Raising a Flag of Cowardice

My back tooth has been aching.  Not hurting because sharp pain would drag me into the dentist quickly.  Just aching.  But enough that it woke me up at 2:30 am and I only slept fitfully until my alarm was almost ready to go off at 3:30 am.  It started aching after my icey pratfall a few weeks ago when I chipped my front tooth.  I guess I jarred the back filling or crown, whatever it has, a bit loose also and I'm not looking forward to getting it taken care of. 

My dentist is a member of the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame and

plays with the Surf Dawgs - a Beach Boys-type of band.  At least

he's not boring. 

There are tortures that people put others under.  Of course, those who do that have given up their right to be called people at all, but that's neither here nor there.  I almost equate dentistry with that, except that dentistry is necessary torture.  But I always feel that I should get a friggin' award ribbon after surviving any type of dental procedure.  And it's not the procedure that bothers me - it's the shot(s) of novacaine.  I have such an extreme amount of needle-phobia and I just can't handle it.  My dentist is awesome - he gives me gas (calls me his rabbit in the headlights look if I haven't gotten the gas) and also prescribes tranquilizers for me when I have to promise that my DH will drive me back and forth.  I can't get work done without those crutches.  But at least they allow me to survive the experience with bearable stress levels.  And so I look at the possibility of having to get work done on this tooth, and I resign myself to hanging in there and seeing if the ache gets worse before calling for an appointment because I really would rather avoid this if at all possible.  So am I a coward?  Oh yeah, in this instance, I plead the white flag of cowardice. 

And please remember to bid high on my box for Beading For A Cure, or if you see other items there that appeal more to you, then bid high on those.  Just follow the link and then click on the Auctions button to get to the eBay location.