mine is the best! We actually found a "biological and holistic dentist" upon moving to Seattle. He treats oral health as an integral component of overall health. Each tooth is an organ. Mercury doesn't belong in the body. Root canals are not necessarily the best option for severely decayed teeth. TMJ may be corrected/alleviated without surgery. These are just a few of the wonderful principles he puts into practice.
Two weeks ago I had a cleaning/check up, and we found three things: (1) a small cavity (2) wear and tear on my teeth indicating that I am still grinding/clenching/chomping my teeth at night and (3) the bacteria that live along my gum line, whose numbers were alarmingly high last May, had decreased in number. Yay! While not back to my normal low levels, it was very good to see that they had diminished. The only major change that we figured could be the source of their overgrowth was the chemotherapy drug used to treat my ectopic pregnancy in the summer of 2006. To keep those creepy-crawlies dwindling, I'll be adding an herbal mouthwash to my oral hygiene routine.
So today I went in for my filling. After two oral surgeries (one pre-braces, the other to remove wisdom teeth), four years in braces, two fillings and one root canal (when it became clear that my first filling was inadequate) - all before my current dentist - you'd think that getting a simple little filling would be no problem for me. But I have to admit, I work very hard to ease my anxiety while at the dentist. Thankfully I have many yogic tools to choose from, but it helps a lot that our dentist is very gentle, very kind, and very good with the anesthetic! :-) That last bit of praise may sound funny, but I actually have had a hard time getting numb in my lower jaw prior to dental work (same with my Dad, it's something about the nerve being a little off from the "usual" place) and it's AWFUL. During treatment, I'm all about the focused mind, deep breaths, calm detachment and filling my body with Light.
Now I'm back home with numbness in half my face, and feeling that the anesthetic has begun to wear off (he warned it might be sensitive this evening). I got to pick up my new night appliance, which should help protect my teeth from all of that night-time jaw activity: grinding, chomping, clenching, etc. Even though my personal and professional lives revolve around the alleviation of stress, I had to accept that if the stress my body holds is working its way out while I'm unconscious, then the night appliance was my best bet in protecting my teeth (and my jaw muscles). At least, it should prove to be a great stop-gap measure until there isn't any stress to "work out" - asleep or awake!
Anyway, if you're in the Seattle area and looking for a good dentist, I highly recommend Dr. Mitch Marder.
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