Yesterday I fell in love with my dentist and his technician...

[WillParkinson]

A bit of background is in order:

Years ago I had my wisdom teeth removed at the only dental place our work insurance would pay for. They packed me up and sent me home. Paul put me to bed. When I woke up my face, chest, arm and pillow were covered with blood (which I did not notice till I walked out of the bedroom). Paul freaked out. He called the dentist who told him that some bleeding was normal. Paul told them it wasn't just 'some' I was BLEEDING. They had me come back in and examined the area then told Paul to take me home and they would call and let him know what needed to be done. They never called back. Shortly before they would close Paul called them and was told, 'We told you to take him to the emergency room' (which they had not done). I was taken to the emergency room where I sat for a few hours, getting up every few minutes to spit the blood that was pooling in my mouth. When I finally got in to see the emergency room doctor he was angry the dentist had not taken care of the problem he caused and called the dentist on it. I had to hold my mouth open while he jabbed me with needles in the jaw to stanch the bleeding. When I got home that night I got up to go to the bathroom and found myself trying to get up off the floor. Twice.

Since that time I have been unable to go to the dentist due to extreme anxiety. Then came the car accident. I cracked a tooth and it hurt too much for Ibuprofen to take care of so I had no choice but to go to a new dentist (not covered by insurance). Sadly they told me that my teeth were pretty bad due to problems including night grinding (apparently I did a number on them and my cheeks with my grinding).

They sent me to see Dr. Dale Newman (10950 West Forest Home Ave #201 Hales Corners, WI 53130 - [phone]). They were kind and considerate and understood my problems. For my appointment they gave me 3 Xanax tablets, 1 to take the night before the appointment and 2 for an hour before. They also gave me Nitrous Oxide based on advice from friends (and some great folks at DU).

(OK, now that we have all that out of the way it's time to find out why I fell in love with my dentist!)

While they were performing the surgery the doctor and hygienist was discussing things such as seeing Yo Yo Ma playing, etc. The one that really caught my attention was the venom they had for Scott Walker, newly elected governor for Wisconsin and how he gave away wetlands to a developer, how he killed wind farms and how he and the Republican party ought to stop sticking their noses in gay marriage. They also were upset over his decision to deny the money from the federal government to include Wisconsin in the high-speed train corridor.

Though I was extremely out of it I did give them both the thumbs up and that made them laugh.

When the time came for my post-operative information they went and got my husband so he'd be able to take part in the discussions.

All-in-all they were awesome.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

1. That Nitrous Oxide is teh AWESOME!

You might THINK they were discussing the governor, when actually they were talking about the Packers/Bears.

Breathe the gas, feel the love.

Anyway, good that you found someone to take care of the choppers.

:hi:

[WillParkinson]

2. Well I don't care for either the Packers or Mr. Walker, but...

I save my loathing for the Republican who wants to ruin everything in my state.

[WillParkinson]

3. Oh, and yes, the nitrous was quite interesting....

I didn't run screaming from the office so it works pretty darn well.

[undergroundpanther]

4. Nitrous

I love it because I am dissociative and going to dentists make me really anxious too. This dentist I used to go to when I was on my moms blue cross, would let me control how much nitrous I needed,and he gave me three valium for what your zanax was for..Before any needles were put in my gums,the gas was started.on low, to decrease my anxiety What was great was during the whole time in the chair the laughing gas was gradually increased if I gave the pain signal,decreased if I was handling it.Right before the pull I breathed in more rapidly & deeply and the % of nitrous oxide was sharply increased for a few minutes..after it was out,He asked me if I needed more pain help or not,his assistant would hold my hand to keep me grounded.It was not terrifying to go to him,I think he understood the way to treat traumatized people. I miss him.I still had anxiety seeing him but it was starting to go away.


But after I lost blue cross because I was dumb enough to get married,I was stuck with MA. I go to the 1 dentist that accepts it in my area.I did not get nitrous there,and it was not offered,or covered. They did numb me with needles,there wasn't much 'conversation' to distract me because this dentist was cold in her style and personality. Last time I got a tooth pulled by this lady because I was just numb, I felt and heard my tooth being twisted and cracking out of my jaw as she yanked it out.She had to pull hard and her assistant had to press me down to the chair...After she disappeared with my bloody tooth,in weird looking pliers,Cotton was shoved in I bit down. They didn't even warn me about the horrible sounds that happened,or that cotton was going in my mouth so fast.I had an abreaction, because it was too many triggers .I think it spooked the dentist assistant. I'm so glad my psych counselor was there.
This tooth pull was done years ago.


Now MA refuses to pay for any kind of dental extraction.So I hope my teeth stay sound.


The MA out here once covered "simple extractions" only,so when I went to her to get my tooth done,despite MA covering it,I had to have $ 150 bucks on hand in cash in case the extraction got complicated.Luckily it didn't. But it was a horrible experience.

[Dappleganger]

5. So glad you had a good experience!

I identify with that anxiety--have to take a xanax before going and someone takes me to the office and back. Just one bad experience can really do you in.

Good for you that you found someone you can trust. :)