Dennis Sun

DAISUKE

July-August 2013

Zsssoooshhhh! Ganyan kabilis ang panahon. Imagine, mahigit na kalahati na tayo ng taong ito. It’s amazing how time flies by and you don’t even realize it. It’s July already. Zoooom! It’s a sizzling hot summer in Japan now but perhaps it would be a cool autumn the next time you read my article.

Someone told me, “The older you get, the faster time seems to go.”  When we were young, we seemed to live in the present moment more. So, time seemed longer. But as we get older, we either live in the past… thinking and cherishing all those good and bad memories, or in the future… wondering and worrying about tomorrow. So before we even realize it, today is already gone!

Last week, I have been  experiencing a toothache here and there. Sa lahat pa naman ng mga “aches,” yun pa! Hate na hate kong pumunta sa dental clinic. Kahit siguro bigyan mo pa ako ng isang lapad, no, thank you! Why? Una, I don’t like the sound of drilling teeth lalung-lalo pa kung sa ‘yo! Masakit sa ears! Pangalawa, yung smell! Meron certain amoy na hindi ko maintindihan na para akong naglilihi kahit hindi! Naku! As if pwede akong maglihi! Anyway, I tried to postpone my trip to the dentist for a couple of weeks until hindi ko na talaga kaya yung sakit. 

The dentist asked me what was wrong. “Masakit po yung dalawang ngipin ko,” ang sagot ko. She took an X-ray of my teeth. Sabi niya, OK lang daw yung mga ngipin na kino complain ko. Pero meron daw akong dalawang ngipin na meron cavities inside na kailangan alisin. Kung hindi, baka ma impeksyon daw. O sige, e di, alisin natin. Yun pala, I had to undertake a root canal. Aray ko po! Aalisin nila yung decayed part ng tooth by removing half of the tooth and then, extract the nerve inside the root canal of the tooth by killing it. Once removed, they will clean the tooth and prepare to fill it up with plastic resin and then place a silver crown to protect it. Hay naku! Mukhang mamamatay ako sa sakit at nerbiyos! Naka 7 injections na ako ng anesthesia, masakit pa rin yung nerve kapag nahawakan. Nag worry yung dentist ko so she called the head dentist to handle my case about the naughty nerve. This time, he held a bigger injection which he inserted into my gums. Ang feeling ko, para akong hayop. Para akong nawalan ng pagkatao! Naka anim na balik ako sa dentist at hindi pa rin tapos yung root canal process. Eh dalawang ngipin pa man din yan. 

Ibang klase ang pagtrabaho ng mga dentist dito sa Japan. Pabalik-balik. Sa Pinas, sa isang visit, tapos lahat! I remember, last time I was at the dentist here, it took me 3 months on a weekly basis to finish every thing. Kaya after that, sabi ko sa sarili ko, huwag munang bumisita sa dentist for quite some time. Eh ngayon nga, parang gusto ko nang sumuko!

I am just wondering… yung mga dentist. Imagine, you work with open mouth and teeth every single day of your life. You have to face cavities and tooth decay and drill teeth and most of all, smell bad breath! At the end of the day, if I were a dentist, parang ayaw ko nang halikan ang asawa o jowa ko! Di ba? It’s like when you kiss and you imagine all those cavities and germs inside his or her mouth. Can I say, “Before I kiss you, can I check your mouth and teeth first? O kaya, Did you brush your teeth? Nag mouth wash ka na?”

I remember my sister who is a doctor now. She told me when they were pre-med students, they had to dissect frogs, cats and some animals as part of their training before they go directly dissecting dead human bodies. Some of them couldn’t stand eating meat for a long time because of the trauma and shock.

I read in one science magazine before that of all the branches of medicine, dentristy is left behind in terms of advancement. Parang nasa stone age pa rin daw when it comes to handling patients. Also, there’s the dental trauma. Kasi siguro, yung drilling. 

Pero why do we hate going to the dentist? NEEDLE! Need I say more? Actually, this is very important para lalong hindi ka masaktan. Huwag ka lang tumingin. Actually, my dentist is very good in doing her injections because she literally covers my eyes not telling me when she does it. Before you know it, tapos na pala. 

PAIN!!! Lagi kong tanong. “Itai desu ka?” Dental pain can be excruciating especially when the nerves are affected! 

ANXIETY. You have the feeling of uneasiness. You worry so much before the appointment that you can’t sleep. You worry about everything that’s going to happen. 

INVASIVENESS. Dentists open your mouth widely and put the fingers and tools inside your mouth. You get the feeling of being violated afterwards. And last but not the least, the.. 

DRILLING!!! I think this is the worst torture of all! Marinig mo lang yung sound ng drilling equipment, para na akong pinapatay. Ipasok mo pa ito sa bunganga mo at i-drill ang ngipin. Feeling helpless talaga!

Pero we really need to take good care of our teeth. Because as time goes by, we may have to say good bye to them. And when they are gone when we are still alive, we will have to settle with false teeth! Naku! This reminds me of my grandma’s false teeth and she placed them in a glass of water every night before going to bed. We, kids, were so afraid of them they might move on their own and bite us!!!

Expensive ang dental costs pero swerte tayong nasa Japan kasi covered naman ito ng National or Company Health insurance natin. Konti na lang ang babayaran kaya go na sa dentist. Huwag pabayaan masira ang mga ngipin. At kapag maganda ang ngipin, masarap mag smile. And when you see people smiling, laging masaya!