No. 113 - SCHOOL DENTIST

For the longest time I had great teeth. Then in high school the school dental van came to visit. I was referred on to another dentist at a local primary school - this was where they did the more serious stuff. One of my canine teeth was overlapping the tooth next to it. So the dentist pulled a tooth and gave me a plate to pull the canine tooth back in line.

The reason the dentist, or maybe it should be the dental assistant is on my list is that they taught me something I still use today. Just before I got the local anesthetic needle I was told to "wiggle my fingers and toes". Obviously this is to distract you from the pain. It worked wonders and I've used this at every injection, etc. since that day. Now I combine it with singing the chorus of Nirvana's Plateau (in my head of course), no idea why but it's become tradition. If you see me wiggling my fingers and toes and miming the words "nothing on the top but a bucket and a mop and ...." look out because pain is coming!