Sarah-Sensei's Ramblings

So, I had a couple appointments today-- to try and get some of those annoying necessities out of the way. I saw a gynecologist, (which not only made me give a urine sample but took blood too O_O; I never had one ask for all THAT). She seemed nice enough though and I think I wouldn't mind seeing her again. (Her last name is Chappelle-- though she pronounces it like "chapel." Before I went, I kept imagining a Dave Chappelle comedy routine where he's giving gynecological exams XD )

I also went to a new dentist (since I haven't been to one since I moved to GA). The office was ok if a LITTLE pricey (are they ever really cheap?)... The cleaning and care was ok too and the X-rays show I have no cavities (yay).

However, this particular dentist wanted to give me a hard sell on getting my teeth whitened. Now, I'll admit, I'd LOVE to have whiter teeth. But I never tried doing it because I have a broken front tooth that was repaired when I was a kid. The repair job is probably about 15-18 years old and has held up really well. It, however, makes it impossible to whiten my teeth without it being a convoluted mess.

This guy wanted to do about $1,350 worth of work on my teeth xx; He wanted to 1) whiten them with this "home" bleaching kit where they make an impression of my teeth and send me home to do the rest. Cost: $350. 2) put a porcelain veneer on my "broken" tooth instead of the bonding that is there because that will never whiten up properly. Cost: $1,000 (for one freaking tooth OMG!)

I made a face when he said $1,000 and he said that he might be able to just redo the bonding on my tooth to lighten it up for about $250-$300... which is more cost effective.

I told him I'd have to talk to my husband about that :P (man that's a good excuse!)

I went home and did some research and I'm pretty confident that I would NOT want to waste my money on a veneer. The upkeep is... well, annoying. I know I clench my teeth at night on occasion when stressed and this can crack it. I bite my nails sometimes (though not with that tooth because it's bonded already) but this can ALSO chip/break the veneer. They stain with coffee, tea and/or tobacco... soooo in a few years the thing would probably be yellow ANYWAY. They can't un-stain them, just replace them (for another $1,000 I imagine). And the cement that holds them on, tends to yellow too...

Yeah, this sounds like an option for people who can throw away money on a lot of nonsense and upkeep ;p Oh and they said they might last 10 years or more but because they are so new no one is sure... (yeah another $1,000 in 10 years sounds like a crappy investment).

It's not that I wouldn't LOVE to whiten my teeth, I just think... that it'd be a lot of money for little return. They are going to yellow again ANYHOW. I mean unless my teeth get so bad I look like the Bride of Frankenstein here, I don't see any reason to blow that much money on them right now <<;

Another issue I see with this is the usual, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" I'm TERRIFIED that if I decide to fuck with that bonded tooth then BAD things will happen. I'm not even just talking about the veneers here-- I mean this thing has lasted me a LONG TIME. Which means my dentist did a kick ass job on it. I'm worried that if I let this dude mess with it or redo it then I'll be SORRY.

I dunno... my dentist in Pittsburgh was always a straight forward no-nonsense dentist. He kinda took into consideration that people aren't made of money so he only told you what you HAD to do. He never made a big deal out of my teeth being a little "yellow."

I'm feeling like this is not something I want to worry about at this time... Though, the whole him making an issue out of it makes me a little self-conscious :\

White teeth would be nice... I'm just not sure I'm willing to risk the potential hassle :p