Hi, my name is Courtney and I'd rather scoop out my own eyeballs with two rusty spoons than step…read morefoot in a dentist's office. Like...for.really.real.
Because of a particularly traumatic dental experience ages ago, I took a dental-visit hiatus for, uh, a few years. Maybe more than a few years. And then, you know, five kids, etc. Wellllll, my littlest is now in school full day so I have no excuse to neglect my oral health a minute longer.
SIGH.
Fine. I'll go, I said to myself, but I'll hate it. I'll go, but it's going to be awful. Terrible. THE WORST THING EVER.
Knowing my teeth were a bit...rough, I asked to go exam first instead of jumping into a full-blown cleaning. Enter Lea, the angel of teeth. Perhaps she's the real life Tooth Fairy? I don't know. But what I do know is this: this woman is magic. She was my starting point: she's the hygienist and took all my x-rays, did a preliminary exam, etc. You know how some people just WAFT goodness and kindness? Yeah, that's Lea. Knowing my intense anxiety, she explained everything every step of the way and checked in on my comfort throughout. She's a great conversationalist and it really helped me to stay calm and not obsessively focused on my mouth. I met Dr. Carly briefly at this point, but my first two appointments were with Lea (the first aforementioned and then a second one for another round of "deep cleaning").
Today's appointment was all Dr. Carly and she is *awesome*. I spent all last night tossing and turning and lamenting and even before we started...ugh, I was riddled with anxiety. But here's the thing: Dr. Carly is a gentle dentist with incredible precision and she's not at all shy with the novocaine. My appointment was this morning and I'm still pretty numb at almost five at night. Trust me...I am *not* complaining. I didn't feel a THING while she worked her magic. And now I am officially cavity free. She checked in on my comfort throughout, asked me if I needed breaks, etc. I felt like she was truly concerned with my comfort and sought to make this experience entirely positive. She succeeded. And then some.
Additional-but-entirely-necessary-shout-outs: Olga was Dr. Carly's assistant today and she, too, is incredibly sweet--so friendly and personable. Helen, who runs the office, is both ridiculously patient (I'm a scheduling nightmare) and mind-blowingly organized. She was also able to unsnarl the dental insurance snafu and knew exactly what was covered before I was even finished with my x-rays at visit #1. Amazing.
The entire office environment is SO positive and so perfect for the "high anxiety patient" (hi, that's clearly me). You immediately feel like you're surrounded by friends of yours. It's such a welcoming practice. Seriously so.
If you've been on the fence about seeking dental care because you have moderate-to-severe dental anxiety, this is the place you NEED to call. While I'm sorry I put it off for so long, I'm so very, very grateful I found Oak Forest Family Dental. Dr. Carly, Lea, the whole team...just incredible. :)
