Dental Infidelity
Image by rosefirerising via Flickr
I had a family dentist that I went to even after I left college. He was a nice old man who always told me, "your teeth are great. Besides braces I can't recommend anything." So I was happy.
When I was in high school, I chipped one of my bottom teeth. He said, "don't worry about it; it's small enough that it'll file down over time anyway." I trusted him. My teeth were great.
I was here in the MD/DC area and would drive 90 miles to go to this dentist who had serviced my teeth since I had them. One visit he looked at my mouth and made this "Psshh!" sound like he was looking at a total wreck not worth bothering over. And then I realized that this jerk was an old dentist just waiting for retirement and not wanting to bother with my teeth because it wouldn't matter to him anyway.
I stopped going to the dentist.
I moved to Korea and was unsure if dentistry there was something I
wanted to try. So essentially about three years passed without even a
cleaning. When I got back to the states (and my insurance kicked in) I
asked a coworker and she recommended her dentist. I set an appointment.
Instead of getting her dentist, Dr. A, I was scheduled with his partner. Dr. K, who was awesome. Young, nice personality, good sense of humor; his dental assistant was also great. What I liked most, though, is that he took the time to explain things, then explain the process, then ask me what I wanted to do. It was always my choice, and he went to great lengths to identify all possible scenarios. Ultimately I felt he was being completely honest and I could rely on his judgment.
That lasted about three visits. The next time I came, he was out of town. The hygienist changed as well, and she was tearing the crap out of my gums. Then I come back and they say his wife had a kid so he wanted to work less (blah blah blah) basically he wasn't there anymore.
Dr. A wasn't bad, so I stuck around. But as time has progressed, I've become less confident in his work. Each visit I feel like there's less of a plan and more of a fix going on. To the point where I've been putting off fixing things that should be fixed.
So today I finally called the dental office that's located in my apartment building, of all places. We'll see how it goes. I feel bad slinking behind my dentist's back (and hygienist #4, who actually is pretty cool) but I have this sneaking suspicion I should expect more. I'm just not sure what I should be expecting. Should I be at one of these newfangled "dental spas"? Or is my lot to simply accept whatever mediocrity providence sends my way?
Something tells me there's more to dental service than just "grin and bear it."
Instead of getting her dentist, Dr. A, I was scheduled with his partner. Dr. K, who was awesome. Young, nice personality, good sense of humor; his dental assistant was also great. What I liked most, though, is that he took the time to explain things, then explain the process, then ask me what I wanted to do. It was always my choice, and he went to great lengths to identify all possible scenarios. Ultimately I felt he was being completely honest and I could rely on his judgment.
That lasted about three visits. The next time I came, he was out of town. The hygienist changed as well, and she was tearing the crap out of my gums. Then I come back and they say his wife had a kid so he wanted to work less (blah blah blah) basically he wasn't there anymore.
Dr. A wasn't bad, so I stuck around. But as time has progressed, I've become less confident in his work. Each visit I feel like there's less of a plan and more of a fix going on. To the point where I've been putting off fixing things that should be fixed.
So today I finally called the dental office that's located in my apartment building, of all places. We'll see how it goes. I feel bad slinking behind my dentist's back (and hygienist #4, who actually is pretty cool) but I have this sneaking suspicion I should expect more. I'm just not sure what I should be expecting. Should I be at one of these newfangled "dental spas"? Or is my lot to simply accept whatever mediocrity providence sends my way?
Something tells me there's more to dental service than just "grin and bear it."
So it turns out what seemed to be a tiny mask for a tax cover-up (no windows, no traffic, no website) turned out to be the back door (not the front entrance) for a reasonably nice dental clinic! The dentist was good-natured, very inquisitive, and took the time to explain to me everything that she was thinking as she assessed my situation.
Bonus points that she managed to convince me of her credibility through many points including complementing some of the work that Dr. A did.
All said, since it takes me less than two minutes to be back in my house, I’ll probably stick with her. Plus, the woman who I think would be the hygienist is could be Kim Kardashian’s older sister! meow ^^