PSA: See your goddamned dentist regularly

TL;DR at bottom. So, about 2 month ago I got a tooth ache in my rear left molar. After about a month of it getting more and more painful, I decided to bite the bullet (Oh haha.) and fork up the $150 dental exam fee to see if I needed a filling. I had not had a dental checkup in five years, as I work for a little above minimum wage and didn't want to spend that kind of money on something I considered superfluous as my teeth were fine.

Then I had the X-ray.
Turns out my lower wisdom teeth were impacted (sideways) and had grown so deeply into my molars that the molar roots were essentially rotting away. All in all, 6 of my teeth had to be surgically extracted to prevent further damage and relieve what had become debilitating pain, which cost me $2240. This constituted the significant majority of the savings I have been very slowly accumulating over the last several years. But that isn't where it ended. First, I developed Dry Socket. Not uncommon after an extraction, but very very painful. Back to the dentist for treatment, although the cost was included as aftercare in the original bill, so no big deal. Everything started to heal up properly except for what I thought was a splinter of tooth still working its way out of my gum that was starting to cut my tongue. Back to the dentist to get it pulled. Unfortunately, it wasn't a splinter. It was my lower jawbone, pushing its way through my gum tissue because of something called Lingual Bone Dehiscence, an extremely rare complication of the extraction. The only treatment: literally filing down the bone so the gum can regrow. This procedure was not covered by aftercare, and cost another $600. So I miserably handed over the last of my savings and $200 I had to borrow and went under the file. All was going well (except for the sound) until what felt like a lightning bolt went down my jaw. Nerve damage. I knew it was a possibility as I had been told by the dentist. What I did not realise was that it meant that i lost all sense of feeling and taste in the left side of my tongue. Most likely permanently. And all of it could have been prevented if I had just gone for a checkup earlier.

After all that I have two pieces of advice for people: get regular checkups, and maybe consider going to dental school. It pays very well.

TL;DR Lost 6 teeth, the feeling and taste in half of my tongue, and all the money I had in the world because I didn't want to spend 150 bucks on a checkup.

Dog Tax my goofy girl Mox