#except the mouthwash causes a weird reaction with my mouthguard (they told me not to use mouthwash with it but I did anywayyy) so I've

[polarfarina]

Went to the dentist last Tuesday and it was the most reassuring dental appointment that I have had in a while. I'm lucky enough to have good insurance (until November anyway) so I go every six months and the last couple have been like "obviously you need to floss more" (I floss at least once per day, often more times than that) and "you need to brush this area more" (when I have already put so so much focus there and apparently my efforts are useless) but this time I said preemptively "sorry there's so much buildup on this area of my teeth, I floss and floss and I can't get it perfect" and the hygienist was like "oh this is a problem area for literally every human being that goes through this office. Yours looks awesome compared to most people" and that alone took such a big burden off my dental worries. Also my gums have receded a bit and before they had just said to me "brush gentler" but this time she explained that it's actually really common for people who grind their teeth (I do that) and that wearing a night guard (I have one) does a lot to mitigate that gum recession and I was like "Oh so I'm already doing everything I can?" And she goes "yes :)" and it was like. Oh. Nice.

I had braces as a teen and my parents had to basically get a loan to pay for them so I've been heavily aware of the cost of my good teeth health. Last year I had to get a filling and it was like I failed to keep my teeth perfect 😱😰. But cavities are common. Most adults have fillings if they can afford to get them. It can happen to anyone and it's not me letting anyone down. It's me being human