If you like going to the dentist, please just know I’m judging you. Yes, I do understand it’s a necessity (especially after the candy consumption from Halloween last week), but that doesn’t mean I want to go. To be honest, I’d rather go through midterms week five times over before going to the dentist. Hear me out though, I have my reasons.
I think the level of hatred people have for the dentist is based off of the amount of work you’ve had to get done on your teeth. If you just go in for normal cleanings, get handed a new toothbrush and sent on your way, I’m willing to bet the only thing you hate about the dentist is the slap on the wrist you get for not flossing well enough. Oh how I wish it was that simple for me.
I was born with an unfortunate set of teeth as well as an overbite that demolished any chance of getting a halfway decent picture of my profile. I had to get braces in elementary school, Mara braces in middle school and in high school, I found out that I still had two baby teeth. Yes, you read that right. No, my adult teeth that were supposed to push them out just never happened to exist. Yes, I will have to get implants to replace them one day.
Besides my unfortunate luck with my teeth, I also happen to have unfortunate luck with dentists. My orthodontist I went to for my braces was an extremely unforgiving, bitter old woman who always seemed to be in a rush. There was specifically one incident when she chipped a boy’s tooth when taking his braces off. Because she was always in such a rush, she constantly cut my gums and had no remorse for my cries of protest. She even applied the Mara braces without telling my mom and I what she was planning on doing.
My normal dentist, who is thankfully in less of a rush than my orthodontist was, is nice and all, but he’s a talker. What I mean is that he’s the guy that will make conversation with you as your mouth is forcefully pried open with some contraption. I’m sorry sir, but I don’t think I can really manage anything but a grunt to your question that was definitely calling for more than a yes or no answer. Please just do your job and get me out of this chair as fast as possible. This is not a social call.
I guess what I’m trying to say is my hatred of the dentist stems from a wide variety of issues I’ve had to deal with over the years. No one likes to be poked with needles, have their saliva vacuumed out of their mouth or hear that terrifying drill coming at you like something from a horror movie.
The waiting room with the outdated magazines, the creepy tooth posters and the overall feel of a dentist office is just not something I wish to experience too often. The dentist office is just not my cup of tea. Then again, is it really anybody’s?
