The impulse to start blathering finally broke through when I was coming back from the first visit to my new dentist, who had looked into my mouth with a mixture of motherly concern and the complacency that comes with knowing that one's financial future has just been assured yet again.
"Some more caps, inlays, onlays..." For the teeth that probably won't last too long anyway, metal fillings, ceramic for the ones that might stay. She dictated the initial survey results to an assistant as she first poked and scraped my teeth and then jabbed a tiny plastic spike into my gums (six times for each tooth) to check for periodontal disease. It became clear to me that here was a narrative thread that could last for at least a couple of years.
Apparently I'm lucky and don't have a familial predisposition for gum disease. That means the spike met fairly firm resistance within a few millimeters of each jab. But I brush too hard, and I eat the wrong things. Did I mention it's going to be a long ride?
Posted by wallich at April 7, 2003 08:38 PM