Friday, April 24, 2009

My Teeth

I think about teeth a lot at work.  Since I work for a health foundation, we are always trying to figure out what health needs aren't being addressed.  Dental care is a major need in this country and so many people who need it can't afford it.  

I attribute my super-proactive attitude toward dental care to the fact that my job has made me hypersensitive about the importance of teeth.  Before we even started trying to conceive, I went to the dentist and told her I wanted to get my teeth all fixed up so I wouldn't have to get anything intense done once I was pregnant.  One crown and one cavity later, I was all fixed up.  On Easter, I noticed that my gums around my new crown were hurting.  They throbbed on and off for a solid week.  I happened to have a dentist appointment Monday for my regular cleaning and also had her look at my aching tooth.  She attributed the whole thing to pregnancy.  Pregnant women are more prone to pregnancy gingivitis which causes bleeding and inflamed gums.  Ick.

She gave me a prescription mouth rinse, but it isn't proven to be safe for pregnant women, so I'm afraid to use it.  She told me to try rinsing with saltwater and see if that helps.  The last thing I can stand the thought of in the morning is rinsing with saltwater.  I'm already one burp away from yaking, so voluntarily putting in my saltwater sounds awful.  My tooth felt better most of the week, but is aching again.  I hope it gets better because nine months of this sounds like hell.

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