Aug. 29th, 2003 03:31 pm
My first trip to the dentist (true story)
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vin_petrolThis is probably not how to put a young, impressionable child at ease about dental care.
When I was five and in my first year of infant school, I suspect "the school dentist" inspected my teeth and noted that I needed fillings. Shortly afterwards I remember my daddy taking me to "the dentist". I wasn't really sure what "a filling" was, but apparently it wouldn't hurt. Daddy waited in the waiting room and I went into the dentist's room.
This dentist had an interesting way of putting you at ease. You were escorted into his room, where you would sit at the end of the chair and watch what happened to the previous patient.
On this day, it was a little girl of maybe 6 or 7 years of age. She was wearing some form of protective bib. The dentist seemed to have pliers in his hand. What was he going to do?
He then proceeded to put the pliers in her mouth! This was followed by some form of cracking noise! A thin trail of bright, scarlet blood dribbled down the girls chin, and ran down the bib. He told her she was a "good girl". He went in again! Another trail of blood dribbled down her chin, and onto the bib. She looked like a vampire now. Aaaargh! I don't want this doing to me!
The only thing that kept me in the room was that she hadn't screamed in agony whilst all this was going on. So, it did appear truthful that it didn't hurt.
Eventually, they cleaned her up and she left the room. It was my turn. Basically, I was transfixed with terror and incapable of speech or of running away. So I sat there and got my filling, which didn't hurt at all, and certainly didn't involve blood dribbling down my chin.
So, my first visit to the dentists ended up being "not as bad as I expected".
When I was five and in my first year of infant school, I suspect "the school dentist" inspected my teeth and noted that I needed fillings. Shortly afterwards I remember my daddy taking me to "the dentist". I wasn't really sure what "a filling" was, but apparently it wouldn't hurt. Daddy waited in the waiting room and I went into the dentist's room.
This dentist had an interesting way of putting you at ease. You were escorted into his room, where you would sit at the end of the chair and watch what happened to the previous patient.
On this day, it was a little girl of maybe 6 or 7 years of age. She was wearing some form of protective bib. The dentist seemed to have pliers in his hand. What was he going to do?
He then proceeded to put the pliers in her mouth! This was followed by some form of cracking noise! A thin trail of bright, scarlet blood dribbled down the girls chin, and ran down the bib. He told her she was a "good girl". He went in again! Another trail of blood dribbled down her chin, and onto the bib. She looked like a vampire now. Aaaargh! I don't want this doing to me!
The only thing that kept me in the room was that she hadn't screamed in agony whilst all this was going on. So, it did appear truthful that it didn't hurt.
Eventually, they cleaned her up and she left the room. It was my turn. Basically, I was transfixed with terror and incapable of speech or of running away. So I sat there and got my filling, which didn't hurt at all, and certainly didn't involve blood dribbling down my chin.
So, my first visit to the dentists ended up being "not as bad as I expected".
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no subject
They shouldn't show Marathon Man at a time when impressionable young children can watch it :-/
no subject
Thinking about it, I had a bruised chest after my wisdom teeth were removed...
I also had the small mouth, need to remove teeth to make room thing (stop sniggering at the back). I think I'm missing about four permanent teeth from that. These extractions weren't too bad. No real pain. It's the *sound* I remember being spooky - the ripping noise it made as it was removed, echoing through your jawbone direct to the ears. Horrible. I was bit older too though. I can dimly recall a scout camp with extraction holes in my mouth, so I suspect I was 11/12.