Novocaine for my Seoul

• Many of you are wondering, “Renee, where have you been?” “Long time no write,” and so on. Well, my sister came to visit for 3 weeks, and then I was sick for 2 weeks after that. Must have been withdrawals from not being with my sister, since I had been with her night and day for 3 weeks, clearly I became addicted.
Anyway, this blog is not going to be an update on what my sister and I did for 3 weeks. Nor is it going to tell about my river rafting adventure or learning how to cook pajeon (Korean pancake). No, this post is about how I went to the dentist. Sounds exciting right? Well, just keep reading, it gets interesting.
Every year, all of the employees have to go for a physical exam. So, Hui Kyung and I went together to where they perform the physical exams for large companies. When we arrived, we filled out some forms and then changed into our spiffy, orange, monk-style scrubs. We are herded around through a gantlet of test with other employees in scrubs. We do blood work, urine tests, eye exams, hearing tests, and “womb tests.” Hui Kyung and the others also went for chest x-rays and mammograms, but since I get to do that at City of Hope when I get home (as part of a long term study) I opted out of those tests. No need for the extra exposure to radiation, or booby smashing.
After we finished these tests, we were presented with the option of having a dental exam, too. Knowing that I will not have health insurance, let alone dental insurance when I return home without a job, I jumped at the chance to see a dentist. Little did I know that going to the dentist in Korea is not like going to the dentist in the U.S. I got what they called “scaling” done for a little less than $40. It’s very similar to getting your teeth professionally cleaned in the US, but it’s much faster. It only takes about 5 minutes on the top and the bottom, which is a definite plus. Downside is it sounds worse then fingernails on a chalkboard!
Have you ever been so unfortunate as to be driving in the rain and have the rubber peal off of your windshield wipers and scrape along the glass? No, well I’m sure you can use your imagination and this is what was happening inside my head, for 10 minutes.
Oh wait, the story gets better. Much better! Have you ever been so unfortunate as to have a dentist drill into your tooth without giving you Novocain first? No, not that either huh? I can just hear your reaction, and oh yes, I have.
Apparently I had a small cavity on one of my back molars. So, the dentist said to me, “I suggest small pain, no shot.” My initial reaction, “I suggest you shove it!” But he kept insisting it would be a small pain. I asked, “long pain,” motioning with my hands, but he said no, “small pain.” So, foolishly I believed him and said I would try my best to endure the pain. And I did. I survived it. Thanks due in part to the dental assistant holding my arm and soothing me as best she could.
Actually, it was nothing compared to a bone marrow biopsy. No, haven’t been so unfortunate enough for that one either eh? Well, that’s far worse than having a dentist drill into your tooth without Novocain. I’m sure if it was a deep cavity I would not be saying the same thing though. Overall, I’m glad I did it. It was way cheaper then dental work in the U.S. and I can now go another year without visiting the dentist.