#not the wisdoms to hell with them. but I couldn't afford a root canal for the third tooth so it had to come out

[arctic-hands]

Re: the being immunocompromised and nearly dying of agony from shingles all over me at sixteen thing. I used to say that was the worst pain I've ever felt in my chronically ill life, worsened by the fact that weenie me refused morphine because I was fully indoctrinated by D.A.R.E. and terrified that I would become an addict as I lay in the hospital bed writhing in agony as I was damn-near actively dying. Even breaking my toes a few years later just warranted a mild "Fuck." in comparison.

Anyway I recently experienced three infected teeth (two wisdoms that apparently just grew in already rotted? and one cavity that got out of hand because I kept forgetting to call my dentist and couldn't afford it anyway) within a two year span and let me say that that knocked the nearly dying in agony thing right out of the park

[biphobicerasurer]

It ASTOUNDS me how unserious dental health is taken in this country. The last time I remember learning about dental health was in fourth grade, doing one of those "this is how to properly brush your teeth" segments in school, the ones where they sent you home with a new, fire-engine-red toothbrush. Never again was dental health even MENTIONED in any sort of health class or PE class, through high school and even college. I can't count how many times in elementary school I was told to brush twice a day, floss regularly, and use mouthwash, but what if I didnt?

They teach you that you'll get cavities. And when you get caveties, what happens? Your Little Kid Dentist wags his finger at you, tells you you're eating too much candy, and fills the tooth in in a jiffy, and then they send you home with a new slime-green toothbrush. You might not get a sticker because you weren't cavity-free. And that's it.

But no one tells you the long-lasting effects of poor dental care. That your teeth can hurt so bad you can no longer chew on one whole half of your mouth, and that REAL toothaches can have you sobbing on the ground with almost nothing you can do to ease the pain. That bits of your tooth will decay away until the tooth itself shatters into a bite of your food. That these broken teeth then expose the nerves underneath and that even breathing in too sharply puts pressure on these nerves and is EXCRUCIATING.

No one warns you that adults don't get dental insurance with their job, and that you age out of your parent's dental insurance sooner than any other insurance. That these procedures cost thousands of dollars a pop. That while you're too busy being broke paying off the procedures you've already had, the other infections that need addressing have to go without, and keep getting worse and worse until they're several times more painful and expensive by the time you can take out credit for those, too.

That dental cavities and infections only get worse and can never get better--they can only be stopped in their tracks.

I knew as a child growing up that treating my teeth poorly would lead to cavities, and that cavities were bad. But I couldn't have possibly known the way it can ruin your life for what will probably end up being, and has already been, years. I have had two extractions, at least two root canals, and, naturally, several fillings and crowns. I am $4,000 in debit after ALREADY paying off the first extraction and bridge, for several procedures done on the left side of my mouth (all in one sitting--6hrs+ of surgery straight while awake, because going under was too expensive). I now have several surgeries needed on the right side of my mouth (that are only going to get worse and more expensive by the time I can afford them), my wisdom teeth that still need pulling, and more pain that's been cropping up on the "fixed" left side. It'll be years before any of that is even an option to address for me.

PLEASE. If it is not too late for you, PLEASE start treating your teeth better, I'm BEGGING. There's no going back once you get to where I am, and it's HELL living with a mouth full of cavities that make it so difficult to chew everywhere except your front four teeth that you basically give up even trying. DENTAL HEALTH DOES MATTER.

Tooth Infection: Can literally kill you and wreck your overall physical health. United States: Dentistry is a frivolous cosmetic luxury which we should bar the poor from having. To even have access to a dentist should be a sign of affluence akin to some forms of plastic surgery. How else will we laugh at the poor and their disgusting toothless mouths which showcase how inferior and uneducated they really are in comparison to our pearly-smiled perfection?