When I was young, believe it or not, I used to like going to the dentist. I know, that's crazy and not very childlike. Some of it, I guess, was because I never had any heavy work done, no crowns or bridges, and though I needed braces, I never got those either. I only had fillings, and as a teenager, the knocked me out to take out my wisdom teeth.
Of course, for those fillings, the needle into the nerve was always awful, and holding my mouth open was a big hassle, but nothing else was even bad. I used to look at the reflection in the doctor's glasses to watch what he was doing. The only thing I remember seeing vividly was blood. Couldn't you tell I was destined to become a horror story writer?
So, you'd expect me not to be nervous about my dental appointment today to get a filling replaced. No, oddly enough, as an adult I actually get nervous and feel none of the curiosity and adventure I did as a kid. I think about the pain and how much the needle would hurt, and I'm not interested in seeing it done, and I think of how just holding my mouth wide open going to get painful. I don't know why I changed so much.
None of my uneasiness was necessary. The worst thing about it was having to wait so long to get back there. It seems they have some better painkillers now, the shots didn't hurt very much at all, and it was short. I have almost no residual pain from it either.
I give a cheer to my doctor and to the wonders of modern medicine. In a week tops I'll be able to chew with the left side of my mouth again.
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