Thursday, 28^th April 2005 | 11:06 AM
Toothache, go away!

OK I have to confess.

I have a deathly fear of dentists. We have a reasonably good healthcare system here. Schoolchildren who attend national schools have subsidised dental healthcare. In primary school, I wonder if the system remains the same now, but in my time each kid in the school had a twice-yearly appointment with the dentist on school premises. She would send the kid who'd just finish his/her appointment with her out to get the kid who's up next. Usually the kid would enter the class with a clipboard for the teacher who's currently in class, and then the teacher would call out the name of the kid who's turn is next for the dentist. Each time we kids see a kid coming into the class with the clipboard, we all groaned.

And the dentist, was ALWAYS scolding me. Apparently she thought I wasn't brushing my teeth properly all the time. But dentists were always scolding me, as I sat there, immobilised with my mouth open for them and as they stick things into my mouth, causing me a lot of discomfort. And then they would go on and on... about how bad I was for not brushing my teeth properly, or later, when I was in secondary school and had to travel further for these dental appointments and we teens always found a way to skip them, the dentist was always giving me stern lectures on how we young people don't know how to appreciate the value of what they're doing for us. All this, while I sat there in pain and discomfort, immobilised, unable to say anything. WTF?

So I'm now in fear of fierce dentists who cause me pain. And as I suspect I have a cavity in one of my molars now, I need a dentist. I need a painless one, but I suspect they don't come cheap. Cheap ones will be those in government polyclinics. But I'm afraid for them because they might be grouchier and thus fiercer. You know, the whole overworked, underpaid thing?

And why I'm thinking about all this all of a sudden? Because I think I might have a cavity, and I need a dentist if I still want to have teeth before I'm old.

Wish me luck.

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