Oh, and it's too late now, but...
***DENTAL VIBES***[/size][/color]
to DR Ron Pulliam![/size][/color]
It's never too late...
I had LANAP surgery and it went very well. The dentist took care of the right-side uppers and lowers. I have spent a good part of my life in a dentist's chair, but in the past few years I fell victim to an assembly-line practice set up by my dental insurance provider and the results were decidedly mixed. I had a number of teeth crowned, only to later have them re-crowned because the "insurance" would not authorize a root canal before the crown was installed. I had co-pays, etc., but the dentists never said, "You need this, and your insurance won't cover it, but I can do it for $_____.
I will spare details of a very painful abscess that was the last straw (it was a tooth that had been crowned less than six months before). I decided that was my last visit there.
I switched dental plans at work and went searching for someone who would tell me exactly what I need and would work with me, over time, to ensure I got what I could afford at the time, with a definite goal for near-future continuation.
I found her last year, and we have been moving toward what I believe will last me the rest of my life. Today, however, we started laying the foundation. LANAP is the laser, less-invasive, version of periodontal gum surgery. It's also pricey. But I decided I'm worth it.
The mouth has four quadrants -- upper and lower, right side and left side. My dentist does two quadrants at a time. Today we did the right side. We do the left side next Friday.
I am one of those people who have a tough time getting completely "numb" during the preparation for dental work. Sometimes, the dentist hits the right spot. Sometimes not.
Today, it was important that the entire right side of my mouth was good a numb. It didn't "quite" get there, but I toughed it out. And it was interesting. When you can partially feel what is being done, you get a mental image of the laser at work. I was never in pain, mind you. Sometimes you just don't want to feel what is being done, even if you can hear it (like the planing of the root of a tooth!!!). It was a 2-hour procedure, and now I am home and cannot eat anything but soup/mushy stuff for the next three days, and only on the opposite side.
There! Now I've shared and you all get an idea of why I'm home and why I'll also be home next Friday!!!
