2007-06-19
do you floss?
|I got bitch-slapped at the dentist yesterday for my poor flossing form. How many of you floss? Regularly? I am a lapsed flosser. Well, that's not quite accurate. That would imply that I was a hard-core flosser at one point in my life and that I have just fallen away from the habit. The reality is that I never have fully embraced the art of flossing.
I've tried over the years. My husband is pretty hard core. His instrument of choice is a toothpick, however he does floss almost every day. His gums get a pretty good workout, regardless of the tool. Mine, on the other hand, don't really get attention, except when I'm brushing. So these last six months I was quite proud of myself for flossing roughly three days out of seven each week. Apparently that does not earn kudos at the dentist.
A couple of years ago I learned that my father only has seven of his own teeth. All are located on the bottom jaw. The top jaw is a full denture plate. He is breathing down 81, but I was alternately disgusted and amazed. I had no idea. I silently refer to the remaining nibblers as the Sovereign Seven and have tried to use that as my own cautionary dental tale. And in case you're wondering, I have never witnessed my father, or my mother for that matter, floss their teeth. I have seen a pack of dental floss in their bathroom before. But I have never seen either one hold a piece of floss, much less use it.
There wasn't much of an example out there, that's all I'm saying.
So I was feeling pretty good about the amount of flossing I have been doing, and then I found out it wasn't quite up to snuff. Back to the drawing board, I guess. Maybe if I considered it cardio for my gums I would have better luck...
2007-06-19 at 7:22 a.m.
