It was a disaster waiting to happen, and when it finally did last week, the price to pay was pretty steep. For starters, Pak Abu is RM2,000 poorer for it (alaahai, kesian), all because of my dental stump (poor me too!).
My dental bridge fixed in 1989*, which was supposed to have lasted longer than it actually did, came loose due to a broken tooth that had left a stump embedded in the upper gum.
(*You know how it was to be a rural schoolkid in the 1960s, when the "gomen" dentist set up shop 3-4 times a year at one's school and pulled out kids' teeth with joyful abandon at the merest hint of a cavity. No filling, no nothing; extraction was the only answer.
This "cabut gigi" spree had resulted in many of us "budak kampung" growing up with yawning chasm in our mouth, that had to be rectified with dentures, bridges, or, if your folks have 'fulush', implants.
Also, in those days braces were unheard of. If your chompers grew willy-nilly like a lopsided picket fence, so be it. You just had to live with them, or wait until you earned your own money to have them straightened).
I thought the stump could wait until after Raya, but the pain was too much to bear. So off I went to a dentist here in TTDI a week ago to have it removed. The extraction left a messy tear that required several stitches.
I went through Raya with barely bearable pain from a swollen gum (the stitches were only removed yesterday); but a woman's gotta do what a woman's gotta do come Raya (and for this woman, it was cooking nasi minyak and kuzi ayam for days in a row).
Anyway, the swelling has subsided somewhat although the pain is still there. It's so tough coping with dental stress faced with the abundance of lemang, rendang, ketupat and serunding, not to mention 17 types of diabetes-enhancing cookies.
I am staying put (no visiting, no open house and yeth, definitely no meetings with clients, no thir!) until the gum heals completely, at least another week, says the good doc. What a Raya!
On that score, I herewith lisp to you ... "Thelamat Hari Raya Maaf Thahir dan Bathin!
31 comments:
Puteri,
plith gith well sthepat2!!
Dato' Jaflam punya ghumah ada open houth!! You mesthi dathang!!
We all yang jauh kat Kuantan ni dah plan dathang!!
Can't wait to hear you belt out a song again..sedapnya!!Pro betul!!
hahaha...semput aku!
Madam,
...and thame thoo u.
Derebar
Kesiannya! Tak apa, whats RM2000 to Pak Abu for his Sayang.
You all will be going to Jaflam's house? Alamak, I have to do another cookathon that day and won't be able to make it!
Geth well thoon, puttycat! Wanth tho hear you thing.
oooh kethiaaaan! Get well thooon!
Hi Puteri,
Heheh, I didn’t know dental problem can be contagious too, with nasty friends like that who needs enemy. Ya-lor making silly sound just to rub it in, memang takde baik. Soli hah ladies, no offends.
Yeah dental health care can be quite expensive these days. Lucky me, my mom insisted I get a dental check up every six month since I had my permanent teeth. Good foresight, long term investment on her part, I only need to go for my annual scaling these days. Hey, I still got my full set still except for my wisdom tooth. That explains all ya why I get so stupid sometimes….muahaha.
Salam,
Tommy
derebar, nanaDJ, kak teh - strangely enough, this 'bloated lips' feel is similar to what i felt when my late grandma tenyeh my lips with cili for cussing..
tommy - that's what friends are for; to help lift your spirit when the chips are down.
you are lucky to hv been a city boy, with a mother who actually cared about yr dental health. me, i was raised by grandparents to whom 'sakit gigi' and 'cabut gigi' go hand-in-hand.. hehehe
Ohhh Kak Putheri...you remind me!! This thilly tooth of mine has been bothering me since puasa. Tahan the thakit off and on. But now, I can't hang in there anymore. Really gotta go visith the dentist lorr. I'm scared sh*t plus kecut jugak as to what the thamage is gonna be like.
Fuhh thusah gak nak thahan the temptations of from jemputan open houses here & there tu :)
Kay - dental treatment is very expensive these days ya. Each visit set me back roughly RM500. I have gone for 3 visits thus far; the final one is next monday... (sighh)..
btw, you better see a dentist fast. delaying it will only make it worse, not to mention menanggung sakit.
Kak
Saya ni dah lama sangat tak sakit gigi or whatsoever laa..tapi bila baca pasal dental cost ni sekarang, mai pitam lah jugak...$2000 tu kak boleh beli rantai emas kak oiii..hehehehe
Cari gomen sepital je nampak nya ....
ezza - kat puteri pun dah berpuluh tahun tak sakit gigi. alih2 dekat raya dia buat hal. kalau tak pasal sakit, entah2 pi dentist gomen gak kot. tapi bila dah sakit sangat tuh, tak terpikir dah rantai emas dek oii..LOL!
Salam Kak Puteri,
Sakit pun dapat, duit pun kurang ya! :D
Hopefully you're feeling better now. We do our dental check ups and treatments in Msia because the cost here is very, very high. Except for the kids, of course. They get everything for free but mak bapak kena tahan telinga kalau ada lubang kat gigi anak anak. Lecture mengalahkan guru tadika! :D
Kesian Kak Puteri. Takpelah, yg penting its all over now and very soon ul be able to eat all those yummy raya goodies again. Baca orang lain punya comment mengusik Kak Puteri, sungguh kelakar.
My Sporean friend here plan nak ke Msia next yr during summer holiday with her kids to do all teh dental works there sbb kat sini kan mahal gila. Is the dentist your usual one or just that 1 time?
Naz - In any case, I shouldn't complain too much sebenarnya sebab comparatively, dental cost in places like yours memang mahal gila. Thankfully, your kids are covered by the state. In Malaysia cost of private dental treatment is still considered decent. In private clinic, extraction of one tooth costs RM150 - RM200. Root canal will set you back about RM1k or so.
Farina - although we don't go to dentist often, it is the dentist the family frequent. clinic dia dekat row of shop next to what used to be known as IBM building (now dah renamed VADS Building).
I remember dulu2 when the kids were small I used to take them to the govt dental clinic kat University Hospital sebab treatment was free. tapi had to wait so long, sometimes sampai 4 hours.
Teringat le pulak time sekolah rendah dulu when the dentists come to school. Bila nurse masuk class nak panggil nama, kecut perutlah masing-masing menunggu "siapa yang kena"!
Takut bebenor nak jumpa dentist time tu!
Aunty Puteri,
Kethian dia ye...come, let me give u a hug. Still painful, a lick on the face. Still painful? Ayoyo...cannot help lor! Come, we'll masak bubur for you...
Kak puteri...
la nih dah okay kot noooo?
kalau blom...get well soon ya :)
selamat hari raya :)
Salams, aunty...sorry to hear abt your bridge problems. Had a reunion with Tok Bet as well. You can view the pix via my blog: olizaimen.blogspot.com by clicking on my facebook badge. It's been sooo long since I've last saw him...Also love the pix of Tok Cik. Haven't seen her since Tok Cik Rahman passed. Please send my love to her. Selamat Hari Raya!!
They should give us senior citizens discount, after all it's us yang provide them much business lah
Tumpang lalu Puteri,(TQ)
Hey Taukeh Soh, now admit 'senior citizen' oreadi ka? Please spik 4 urself, the rest of us still young at heart mah!...heheh. Give u discount oso kenot / not enuff to buy the Mahsidi tyre mah...LOL.
Cheerio,
Tomee
Mmmm, sorry kama, this apek nakal tau. Apek, we claim senior citizens discount when it benefits us lah. Other times we can rock like spring chickens ;)
I felt the Padang quake tremor lah here in USJ - definitely not old-age jitters.
Hey Puteri, on the subject of senior citizens, do u remember Dustin Hoffman in the ‘Marathon Man’? Yes, that really turns one off visiting the dentist.
Oso I don’t know whether u recall back in those days, travelling ‘snake oil’ salesmen used to go around kampong to kampong doing some roadside magic shows as well as peddling their ‘magic’ cure all ointment, for toothache & any other ailment ( 1 size fits all type). I thot I vividly remember they performed tooth extractions too, with strings, pliers etc if I’m not mistaken…Anyone can confirmed or is it a figment of my imagination?
Tommy.
Kama,
When my son Azrin had his wisdom tooth extracted out it costs him RM450, "it was that expensive?" I asked him. Now you are telling me yours cost RM2K? Lucky thing I am Pak Zawi and not Pak Abu.
Pak Zawi, yang 2k tu sebab kena minor surgery dan kena jahit pulak selain extraction, and also termasuk cleaning of plaque dsb. kalau extract saja RM150-200 sebatang. tu belum masuk aftercare adn ubat-ubatan pulak.. mahal segalanya.. (sighhh)..
Pokoknya.. from now on kena pay more attention to dental health. kalau tidak, pokai memanjang ler nampaknya..
Pi - i hv similar recollections of those childhood days, Pi. Takut betul kat dentists.
Cat - i am reduced to eating chicken porridge from McDonalds for a time being, Cat.
Edelweiss - bengkaknya dah masin surut, tq. by next week doctor kata should be ok.
Liza - i dah pi tengok awai2 lagi, kak teh suruh. nice pix of tokbet with yr grandma..
Zendra - ada discount ka for wargamas? come october 25 i would qualify as one oredi :)
Tommy - not a figment of yr imagination, tommy. itu betul punya; the travelling medicine men cum traditional dentist. they did use pliers and strings and such.
Thedapnya Kuthi Ayam Mak Thok
hehe.. sib baik bengkaknya dah mula surut.
Dear Kak Puteri
By the time you read this, rathanya thakit dah hilang. Speedy recovery ya.
Malam tadi I had this bad toothache too, tulah makan daging banyak sangat masa raya. Heard this petua; rendam batu koka dlm air masak and drink it. Menjadi jugak, alhamdulillah, but dont think can last long.
Ohh.. Kama sorry to hear about your 'sakit gigi' during hari raya. Hope you get well soon.
What's batu koka?
Kayu koka besa la dengaq.
Post a Comment