It has been forever since I last wrote anything in this blog, so thought it was about time I did. For the past 10 months or so everything has been about my mental state and how I am coping with the ever changing world I find myself in. However I am pleased to report that things have slowed down a little now, and I find myself able to both think about and talk about other things.
One of the things that has always bugged me in life is my teeth. Yup, simple as that, I hate my teeth, have always had a bad situation in my mouth since childhood, and now finally find myself wanting to do something long term about it, and in a position to actually do something about it.
I have looked at what I can do about it for a few years now, and considered many options, but never gone so far as to actually enquire and get pricing on it. HOWEVER.. that all changed earlier this month when I walked into London Dental Arts for an appointment and consultation for what my options were. To say I was surprised is an understatement.
Due to things being so bad orally, it has been a while since I went to the dentist, and had definitely never been to a private dentist. LDA is a completely private dentist, so things are a little different to what I am used to. For the better I might add. Last time I had any imaging done it was done using the little thing that you held in your mouth while they positioned a little machine to the side of your mouth. So standing up with the machine moving around my head seemed space aged.
The first imaging that was done was a lovely crystal clear x-ray, which was then analysed by AI to work out the lay of the land so to speak. This image was enough for the dentist, sorry the Specialist Prosthodontist (SP) to discuss my options and work out both some plans of attack and some pricing based on my decisions.
After the initial conversation another appointment was planned for some more imaging to be done to allow them to further explore the options I was leaning towards. The second appointment was to have a CT scan done this time, so they could see in better detail my bone density and any other things that could impact the treatment. Seeing the imaging created by this was absolutely stunning. I have seen these images on TV but never in person. WOW !!
Once these images were done, and the SP had had some time to look them over, the next step was to see if what I wanted was possible, and if it was, how it would happen, and a timeline. This was done at another appointment, where even further imaging was done, this time a 3D scan of the mouth, including gum, palette etc. Again, I was shocked to see how good this imaging was.
My final appointments to date were with the SP and the hygienist. For a good clean, and then a chat with the SP to confirm the plan, sign some consent paperwork, agree the pricing and treatment plan, and confirm the date of it all. On top of this I was able to speak to the SP about the look I wanted for the teeth, and look at some provisional renders of what I would look like smiling. I am 52 in Feb, so me smiling showing teeth is not something that feel natural to me, so it was alarming and amusing to see none the less.
To say I am excited about this is an understatement, and with just a couple of weeks to go, and one final appointment with the hygienist to make sure everything is clean and bacteria free before the surgery, it is all very real too. Once the process starts the first step will be massive and drastic, not to mention uncomfortable if that is the right word for it. Everything after that will be incremental and hopefully an improvement each time.
A few people know what I am having done, and I am sure I will reveal more after the initial surgery on the 14th Jan, but until then, thank you for entertaining this blog entry, and I hope to update soon with some more interesting and exciting information.
All I will say is... it IS drastic, and it IS expensive... But its for the rest of my life, so I feel its worth it too.
