I hate the dentist because...

I decided to try a new dentist due to their proximity to work and figuring that no dentist is really all that different from another. Perhaps that is true for dentists but hygienists? I found out too late that that is an entirely different story. The first thing she noted was that my wisdom teeth were impacted, meaning they are there but haven't cut through the surface. Ominously said, she made impacted sound like an incurable disease...teeth growing into the back of my skull. I am sorry doctor, we tried to save her but her wisdom teeth were...impacted. So, off we go to the x-ray machine that takes a lap around your head to get the full picture. I had to remove my glasses for the x-ray and once complete, I turn around to hear her already half way down the hall telling me to come along, my glasses in hand. Um...I really can't see without my glasses. The white walls and white floors creating a blur of white as I move forward. With a laugh she comes back and grabs my wrist with one hand, as if to lead me, and hands me my glasses with the other. I put my glasses on, but am still being led by hand through the hallway. I can see fine but I don't want to yank my hand away, embarrassing her, and so we walk, hand in hand, back to the chair. Sliding into the reclining seat for the cleaning, I have a general sense of what to expect. My personal likes and dislikes of the cleaning process. I am not a big fan of the pointed scraper as it stands, but after having her Nazi hands wield it against my mouth, I have pretty much developed a full fledged phobia. She would mention that my gums were swelling as she seemingly took chunks out at will but that she hoped that it wouldn't cause too much pain tomorrow. That she hoped she didn't hurt me too bad. Oh, don't worry...I make those twisted expressions of agony all the time. It has nothing to do with you stripping away the outer layer of gum tissue. We all need to just face the facts. I shouldn't be allowed around a blow torch (almost lit myself on fire trying to light the grill manually tonight) and she, anything that comes to a point. At the end of the cleaning, I get sent to make the appointment with the oral surgeon, which is an entirely new set of fears regarding all things general anesthesia. I have never been put under and am fairly certain that my first time will end up with me waking up half way through the procedure. Still better than not waking up at all but really, neither seem favorable. Outside of braces in high school, I have had a pretty boring teeth history full of dentists that did Donald Duck impersonations and smiled with you and managed to clean your mouth without grabbing hold of your bottom lip to reposition your mouth. That is, in fact, not a nerve free zone. That said, after today, I finally realize how people can end up terrified of dentists. If I had had her clean my teeth when I was little, I would have sworn off dental hygiene long ago.