So... my teeth aren't the worlds best anyway... it was only a matter of time...
One of my molars developed a cavity and I decided to avoid the pain and misery of a root canal by going to the dentist BEFORE it started to hurt...
But... I dreaded it... and really... I put it off and put it off...
Finally, though, I received notice that as of March 25th, I have no insurance at all... Knowing that would be the time when my tooth would erupt in cascades of immense pain, I decided to just do it..
I hate the Dentist...
But at least this dentist was cute :D (don't tell Maia I said that...).
Anyway, they call me in and they sit me down on the chair. The chair, by the way, is situated on the second floor of this building, which is all windows. The chair I'm sitting in overlooks the little park across the street where kindergarteners are playing cheerfully. The sun is shining, it's a lovely day, and the kids are playing. A small squadron of High School kids trundle by on their bikes, chatting. This is the way all Dentist offices should be...
"So," says the dentist, sitting next to me on the little dentist stool, "you have a cavity?"
Side note: The Japanese word for cavity is "Mushiba" Literally "Insect tooth" or "Bugtooth"... It was believed, way back in the olden days, that when a tooth got a cavity, it was because you snored at night and the bugs got into your mouth and chewed on your teeth... Woah...
"Yes" I say, "About 10 years ago I lost the tooth behind it due to not coming into the dentist on time (At least I'm honest) and I think this cavity is connected to that..."
"Ah, let me see."
I lean back.
She frowns (I can only see her eyes anyway above the mask and under her little medical cap, so I'm having to read her expressions there). "Well, it doesn't look good... does it hurt?"
"No, not at all."
She zots it with cold water and air...
"Now?"
"Nope."
So I'm off to be nuked... she stands next to me as the familiar Dental X-ray is swung into place. The assitant puts the lead vest on me and then the doctor places a wired device in my mouth next to the tooth and
holds it there! The little X-ray beeps twice and she says "Okay, done!"
She didn't even leave the room! I'm shocked!
We return to my chair where the little computer screen next to the table already has the pictures of my tooth up on it...
"It looks like the cavity is actually much bigger on the inside... I don't know if we need to do a alfjkghadlkvjadlfkvj."
"A what?" I ask... fear bubbling up inside me...
"A alkbldkfjbnvadl."
Okay, Dental Japanese... not my forte... "How's the root?" I ask (Because I can say "Root")
"That's the problem," she says "No pain is a good thing, but as you can see, the cavity is really close to the root." (She passes her cursor over the tooth, and you can see layers of the tooth vanish and reappear... my goodness this is cool!)
"Root Canal" I whisper in English in a horrified voice... as if avoiding the wrath of the Root canal gods...
"Yes, Ruuto Canaru."
So we start the drilling...
At some point she says:
"Okay, now we are going to Goro Goro."
This sounds like a bad porn movie or something... but I just nod... She's cute...I guess... I've seen worse plots...
She puts the grinder in...
Gororororororororororororororororororo.... it says in my mouth... Ah... I get it.
Then she looks at it with the mirror.
"Okay, I think the root is okay... I'm going to use the laser now."
Laser? I perk up... Suweet! I'm going to get zotted by a laser! :D
"It won't make any noise." She says.
"But it does make a strange smell." I add.
"You know?" She asks.
"I love lasers! They are cool!
She laughs.
The laser pops a lot, and there is a distinct... um... odor which I needn't discribe, but you can guess... And a strange taste in my mouth... but that's okay.
Then she puts in the filling and we are done!
I go to the front counter and the lady asks; "Do you have insurance?"
Uh oh... here it comes, "No..." (I pay up front and my insurance reimberses me... it's easier to just say "No" than explain all of that)
"So, you'll be paying out of pocket?"
"Yes."
"That will be 5,700 yen please." She says and hands me the bill.
For those of you that don't speak Yen, that's roughly $50... That's it.
As a side note, Maia did something to her knee two weeks ago, and it swelled up... she went to the doctor, got an X-ray, had the fluid drained, and was given some pain medication for 8,000 yen... (About $80)...
Why is Socialized medicine a bad thing again?
Anyway, my tooth that had been chewed on by bugs while I snored at night has been repaired.
-Mushiba no more
Labels: Japan
