Toothache issue started in early April, which I think mostly due to the many chocolates that I consumed in since March - attribute to stress... that's the time when many things were crushing in - not only the 15th anniversary celebration items (when there were lots of chasing) but also the last minute add-ons like study notes and additional guidance to go...
It subsided after that... but when May came, it started to re-appear, and elevated to much discomforted to the gums and the cheek and some discomfort to the left eye! I think that's serious enough to get some attention.
Decided to see the dentist on 9 June 2025 Monday (though it's a make-up holiday), I gave it a try!
While the dentist was on leave, the dental receptionist helped to quickly book an appointment with the nearest available dentist to Tampines - at Changi Airport Terminal 3. She did not stop there, but even checked and advised me what's the nearest route and transport to take. I'm grateful to her help!
By 10am, I reached the dental clinic. Again, met with another helpful dental receptionist - who helped to checked on available promotion package for scaling and cleaning. I counted my lucky stars for the day!
Another pleasant surprise - I met my 'very first' dentist who extracted my wisdom tooth many many moons ago! He could not recall - but said it must be very long ago as he had been working from the Changi Airport branch for many years, too! I felt that I was in safe hands!
Did an Xray of the teeth.. (but I forgot to take a photo of that Xray). The chipped tooth on the right that I broke a couple of weeks ago was first detected. Nevertheless, it was challenging to find any 'hole' on my right tooth.
The hole in the right tooth was filled. While no hole was found the left tooth where I experienced the pain (around the gum area), he showed me a thin line that appeared on one of the tooth which could be a hairline crack. Root canal could be one of the resolution if it's diagnosed with deeper issues. Nevertheless, an examination with a more powerful Xray machine is necessary before the verdict. The cost is going to be hefty!
One helpful thing he mentioned was, going to the Polyclinic would be cheaper but it would be a much longer wait. Yes, why I had never thought of the polyclinic? Probably because I know only private clinic can give a quick fix to the painful problem currently experiencing.
A check in the Health Buddy showed that there's dental service in the Pasir Ris Polyclinic. Nevertheless, need to call for appointment. To my pleasant surprise, I could fix an appointment in 2 days' time! Surprisingly fast - I must be really very lucky.
On WED (18 June), the check was pretty fast - but this time, very focused - had an Xray targeted at the tooth that's giving problem.
This time, it's a zoomed in Xray, showing how strongly these teeth were 'mounted'. The dentist also did an 'ice' test for these tooth to further diagnose which tooth is possibly facing the issue.
Indeed, I think there's a pretty thorough examination done to the teeth... she was checking one by one and it's recorded. Seems like most of them are still in good condition, though the colour does not look that good - which Dentist Bernard Lee already accounted that it could be due to medication I had in my early life.
Feel that I was quite fortunate for this entire toothache episode - being able to get the necessary attention and care quite quickly. Grateful!
Because of this toothache, I learnt that one way to improve the mouth hygiene is to drink peppermint tea.
