Or why am I not normal? Today I went to the dentist. I don't mind the dentist, usually. I needed a crown on one of my molars, the tooth had a fracture. OK, I do what I have to do. I tell the dentist that sometimes the local anesthetic doesn't work on me. I vaguely remember it not working when I went in for my root canal over 10 years ago. I think it's a vague memory because I have blocked it all out, and with good reason.
Well, it all came back today in full force. After 5 shots, I was still not numb. Each time that drill hit my tooth I felt an electric pulse run through my entire body. Man, that's unpleasant. I couldn't stop the tears even though I felt bad for the dentist. It was not his intent to cause pain. We had to finish since half my tooth was drilled and there was no going back now. With one more shot, the tooth was numb and the dentist was able to finish the job. But he was surprised by how hard it was for me to get numb. How unusual, he said. Why is it that I am unusual and not in a good way?
For example, I once had the worse case of strep that my doctor had ever seen. She called in the nurses so they could see it and learn from it. Nothing like being a sick person on display.
I'm apparently a medical anomaly. My dentist is going to do some research on why the anesthetic didn't take today. I read a little bit on the net and learned that 1 in 100 people are wired differently on the lower jaw, traditional numbing techniques don't work. While the anesthetic numbs the lips and the tongue, it does not numb the tooth. There's apparently two techniques that most dentists don't learn that you use on these special people.
Why am I medically special? While it seems to cause me undue suffering, it does seem to serve as a learning tool for others. Yay?
