook I never thought she’d end up cleaning my teeth one day.

If you’ve read James Frey’s A Million Little Pieces you know that he had to have some major dental work done while he was in rehab and unable to have ANY kind of medication or numbing agent during 2 root canals & 4 crowns. I knew it was a bad idea to let my mind go there while Dr. Laurain was drilling away. It was an accident that I thought of it. I flinched. Doc checked to see if I was okay. I think I scared him a little. Don’t read that book if you have some impending dental work on your calendar.

I would like to think my Aunt Trudy for backing into my car so that I would have the money to pay for this dental work.

So Kids...be sure to take care of those teeth. But if you do end up needing some dental work....have your aunt back into your car.

http://www.priestlakedental.com/