Take Care

I went to the dentist on Tuesday finally after not going for about two years after moving to Atlanta. I loved my dentist in the KC because he was kind and gentle and didn't berate me for not flossing as much as I should. He even gave us doughnuts on our very first visit there. Mom and Dad had made out in the waiting room so there were lots of memories with him. My brother and sister, as well as my brother in law, all still go to him. I was scared to go to anyone else because you just don't know how they will be.

As most of you know, Mom and Dad go to Hardee's every morning and have breakfast with the Buford Breakfast Club which is a group of older people. These people have been going for about 15 years and enjoy each others company. One couple has a daughter who is a dental hygienist. The dentists that she works for don't usually take new patients but they talked to their daughter and I was able to go as a new patient.

I was pretty nervous about it but I knew that I needed to go. My mouth was feeling sore and icky. But the thing I didn't realize was how bad my teeth and gums felt from all that plaque that was stored up. It feels so great to have clean teeth. I didn't even have one cavity which was great news! I will be going back in 6 months and in the mean time I am going to make a new commitment to floss more and use a gum stimulator to help my gums. Because of some of the anti-rejection meds that I take make my gums overgrow so I need to watch them carefully and do a better job at flossing and junk.

Which brings me to the thought I was having while I was thinking about my experience of going to the dentist. I think a lot of times in life we live with something because we don't know any better or we've forgotten what it feels like to have something better or different. In my case, I had forgotten how good it felt to have clean teeth and how much better I would feel about myself. It also reminded me of the time before my transplant when I was so sick that I couldn't remember how it felt to feel good. It was amazing to be on dialysis and then have a transplant and see how much better it felt to feel good. We should all look at our lives and see what can be improved so we can feel better about ourselves. I know I need to exercise and get in shape and I imagine that it will feel much the same as going to the dentist did.