when routine is not routine

I go to my dentist/periodontist for a routine screening, and leave worrying about losing my tongue and looking like poor jawless Roger Ebert before he died.

The hygienist notices a dark pigmented thing in the area under my tongue.  I know it's been there for a very long time.  I am pretty certain that in my many visits to many dentists over many years, I have asked about this thing.  And I remember being told it’s nothing.  But still.

The hygienist asks the doctor to look at it.  He does, and then says, “Nice find Amanda.”  Now I am nervous. “I am 98% sure it’s nothing to worry about,” he begins, “but I’d like to be certain.  I think we should biopsy it.”  I am all for certainty when it comes to cancer so I agree.  “What does it involve, when can you do it, and how much will it cost?”

He answers the first two questions and sends in his assistant to answer the third.

“I’ll numb the area and then remove a piece to be biopsied.  Then I’ll put a stitch in that will dissolve.”  He can do it in a half hour if I want it done today.  It'll only take about five minutes.  Definitely.  I’d rather get it over with than have more time to worry about the results.

And so that’s what happens today at my routine cleaning.  The cost hurts more than the procedure.

So now, except for a little discomfort, I am the same as when I left my house this morning.  Except for one small thing.  A new worry.