Dentistry

After a decade or more of horrible experiences with dentists and their staffs, I quit going. I just hated being in the chair. I live with constant sinus congestion of varying degree, and some dentists just didn't "get" that, nor have sensible and realistic ideas for dealing with it. Some dentists had hygienists that were, to be polite, indiscreet about discussing patient particulars with other patients. Some fell to the stereotype presented by the character in "Little Shop of Horrors."

After a decade or more of avoiding dentists like the proverbial plague they seemed to be for me, I found myself with a couple of teeth in bad shape. My wife insisted that I see her dentist for help, and in desperation, I went.

Long story short, Doctor Hakim is a wonderful person and a great dentist. I won't say that my experiences in her chair have been great fun, but they have been far less horrible than most I've had with other dentists before, and I wasn't going expecting to being entertained, after all. If you have need of a dentist referral, please drop me a line.

It hasn't been without the challenge or two, however. I had a root canal ten or twelve (or more--don't remember) years ago, and never got that tooth crowned. Doctor Hakim made the requisite molds a month or so ago, and contracted with a local company for the crown. When the crown was delivered two weeks ago.

That visit was probably the most miserable I have had with her. I had a head cold going in, and should have delayed things on that basis alone. Being unable to breathe through my nose at all gets a bit stressful when someone is working in my mouth. It didn't get any better when the crown was discovered to be sub-standard, and a new mold had to be made--this involves closing my jaws for four minutes or so while the mold material sets. It doesn't help any that to do this work, the Lidocaine has to be injected in the very hinge of my jaw--a hard place to reach and a very sensitive area. That needle feels like a three-inch water pipe in there!!

When I'm fairly relaxed, I can hold my breath for well over half a minute at almost any point in my breathing cycle (I got proof of this when I did a sleep study five years ago to screen for sleep apnea, and have been using a CPAP machine ever since). With a little preparation, I can hold my breath for a minute without a lot of anxiety. Of course, when I'm anxious from not being able to breathe well, these times shorten dramatically. In any case, four minutes of having to keep my teeth together while not being able to breathe through my nose at all meant I was getting air because the doctor or her assistant were holding my lips away from my teeth on the side away from where the work was being done, and it wasn't flowing as many cubic feet per second as I really wanted, but I was able to manage.

At any rate, the errant crown was returned to the provider with the new mold and instructions to not foul up a second time. I sat for the replacement crown yesterday afternoon. As you, the reader, have probably figured out by now, it wasn't right. I now have my third temporary crown on that tooth, with the "permanent" one to be installed Tuesday (we hope).

To be fair to Doctor Hakim, I must mention at this point that the crown was checked against the mold they sent, and found to not be within spec. The lab fouled up--again.

While Doctor Hakim's assistant was on the phone with the lab, she reported that their driver had already gone home. She told the lab folks that "our patient is standing here, telling me that he can get to your office within forty-five minutes--by bicycle. Yes, he rides bicycles instead of driving most of the time, and if he says he can get there in that time, I'm inclined to believe him. If you can't get a driver here within the half hour, we have this option." That apparently shamed the lab folks enough that they reported they had a driver in the Middletown area that could collect the mold and the failed crown en route to their office.

I appreciate that Doctor Hakim has professional standards she is not willing to abandon. I'm pretty disgusted with this lab, though, as I have had to sit through two aborted deliveries of my crown before getting the "permanent" one installed, and am less-than-confident in the upcoming appointment (and get to "enjoy" knowing that until that day...).