I admit it. That’s what I whined right into my dentist’s face when he told me I needed to have a root canal. I had a root canal a few years ago, so I knew the kind of pain I was in for. If I let him do it at all. I’d just had a baby, too. I knew exactly what I was saying. Comparing my memories of child birth with my memories of the root canal, I would much rather have another baby than another root canal.

Already uncomfortable in the dentist’s chair, tears slowly rolled down my cheeks as flashbacks of my root canal took possession of my imagination. He tried to console me as he finished his exam, but I was already wondering if another dentist in Orlando would tell me the same thing. A second opinion in dentistry is advisable, right? Maybe I’d even get three or four second opinions- or as many as it took to find someone who would tell me there was another option. As soon as I got home, I paid the baby sitter, then my baby and I began searching for dentists in Orlando.

It’s not that I have a phobia of dental care. I was just following the dentist’s advice to see him after my pregnancy. I made myself an appointment and got in there for a cleaning. Who doesn’t like having clean teeth? But who does like getting shot with anesthetic, hearing the awful sound of the drill, being numb for hours and biting her lip every time she tries to speak? Not I.

But then I read online that there are ways to anesthetize one single tooth, instead of the whole side of one’s face. There is even such a thing as an air abrasion tool that doesn’t mean drilling! Okay so, I didn’t need to join an online dental support group. No cognitive restructuring or behavior tweaking for me. Suddenly feeling much better, I called my dentist and asked about these new finagled techniques. He explained that he’d updated since my last root canal, alleviated my fears and by the end of the conversation, I had an appointment for my root canal.