The Whole Tooth and Nothing but the Tooth

Not The Harried Homemaker's Mouth. I wasn't that calm.

I spent an intense three hours in the chair at the dentist's office today. Apparently when you reach your thirties, cavity germs decide to cluster bomb your molars. That's what happened to me, anyway. I had my first cavity when I was fixin' to turn 31. And I didn't just have one cavity that first time, I had four! It might have something to do with a wicked Hot Tamale addiction during my last pregnancy. It might also be related to my crazy ridiculous consumption of carbonated beverages. That's just a theory.

As the drill was bearing down on me, I fought back the urge to run away by meditating on how important it is to maintain your dental health. The laughing gas helped, too.

Why you should get your dental work done now:

1. Dentists don't work during TEOTWAWKI. That's the rumor, anyway.
2. Cavities and gum disease are linked to all sorts of nasty things: heart disease, diabetes, strokes, and preterm births of low birth weight children, among others.
3. A toothache is a big bummer. As if you need something else to make you miserable when TSHTF. Dental health could have an impact on your psychological health. 
4. If you don't have teeth, you can't eat. Better hope your wheat grinder works well cause you could be gumming all that wheat you should be storing.
5. In a worst case scenario, your little cavity could turn into something more. It could get infected and require antibiotics. The infection could spread to the rest of your body without treatment. I don't know about you, but I think a cavity is a pitiful way to die. If I'm going to go out post-SHTF, it better be for something I couldn't prevent.   

Schedule an appointment with your local dentist if you haven't been in a while and stock up on toothpaste, toothbrushes and floss while you're at it.