You Can Fear The Reaper, But Don't Fear Your Dentist Or Hygienist. AND WE NEED MORE COWBELL!!!

I just came back from a long overdue noon appointment to get my teeth cleaned, and I'm here to tell you, I lived through it all, including the what-ifs.

What if my mouth was the dirtiest, most plaque infested, and tartar, gross out mouth she'd ever seen?

What if I had so much plaque on my teeth, that they'd tell me to go see a heart specialist as soon as I got out of the office?

What if my blood sugar went low while I was in the chair?

What if it hurt like hell and I cried like a baby?

I lived through the embarrassment of knowing that the hygienist might need to arm herself with an industrial sandblaster in order to remove the tarter since it had been two years since my last cleaning. Sidebar: Turns out, no sandblaster was needed.

I lived through the fear of knowing that extreme plaque buildup on the teeth, equals extreme plaque build up of the heart arteries for people with diabetes. They didn't tell me to see a heart Doc, but they did tell me that I was a good brusher & had no cavities.

I lived through the fear of thinking that I might go low in the chair. I didn't. But if I had, I would have let Karen (the fantastical Dental Hygienist) know and I would have popped me some raspberry gluco-tabs.

I lived through the sound of each tooth being meticulously scraped, and my gums being banished of any tarter & plaque, and hopefully the slight inflammation that accompanies said tartar and plaque.

I lived through my fears of the dreaded what ifs!

Bottom line, I lived through all of it and have been through MUCH WORSE.

Yes, my teeth and gums are tender, and my jaw feels sore and tired. But guess what? I did it! And right then and there in the chair (unexpected rhyme alert) I decided that I'd never put off getting my teeth cleaned again.

Screw the fear; screw the embarrassment of having a professional clean my choppers, and screw the what-ifs of it all - I'm better than that!

Karen the fantastic Hygienist: Kelly, I want to see you in 6 months, I promise your next cleaning will be nothing compared to this.

Me: How bout I see you in four months Karen, I want to stay on top of this.

Karen The Fantastic Hygienist: Even better!! Schedule a cleaning in four months.

And I did.

So why am I telling you this?

Because as PWDS, we fear going to doctors, and we fear the 'what-ifs", at least I know I do. And I don't know about you, but I want to keep my pearly whites plaque free, just like I want to keep my arteries plaque free.

And YES, I want to keep my pearly whites!

Folks, you can fear the reaper (who doesn’t?) but don’t fear your Hygienist or Dentist. SCHEDULE YOUR APPOINTMENT TO GET YOUR TEETH CLEANED, TODAY.

PS: If you make an appointment to get your teeth cleaned, then start singing Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear The Reaper" under your breath for the rest of the day, and tell your coworker that "We need more cowbell," then my job for the day is complete~