Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 21:07 — 12.7MB) | Embed
Welcome to Stuff I Learned Yesterday. My name is Ben Crain and when I was a kid I had 13 cavities in only 12 teeth, and I believe if you aren’t learning you aren’t living. I’m so excited to be joining you today! I have been listening to SILY since day one, but this is the first time I’ve had the honor of hosting an episode.
In today’s episode I’m taking you on a journey through my mouth. Wait that sounds weird. What I meant to say, was I’m letting you peek inside the exciting history of Ben Crain’s dental history. Just what you were hoping for when you opened your podcast app today!
Today’s Fun Fact: Today’s Fun Facts are all about your teeth! Did you know?
- The average person only brushes for 45 to 70 seconds a day. The recommended amount of time is 2-3 minutes.
- More than 300 types of bacteria make up dental plaque. Yikes!
- If you don’t floss, you miss cleaning 40% of your tooth surfaces.
- More people use blue toothbrushes than red ones.
- Your tooth enamel is the hardest substance in the human body.
- Finally, the average American spends 38.5 total days brushing their teeth over a lifetime.
Those fun facts came from the Children’s Dental Village. Isn’t it amazing to think about standing in front of your bathroom mirror for 38 days straight, doing nothing but brushing? It’s funny how small amounts of time add up over a lifetime. Well, I have one more fact to share, although this isn’t a fun one.
What I Learned Yesterday
Did you know you can have more than one cavity per tooth? As I said earlier, I found this out the hard way as a small child. Now before you pass judgement on my commitment to dental care, you should know it was completely, 100%, without a doubt, my parents’ fault. Don’t be too hard on them though. You see, I was the first child and my parents were cutting their teeth on the whole parenthood thing with me. In fact, they thought they were being very responsible new parents by protecting their young son from the harmful effects of candy. I wasn’t allowed candy in the early days of life, but was instead offered nature’s candy, fruit!
That brings us to new parent mistake #1. According to my parents I was a big fan of fruit, especially grapes. Or grapes in their less hydrated form to be exact. Yes, I loved raisins! Raisins were my favorite snack and I gobbled them up whenever I had the chance. Ah yes, that sweet maiden on the red box holding a bounty of grapes was one of my best friends. Sun Maid Raisins and I were inseparable.
As it turns out, raisins are a much healthier snack than say a candy bar, or a chocolate bar for our listeners from Canada. The one problem with raisins, and the one thing my parents failed to realize, is that raisins are very high in sugar. Probably the reason I gobbled them up so fast. Still, eating a lot of sugar does not in itself lead to cavities in your teeth. Assuming you do a good job of brushing your teeth you can keep that sugar from slowly eating into your enamel.
That brings us to new parent mistake #2. Before I had the dexterity and understanding to adequately brush my own teeth, I relied upon my parents. Well, at this point in the story, I think it painfully obvious they were not up to that task. The sugar accumulation from box after box of raisins did its damage and my mouth was soon full of 13 cavities in only 12 teeth. It was so bad that I had to get silver caps put on 4 of my front teeth. I felt like a villain in a James Bond movie. I’m sure some kids would have thought this looked cool, but I just felt embarrassed.
On the bright side, I learned the importance of brushing my teeth after that incident. I vowed to never suffer the embarrassment of silver teeth again. I learned how to brush my own teeth and from that day on I took pride in my oral hygiene. Once my adult teeth came in I didn’t have another cavity before leaving home for college.
After college I moved out in the “real world.” That meant no longer enjoying the benefit of being under my parents’ insurance. I had to say goodbye to those regular 6 month dental visits and cleanings. I actually remember the last time I went to the dentist under their insurance. It was a sad day for me.
As time went on I finally got a job that included my own insurance with dental coverage. However, this took a couple of years and by then my wisdom teeth had begun to come in. I had heard horror stories of others having their wisdom teeth removed, and I was in no hurry to get mine pulled. If there was one thing I feared more than cavities, it was pain. I’m a big wuss. Come to think of it, the pain I associated with having cavities filled was one of the primary factors for motivating me to never have any again. Needles in my mouth, drilling, numbness… ah, it just makes me squirm thinking about it. So, the idea of actually removing teeth from inside my head was horrific!
I convinced myself that I didn’t need to have my wisdom teeth removed. The pain I felt as they came in wasn’t that bad and my mouth didn’t feel too crowded. Still, to be on the safe side I thought it best to avoid the dentist until I was sure. To help in my procrastination efforts, my job changed and my wife and I had to move. First we moved to Lubbock, TX and a few months later to Wichita Falls, TX. Of course any move is challenging, but moving to a town where you don’t know a soul is very difficult. It takes a while to find a church, make friends, get invited to someone’s house, and finally ask the all important question: “Do you have a dentist you recommend?” Just as we completed those first 3 steps and were inching closer to settling down, I changed companies and we had to move again.
Our next stop was Oklahoma City. My wife and I both had family in OKC, so the transition was a little easier. From the beginning we knew this was a temporary stop though, as I would be asked to move again for a permanent placement following a training period. With that knowledge, it just seemed silly to go to all the trouble of finding a dentist in our insurance plan, setting up an appointment, going to the appointment, and… well, I guess it doesn’t sound that bad when you say it out loud. At the time it seemed like a lot more work. Trust me. Anyway, after about 18 months we moved again. This time to Houston, TX.
Finally, this was going to be the place we stayed for a while. No more excuses. Only one problem, by this point in time it had been 5 years since I had been to a dentist, and I was very comfortable putting off what I had once looked forward to. It was just so much easier to not mess with the insurance network and set up an appointment. Sorry, there I go again. Well, we lived in Houston for 5 years. We had good jobs, good friends, a good church, a nice home, you get the idea. We had no plans to move, and I was finally ready to find a dentist. I actually began asking all of our friends about their dentist and even landed on one. I was ready to make an appointment. Then it happened. I got the call at work that my company wanted me to move to San Antonio, TX to set up a new store. The opportunity was too good and the doors opened too wide for us to say no. We sold our house, packed our boxes, and moved to San Antonio.
At this point, the dentist conundrum had gone on too long. I was ready to get my teeth checked and cleaned. So, shortly after moving we found a dentist… 3 years later. Wow, I’m bad, right? Well, it is very important for you to understand that while I may have neglected making an appointment, I did not neglect my oral hygiene.
I flossed with some regularity, brushed thoroughly, and rinsed with mouthwash twice a day. I even got an electric toothbrush with a timer. It beeps 4 times, every 30 seconds, so you know when to move to the next quadrant of your mouth. Knowing my wisdom teeth were still vulnerable to removal, I gave them extra attention. I never stopped brushing before the 2 minute cycle was complete.
One year ago I finally had my first dentist appointment in over 12 years. It is fair to say I was more than a little nervous. Would my wisdom teeth have to come out, did I have any cavities, were silver caps in my future again? No, no, and no! I passed my appointment with flying colors and I got to keep my wisdom teeth. My dental hygienist complimented me and was shocked when I told her how long my dentist drought had lasted. She said she had clients who come every 6 months with more plaque buildup than I had in 12 years. I walked out of the office that day feeling pretty good about my teeth, and more than a little proud of my superior brushing routine.
Over the next 6 months I brushed like normal, but every now and then I was in a rush for work, or feeling lazy before bed. I didn’t quite complete the 2 minute cycle with my toothbrush and my flossing routine went from once a day to once every couple of days. I still used a mouthwash twice daily and I felt like I was taking good care of my mouth. Before I knew it, my next dental appointment was upon me and I was back in the chair. The bright light was shining in my eyes and the dentist was politely asking questions as he shoved his fingers in my mouth making it impossible to answer. A few minutes later I got another good report and my teeth were clean and fresh. I did get some advice to wear a mouth guard while I slept. The one problem that had developed over the course of my decade long dentist neglect was erosion at my gum line. After my second appointment the dentist felt confident this was due to grinding my teeth at night.
So, I went and bought a mouth guard, molded it to my pearly whites, and began wearing it every night. Other than that my dental routine remained the same. Well, I may have let a few more days go in between flossing, but I still brushed for a solid 2 minutes almost every time. I remained confident I was taking the best care of my teeth I possibly could. After all, I had just had 2 more dental appointments in the last year than the previous 12. What could go wrong?
Famous last words right? Well, my most recent dental appointment came two weeks ago. I went in as usual, got updated x-rays of my mouth, and then calmly laid back in the chair to let the dentist do his inspection. He called out some watch spots, which was normal. He then told the dental hygienists about a couple of areas to check out and directed her to take a picture of one area at the back of my mouth. They pulled up my x-rays and he showed me a gray area in between a couple of my teeth. There was a spot developing that was a little concerning, but the dreaded “c” word did not proceed from his lips. I thought I was good. Overall, he seemed happy with what he saw and wished me a good day before leaving the room to go attend his next patient.
Next, the dental hygienist pulled up the picture she had taken and put it on the screen in front of me. There, at the top of my mouth on the left side, was a tooth with a terribly nasty looking black spot! The hygienist said that was one of the two cavities they were going to need to fill before they got worse. Wait, did she just say cavities? Two cavities? What is going on, I thought? Before I could ask any questions, she was busy cleaning my teeth and talking about the importance of brushing the teeth at the back of my mouth. All the while, my mind was racing, trying to figure out what had derailed my perfect track record since the dark days of raisins and parental brushing! Suddenly, a light bulb went off in my mind, and I realized what had changed since my last two visits to this office. I had begun wearing a mouth guard at night, at their direction. Both cavities were in my upper teeth, where the mouth guard covered. That was it! It had to be the mouth guard.
I waited for her to finish cleaning my teeth, and then I pounced. “Since I came in last time I began wearing a mouth guard like you asked,” I said. “Could that have any effect on these cavities developing?” Her mouth twisted slightly, and then she hesitantly said, “Yes, that could affect it. If you had anything left on your teeth before putting on the mouth guard, it would sit there the whole night. Normally, your saliva would wash this away, but the guard would prevent that from happening.” I knew it! Stupid mouth guard. She continued on, “I don’t want you to stop wearing the mouth guard though, you just need to brush a little better before you put it on.” Yeah, yeah, I thought. If it weren’t for the mouth guard you suggested, I would still have a cavity free mouth. Before I left the office, I made a follow-up appointment to have the cavities filled. On the way home I called my wife and gave her the bad news. She has perfect teeth by the way, so we have a friendly competition to see who does better at the dentist. Clearly, I was now the loser. I felt embarrassed, much like I did as a kid with silver teeth so many years ago.
The difference this time was I also felt a tinge of anger at the dentist for giving me bad advice. I only wore the mouth guard at their suggestion. I was doing what I was supposed to do. I relied on them and look where it got me. That night I flossed every nook and cranny of my mouth. I brushed until my electric toothbrush told me to stop and then went even longer. The next morning I repeated the same process. Later that night I did the same thing yet again. All the time I was thinking about that stupid mouth guard. Then, as I was brushing, another thought floated into my head. Every time I had brushed since returning from the dentist it felt like I was brushing for a really long time. I started thinking about how many times I had stopped brushing my teeth before the 2 minute cycle was complete leading up to this last dentist appointment. Once I went down this path in my head I realized I had probably stopped short of the timer more times than I had completed the cycle over the past 6 months. What started as a couple of quick brushings here and there had slowly grown more frequent. After each dentist visit I felt more confident in the state of my oral care and felt less motivated to avoid any negative consequences. In short, I put most of my faith in a biannual cleaning, and neglected my own daily responsibility.
Here’s What I Learned
Complacency is a sneaky little devil. It’s very easy to think we are maintaining the same standards, when in reality we let a little more slide each day. The cavities I have now are the result of not getting to the hard to reach spots in my mouth. Those out of sight, hidden crevices are easy to ignore when what is seen on the outside looks clean and shiny. Eventually, those cut corners catch up with us though. When that happens the consequences are hard to accept. I was quick to blame someone else when I got news I didn’t like. I didn’t want to examine myself for the role I played in this failure. I told myself I had done better on my own all those years.
You see, I am the type of person that has a hard time asking for help. If I figure out how to take care of something myself, that’s what I prefer. However, once I succumb to relying on someone else I tend to rely completely on them. At that point I want them to take over and do everything. I step back and move onto something else I can do myself.
My long history with my dental care has taught me that life doesn’t work that way. Trying to go solo doesn’t work forever. Only taking care of what I can see isn’t enough. We all have blind spots. Eventually, we need help. Of course, reaching out for help doesn’t absolve us from our own responsibility. We still have to put in the hard work on our end. It takes a team effort to reach our goals.
Since realizing my complacent efforts have lead to my first two cavities in over 30 years, I have rededicated myself to better oral care. I floss twice a day, brush every single tooth in my mouth for the appropriate amount of time, and rinse morning and night. I return to the dentist in a couple of weeks to have my cavities filled. I plan to walk in with cleaner teeth than when I last left. Once these cavities are taken care of, I plan to visit my dentist every 6 months for regular check up and cleanings. I will continue to get their help, but going forward I won’t let complacency sneak in on my daily routine.
Whether it is your dental care, or something even more serious, I hope you will take what I’ve learned to heart. Have you become complacent in some area of your life? Do you need help seeing a blind spot? Is it time to refocus your efforts? It’s never too late. Whether it’s been 10 years or 10 weeks, the time to start is today! My name is Ben Crain and this has been Stuff I Learned Yesterday.
I’m Ben Crain, and this has been Stuff I Learned Yesterday.
Follow Golden Spiral Media on Twitter at GSMPodcasts and facebook.com/goldenspiralmedia. To subscribe to Stuff I Learned Yesterday visit goldenspiralmedia.com/subscribe. If you’d like to join our popular Facebook group please go to facebook.com/groups/stuffilearnedyesterday and if you’ve enjoyed this episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I would be grateful if you’d leave a review in iTunes by going to goldenspiralmedia.com/itunes.