I guess both kids have inherited my awful teeth. Two years ago (from now) I took Gabe to the dentist and she found 3 cavities. She said they were small and to just keep an eye on them. At the next appointment, she discovered that they had all grown substantially, and one was so bad that he would need a mini root-canal, which meant going to a pediatric dentist.
This place was an hour away. Poor Gabe. He wasn't very happy when the procedure was finished. I didn't care for the dentist that much. She seemed self-conscious and unfriendly to me. $400 later, Gabe had a nice silver tooth. He didn't want to show anybody for a while, but now he's at peace with it.
As if Gabe's silver tooth wasn't expensive or a big enough pain, turned out that Elisa needed one as well. At her last dental appointment, the dentist discovered a cavity in each molar. She said that the enamel in her molars didn't come in properly. So we went back to the same pediatric dentist (that is way too far away) to get her cavities filled. When we got there, the ped dentist said she would need a silver tooth in one of her back molars. And she wouldn't go ahead with the procedure without getting clearance from Elisa's heart doctor first. What a fiasco. So I had to set up another appointment to go back. Gabe just got the Nitrous Oxide and he was fine, but since Elisa is younger, the dentist said that she wouldn't be comfortable doing the procedure on Elisa without sedating her first. $300 for sedation! Yeesh. I told them it would be too expensive, and they knocked 50% off the price. Erik said he could slip Elisa some sedative before the procedure, but I didn't think that was a good idea, so I just agreed to pay the $150 for the sedative.
Elisa looked forward to the appointment, obviously she didn't understand what an uncomfortable procedure it was, even with sedation. So we made the obnoxiously long drive back to the pediatric dentist again. Elisa was a good girl during the sedation process. After the procedure, she was very unhappy. I think she was in some pain. I took the kids to McDonalds for a Happy Meal and wasted a dollar on a silly toy that Elisa didn't even like. I went to Dairy Queen and bought her a shake, and she felt much better!
Hopefully I'll never have to step foot into a pediatric dental office ever again, but if they've inherited my awful enamel, then I see root canals and fillings galore in their future!
I think Erik and Makayla took fluoride tablets at a young age. I suppose if there's a small cavity, it should be filled right away to prevent the mini-root canal. I found out that white fillings cost more than silver, and it's harder to keep moisture off of the white ones when filling. Gabe and Elisa are both brave, and they do a good job always brushing their teeth!
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