For the past two years, I have been going for regular teeth cleaning once every six months at the dentist. I usually go on a weekday morning at 9am, and try to reach office by 10am. It was starting to feel like a hassle. Maybe I should just get my teeth cleaned once every eight months, I thought.
This visit was quite different. A different person attended to me this time, and she introduced herself as a hygienist, not a dentist. Despite having brushed the back of my lower front teeth, a considerable amount of calculus had accumulated there. "Look," she pointed out, "see how much calculus had built up."
"But I have been brushing there diligently since the last session!" I protested, with a tinge of indignation.
"Your lower front teeth are crowded," she said. "This causes plaque to accumulate more easily. Also, the gum around there is slightly swollen due to that."
By the way, calculus is actually the hardening of plaque after some time. Once plaque becomes calculus, supposedly only a dentist or hygienist is able to remove it.
"Do you floss?" she asked. "No right? I can tell. Because your teeth are crowded, you must floss. By right, we should floss everyday. But for a start, maybe you can floss just once a week."
Oh well. I guess I don't have a choice.
The teeth cleaning continued. Then she asked, "Do you smoke? No? Then you must have been drinking a lot of coffee. Your teeth are quite stained."
Well, that's very true. I drink on average one to two cups of coffee a day. This may not sound like a lot, but I only drink kopi-o or black coffee. So I guess that makes things worse. Maybe I should gargle each time I drink coffee.
"Also, I see some gum recession," she continued.
"What?"
"Look here - can you tell that your gum has receded? The exposed tooth area is of a different colour. Can you see?"
Damn it, I could.
"You have been brushing too hard. I will show you the correct way of brushing later. Also, I will give (sell) you another toothbrush later. It is smaller and softer, so it won't hurt your gum that much."
I was a bit wary of how much this toothbrush would cost, but it only cost $3.
"The last lower tooth at the right side needs more attention. I think your toothbrush is a bit too big, so you can't really brush it properly. You will need another toothbrush - one with very small bristles - to be able to clean it."
Another one! Great. Now I need to use three toothbrushes just for one mouth. Fortunately it costs around $3 as well.
After I have paid for the session - it cost me $153 - the receptionist asked if I would like to schedule my next appointment.
Without hesitation, I scheduled it six months later.
