Gads Tooth

I think I might be coming to the end of those days when I'd feel faint just going past the dentist's. Modern dentistry doesn't hurt! This is a miracle for our times because it certainly hurt like hell in the olden days when I was young.

On Wednesday evening I broke a front tooth. It looked terrible. I closely resembled a wizened old hag, like one of those who sat around the pot in Macbeth going 'Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble' except of course I don't tend to wear black tattered rags or a pointy hat. Apart from that though...

On Thursday I rang the dentist. He was shut. On a Thursday. I don't understand either... Anyway, I called again on Friday morning and was given an appointment that morning before my teeth started moving off on a tour around my mouth, upsetting my jaw and probably causing the most unholy mess elsewhere.

Trembling like a flippin' jelly but trying not to show it, I arrived and went into the salles des horreurs. It was nice and clean at least. I showed my tooth and the lovely dentist didn't faint with horror or tut tut like a car mechanic to give me the impression I'd have to sell my soul to the devil to pay to put it right. No, he made encouraging noises and told me he'd put on a temporary resin tooth to tide me over and I would have to come back to have a pearly replacement later.

Before anaesthetising the tooth, he squirted the area with some painkiller so when the needle went in I felt nothing. Anaesthetic has improved too. I also felt nothing while he tidied things up and applied the resin. I almost managed to relax and enjoy myself. Had my mouth not been enrobed in a sterile cover thingy ('champ' in French) I suppose I could have enjoyed a jolly chat...

I came away amazed at what a reasonably pleasant experience it had been. This particular dentist is a real jewel. I'm not sure they are all so marvellous, so I'm gonna hang on to him like mad now I've found him!

I just love living in the modern pain-free age!