Translational issues

Going to the dentist sucks for me in general. Slowly though I'm getting over my intense fears. However, today proved that I'm still having communication issues with the people in the dentist offices here.

Some background information, last winter I had 5 front teeth removed due to decay issues. I now have a beautiful partial denture giving me the lovely smile I've always dreamed of. I got this partial in January this year after lots of dental work to repair the rest of my teeth and get the denture made.

In June of this year I began to feel that the denture didn't quite fit any more. It comes out if I bite anything too soft, or eat anything remotely sticky with a sauce or topping on it. So I went to the dentist office and tried to get the receptionist (who speaks no English) to reserve a time for me with my regular dentist to fix this problem. She apparently didn't understand my problem and gave me a time with a new dentist in a different office. I accepted the time and of course attended that appointment.

That appointment was today. I went in and this dentist, unlike my regular one, doesn't speak any English either. Now my Finnish isn't terrible, of course its not fluent either, but I don't always have the words to explain things especially medical/dental things. But the short story is that the receptionist should have given me two times for this new dentist to be able to fix anything about my denture because she would need time to make a new relief of the inside of my mouth and send it off to the lab to get a new prosthetic made. Then I'd have to come back the next day or the day after to get it fit properly etc. Getting a new prosthetic is a process and I realize this. But the entire situation sucked because this new dentist didn't have any times free until December. So she couldn't do anything for me today.

Now I'm stuck waiting with teeth that come out and make eating almost anything in public more than a bit embarrassing. The new dentist is sending a message to the regular dentist and I'm supposed to wait until I get a call or a note in the mail with new times for the regular dentist or a slip sending me straight to the lab to fix this problem. So for now I'm stuck with teeth that don't quite fit right and the endless waiting game that is the dentist offices here.

*sigh*

Mel