Gratitude, day 1: Thank you Mr. Dentist

Good Morning Mr. Dentist,

I hated you before knowing you. I told you that. I was honest from my first visit. You see, I grew up in a war zone and we had to manage with what was available. I had an infection and needed a root canal procedure. No dentists were working, but some friend of my uncle's had the key of his friend's clinic where he used to work (assist the dentist, cleaning the utensils, etc). He said he'd learned by watching. He did the job, without anesthesia of course. I got poisoning and a more severe infection.

I didn't hate that man but I hated dentists, all of them. I've done my best to avoid them all my life. So, please don't take it personally. It wasn't you.

I had to go and see you again this morning. I stressed and panicked as usual but felt relief as I made my momentous decision: Today was the day. Today I would ask you to schedule appointments to pull out all of my teeth and have false teeth fitted instead.. I entered the clinic with pride and freedom. I allowed you to check my mouth and suggest what had to be done and I made my big announcement: 'I have decided doctor: I want false teeth and that will not only avoid pain, but it will be beneficial for my pocket and my health. Stress is not good for me'. You looked at me and said: 'You are serious?' Well, of course I was serious. You called your assistant and explained to her what I wanted, then asked her: 'would you tell Nicole what I said to you 5 minutes ago as we were looking at her x-rays?' She replied: 'You said: Wow, she has the teeth of a 16 year old !'.

Today I am so grateful for you Mr. Dentist and I've decided to thank you openly on my blog. I did say thank you and wrote you a nice card. I said: 'Thank you for treating me pain free. Thank you for being kind and patient. Thank you for complimenting me on the health of my teeth. Thank you for deleting from my mind the false conviction that dentists are cruel'

My biggest thank you, however, is because this man made me aware that for the first time I received a compliment and didn't question it. I accepted it and felt good about it. I didn't doubt his honesty and suspect that he was making fun of me. That is one of the many positive changes since I've changed my mindset. Thank you, Mr Dentist.

Nikky