Sunday, August 9, 2009

going to the dentist

all went well (so far) with my dentist appointment this past week. i'll need to go a few more times before it's all finished.

i arrived on time and very nervous; my heart felt tight. when i stepped into the dental room it was very modern and the tools were newer looking than my dentist in the states. when the dentist gave me an injection to numb the area it didn't pinch at all, it took me a couple seconds to realize what she was doing (eyes were closed).

one thing i felt a little uncomfortable with was when the dentist took x-rays. there wasn't one of those heavy led protector coats over my chest. does she have a newer x-ray machine or should there have been a led blanket like thing? also, when the procedure was finished there was this soft substance like chewing gum on my teeth. i asked why it was so soft. i was told it would harden in a couple hours?

i was told that i could experience a couple days of pain after the procedure, but each person is different. just in case i was sent home with some pain pills....

the next day...i got so lucky! i didn't have any pain...none. i only took one of the pills an hour after i left the dentist office because it hurt just a little, but when i woke up the next day everything felt normal. (*big sigh of relief*)

5 comments:

jenna said...

digital xrays? I don't get the lead encasement for that either- the radiation is much lower.

yillabean said...

your dentist doesn't lay the led blanket on your chest when he takes x-rays either?

i think what ever 'went down', x-ray or digital x-ray, it involved radiation because the dentist left the room when taking it. hummm?

jenna said...

Yes, my dentist left the room to do the xrays, but she had to, to use the control that sends out the radiation.

What I meant was, the only time I didn't have the lead blanket is when I've had digital xrays- the exposure to radiation is really small with digital xrays, as opposed to traditional film. Probably something like triple the radiation one gets in a day, walking around, being irradiated by all kinds of stuff, including the sun. Not that I looked it up, actually, but I do know that if the xray is digital, the radiation amount is a whole lot smaller.

Leaving the room probably had nothing to do with anything, but actually manipulating some control.

In any case, even if you had a traditional film xray just once with no lead blanket, you'll be fine :)

yillabean said...

since i have a couple more appointments i'm going to ask about this...

er, um, so far (here) i had 4 x-rays taken and one in the states (in july). am i going to turn green?

jenna said...

fluorescent green! you'll glow in the dark, and be RADIANT!