The "Bush Dentist"

This week I'll be appearing on Rogers "Daytime Toronto" hosted by Val Cole Tuesday May 12th at 10:00 am, with a repeat at 3:00 pm.  I'm speaking about a topic near and dear to my heart "the Myth of Work-Life Balance" - also check out my recent article in LinkedIn.

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Just to be clear I'm a tad skittish around dentists and everyone associated with the dental profession, and yes, I realize I'm categorizing everyone into one large bucket but I have my reasons. 

If you've read my book and in particular the first story entitled “Two Weeks” you'll know that at the age of 12 I had a particularly traumatic bicycle accident in which I lost my two front teeth.  Unfortunately my teeth were initially embedded in the front bonnet (hood) of a 1963 Ford ute (pickup) along with a rather large and impressive (if I say so myself) dent where my face made impact.  Apparently when the driver tried to dislodge the two teeth from the metal they quickly turned to dust, now that’s some impact baby!

Looking back I was exceptionally fortunate to have only lost two teeth, although to be fair I also was lucky enough to acquire a broken nose along with a rather healthy concussion for my trouble.  I can tell you I looked quite a picture with two black eyes, swelling around my face and nose plus those pesky headaches, but the worst part was my teeth. I was totally embarrassed at having broken front teeth – soooo attractive when you’re a pre-teen and already awkwardly self conscious...

Shortly after this unfortunate episode my mother made an appointment with a dentist in Ballarat so he could survey the damage and figure out what to do.  Given that our family was very poor this would be my first visit to a dentist.  In addition I realized that this perceived "extravagance" would add a level of financial burden to our family that I knew we could ill afford, which only added to my guilt at having the accident in the first place.  

And so in early April 1972 mum took me to see the dentist.  My memory of him was that he was a gruff man, who reeked of alcohol.  I remember sitting in the chair terrified as he opened my mouth and began poking about my mouth with a sharp metal instrument, muttering to himself as he went.  When he finally got to my two front teeth or what was left of them he began prodding the exposed nerves in my front teeth at which I visibly jumped in the chair in pain.  He told me in a rather raised voice to sit down and stop carrying on.

By this time my teeth and mouth were painful and distinctly throbbing, tears welled in my eyes as I sat as quietly as I could.  It was also plainly obvious that they both were a little disgusted with me for crying, and once I recognized those looks it added to my embarrassment and shame.  He finished the appointment by taking a mold of my mouth and teeth with a compound much like wet clay.

As we drove home in silence, all mum said was that I had to go back to see him and that he was going to “fix them”.  Unfortunately I grew up in an era that believed that "children should be seen and not heard" - we were never included in a conversation, nor asked our opinion about anything. So going into the next visit I was at the mercy of this “bush dentist”, who I doubt was even qualified to be a dentist and whom I didn't like nor trust in any event.

Two weeks later I was back at his office, mum waited in the waiting area as he began poking and prodding around my mouth once again.  He then mixed the cement and positioned the cap over my front teeth, before pressing in on.  

They were definitely better than broken teeth so in that regard I was thankful but it was only a few short months before my front teeth began aching incessantly.  Clearly I didn't want to complain to mum, and so tried to hide it for as long as I could but the constant ache and sensitivity was just too much to bear and I eventually had to tell her.

My next visit was traumatic to say the least... 

As he examined me to told mum that the front two teeth would have to come out and they were likely abscessed.  I guess he could tell from his experience because there were no x-rays taken on any of my visits…   
He also told mum that he should take out four of my molars while he was at it (two top, two bottom at the back - all healthy by the way) “to make room for my wisdom teeth” as it would save her money in the long run.  It was this last statement that sealed the deal with mum and so she agreed, better to pay now than in the future she would have reasoned. How was she to know that by taking out these four completely healthy teeth that it would continue to traumatize me long into my adult life. 

I sat in the chair quivering as they discussed how many teeth he was going to take out.  He started with my two front teeth, which came out surprisingly easily along with all the infected cells from the abscess on and around each tooth.  He then packed these with cotton to stem the bleeding, before turning his attention to my upper and lower teeth.  I distinctly remember the sound of breaking teeth as he extracted them one by one from my jaw, almost having to put his knee on my chest to get enough leverage to get them out, all I can remember is the extreme pain of him digging out the shattered bits of teeth and from my bleeding and raw gums.. 

I stumbled out of his office completely traumatized - blood soaked cotton packing filling my mouth and dripping down my shirt and on the floor.  

Each morning and night for the next two weeks I had to gargle my mouth with hot, salt water to help my mouth heal faster, but it took quite some time before my mouth was healed enough to eat hard foods again. 

Clearly my trust in the dental profession had been sorely tested all those years ago, and it took till after I arrived in Canada to finally have the nerve to seek out a dentist who could fix some of the issues caused by my “bush dentist”.  Although it's taken many years to trust my dentist (Josh), I know that he has my best interests at heart and deep down I trust him even though I'm still a bit jittery and nervous with every visit.

However, yesterday when I went to him to have a look at a tooth that was sensitive to hot and cold he said that I most likely needed a root canal and referred me to an Endodontic colleague.  I’d seen the Endodontist (George) many years ago for a similar issue with another tooth so as he x-rayed my teeth earlier today he said that he'd noticed that in fact there were two issues, not one.

Oh-oh I thought here we go again…   

He could tell that I was very nervous about his "discovery"; I guess the ashen pallor and look of pure fear on my face was enough to give it away.  He asked me why I was so nervous and felt compelled to tell him about my “bush dentist” experience… 

Armed with this info he spent an inordinate amount of time explaining, in detail how he would approach the root canal as he outlined the entire procedure on the x-rays so that I could see it come to life.  After giving me a good dose of local anesthetic he began working on the root canal, throughout the procedure George kept asking me how I was doing and reassured me that everything was going as planned, which invariably helped calm my nerves and keep me on an even keel.

He even called me at home to follow up and see how I was doing and to make sure that I wasn't in too much pain.  I also promised that I would call him the next day to give him an update.  Such a thoughtful and kind gesture!

I'm so happy that Zach and Sami will never have to go through that type of dental trauma in their lifetimes - yep, no "bush dentists" for them...thank goodness!  ☺

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This week I'd like to share with you the images from a photoshoot I had in my neighbourhood last weekend.  Enjoy!

Finally new buds on the maple tree next door

Pine roof on the porch next door

Gorgeous tulips across the street

Classic sign on a neighbor's front lawn

Can you say "eclectic" decorations with Christmas lights?

This classic is on a nearby window sill

Lots of new growth finally coming up...

I live on a street where you can park one side of the road for
half the month, then it switches - hence the sign

Loved the colors and fine details on these flowers

Soooo curvey!

So fragile, yet so spectacular!

Painted billboard on the nearby construction site

Heavy machinery being readied for work at the site

Interesting approach - the first step is a doozy...

Llama anyone???   The local "pop up" store

Busy sidewalks on a sunny afternoon

Newspaper and post boxes lined up

The overhead billboard on top of the building

Dragon under glass!

Storefront decorations

My local Mexican restaurant 

Sidewalk seating at a local wine bar

Great day for a ride!

Bottle in the window

The date of the subdivision - 93 years old

The bud

Old fashioned barber shop chair

Worms eye view of my street...