A Dental Cleaning

Today my friend Rita and I had our teeth cleaned at the local clinic that belongs to the university. I don't have medical or dental insurance in the States, and since my last cleaning was about a year ago, I decided to put a Chinese teeth cleaning on my to-do list.

The dentists, or hygenists, whoever they were had just arrived back from their lunch/rest period. They were wearing normal clothing, and casually put on their white Dentist jackets when they arrived. The dentist chairs looked about the same as in the States. The hygenist showed me that she was using a new drill bit to work on my teeth. She screwed it on the drill, and begin to buzz away at my teeth. At certain points the drill bothered me and the sensitive parts of my gums. It was more uncomfortable than a cleaning in the US, but it was a lot shorter. I told Rita to tell the hygenist that I didn't want any pain, and she translated back to me that they replied,

"Don't worry it will only like a seismic earthquake." That was the rough translation (with the help of Rita's phone dictionary) and it didn't give me any comfort.

After the buzzing away, the hygenist sponged some stuff inbetween my teeth near the gums, told me to wait 10 minutes and then rinse it off.

The whole cleaning lasted about 10-15 minutes.

Rita went next, and was very nervous. It was her first time to get a dental cleaning. She pressed her nails so hard into her arm that she had marks afterwards. She agreed it wasn't that bad, but said it hurt a little. Her mother told her that cleanings were bad because they would take away from the tooth's natural protection. The hygenist told her that was false, and to get a cleaning once every 6 months.

They hygenist told me to brush up and down, not in circles like I have been doing, and to be more gentle when I brush.

All in all, the cleaning cost me $5 each. A good experience, and no cavities.