Back from the dentist. My first appointment was last week. A check-up. First time I’d seen a dentist in at least seven years. Poss’ as long as a decade?
Treatment plan: over a couple of appointments, have one tooth removed, tout-suite, another filled (the latter prob’ also to be removed fairly soon). Both have or had cavities along the gum line.
Today the worst of the two was extracted. Unlike the x-rays, which were a real mother (I have a bad gag reflex!), the extraction itself went very smoothly.
The dentist, a lady of Indian heritage called Priti, had expected the tooth – beset by not just one but two cavities – to collapse or shatter. Fortunately it didn’t.
She was also concerned that the roots might separate from the tooth, and remain in the cavity. Happily they didn’t. The whole thing came out as one. And much quicker than I’d expected.
Back home, it’s rather uncomfortable: my mouth is filling with blood and saliva, which entails fairly regular spitting. The treated area remains numb (an hour has passed this far).
When the NHS was created I believe dentistry was included. Over the years the Tories have steadily chipped away at the NHS, such that nowadays getting dentistry on the NHS is: 1) incredibly hard to find, 2) requires payment (albeit less than private).
I’m very glad to have finally got on the books of a local dentist, as an NHS patient, after years of sporadic but fruitless efforts. Usually enquiries would result in the dentist saying the NHS waiting list was closed, due to too much demand! How do you square that with the Tory ideology of supply and demand!?
I just hope that, one: I get my oral horror-show sorted out, two: I learn to take better care of what’s left, in the time that remains to me.
I better check in with Teresa, re co-codamol. So’s I can deal with any pain as the anaesthetic wears off.