Back from a mere 3 hr apt with the dentist, I have learned that the treatment of my teeth will cost about $1,250. My insurance may pay half of it – may only pay 20%…just have to wait and see.
So now I have another awesome expense to pay for – and that is just the treatment my gums need to stop gum disease. I also have a few cracked teeth that will have to be capped to keep them from breaking. One is cracked all four directions which is very bad.
I could, of course, refuse treatment – just start getting my teeth cleaned twice a year and let the gum disease go rampant in my mouth – but ignoring my teeth has gotten me nowhere. Even if I have to end up paying $5000 total out of my own pocket – that would equal $278 dollars a year for each year I ignored them.
When I was a child it seemed we spent a lot of time at the dentist. I had nine baby teeth pulled to make room for adult teeth – and then had four adult teeth pulled to make room in my mouth for the rest. Well, my mouth is still too crowded – I should have had at least one more pulled on top and on bottom to make room but the last dentist I had never mentioned it.
My mouth is so small the dental hygienist had to retake three x-rays because I couldn’t open my mouth wide enough to get the x-ray thing in. Ended up having to dig into the roof of my mouth which hurt like hell.
The teeth cracked not because of my ice eating habit but because the metal they used to fill it way back when is expanding. I’m going to have to have all the metal fillings removed from my mouth and have new ones done. Ugh.
So the lesson of this story? Do not neglect your mouth! Yes, dentists are expensive but the longer you go between visit’s the more your mouth deteriorates. My dentist is the best. He showed me the x-rays and had a little probe he put in my mouth so I could see each cracked tooth on the tv screen. I like when they can show me why I’m going to have to shell out money I don’t have. He is a very pleasant fellow – even if he is very young. 
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There are no shortcuts to any place worth going. — Anonymous
