Season 1, episode 31
Silvia loves sweets a bit too much. Her love of sugar catches up with her in the form of a toothache. Now she must visit the dentist. First, the hygienist takes x-rays and cleans up her teeth. Then the dentist comes in for a visit. One thing is for sure, Sylvia needs to take better care of her teeth!
This simple story is told in the present tense and focuses on the words “candy”, “teeth”, “gums”, “plaque”, “tartar” and “cavity”.
A Visit to the Dentist
There is a woman named Silvia. Silvia has a problem. Silvia likes to eat a lot of candy. She loves all sweet things. She likes milk chocolate and dark chocolate and white chocolate candy bars. She likes marshmallows. She likes gummy candy. She likes sweet desserts. She likes pastries and donuts. She likes cinnamon rolls and cake with cream and fruit.
Silvia has problems with control. When she wants something sweet, she goes to the candy store and buys a bag of candy. Then she eats the whole bag in less than an hour! Silvia needs to control herself because her addiction to sweets is causing health problems.
One day, Silvia eats a chocolate when her tooth hurts. The pain is intense. Silvia drinks a little water and tries to eat her chocolate again. When she bites the chocolate, her tooth hurts terribly. Silvia has a toothache and she needs to call the dentist.
Silvia doesn’t go to the dentist much. She knows that she needs to go every six months, but sometimes she doesn’t go to the dentist for a whole year. Silvia dials the dentist’s number and talks with the receptionist, Mark.
“Anderson Dental Office. This is Mark,” Mark says when he answers the phone.
“Hi, Mark, this is Silvia. I need to make an appointment with the dentist. I have a toothache,” Silvia says.
“You are lucky, Silvia. There was a cancellation and there is an appointment available for today at three,” Mark comments.
“Thanks, Mark. I will see you at three,” Silvia responds. Silvia is a little nervous. She believes that she has a cavity because her tooth hurts a lot.
Silvia goes to the dentist office. When she enters, she sees Mark.
“Hi Mark, I’m Silvia. I have an appointment for three o’clock.”
“Hi Silvia. Could you fill out this information sheet?” Mark says and he passes a paper and pen to Silvia.
Silvia takes the pen and paper and sits in the waiting room. The paper has basic information like her name, address, emergency names and numbers and her dental insurance information. Silvia fills in all the information and returns the paper to Mark. A little later, a woman enters the waiting room.
“Silvia?” The woman asks.
“That’s me,” Silvia responds and stands.
“I’m Emma. I am your dental hygienist. Come with me, please,” the woman says. Silvia goes with Emma to a small room. In the room there is a special chair, a computer, and multiple dental instruments.
Silvia sits in the chair. Emma puts a heavy apron on Silvia. She moves a special machine close to Silvia’s cheek.
“I’m going to take an x-ray,” Emma explains. “We need to see your teeth well to determine if you have a cavity.”
Emma takes x-rays of Silvia’s teeth. Then, she puts a paper dental bib on Silvia and she explains that she is going to clean her teeth well.
“Open your mouth, please,” Emma says. Silvia opens her mouth and Emma uses a small mirror to examine Silvia’s teeth and gums.
“Your gums look good. They are not inflamed. There is no evidence of gingivitis. But your teeth have problems. There is a lot of plaque and tartar on your teeth. I am going to take off the tartar,” Emma explains.
Silvia closes her eyes and thinks about her grocery shopping list while Emma takes the tartar off her teeth. It takes a long time to remove the tartar because Silvia has a lot of tartar buildup on her teeth due to all the sweets she eats.
Finally, Emma finishes removing the tartar from Silvia’s teeth. Then she uses an electric brush to clean the teeth and take off the rest of the tartar. Then she takes dental floss. Emma uses the dental floss to clean the space between the teeth. When Emma is satisfied with the teeth, she calls the dentist.
“Hi, Silvia. I am doctor Anderson,” the dentist introduces herself. “I understand that you have a toothache.”
“Yes. The pain is here,” Silvia says while she indicates the hurt tooth.
The dentist projects Silvia’s x-rays. There is a black mark in the tooth that hurts. There are other marks in other teeth too.
“You have some cavities, Silvia,” the dentist explains while pointing at the black marks. “There are five cavities. The have to make another appointment to fix the cavities. I need time to clean the cavities and fill them.”
Silvia is not happy she has five cavities, but she isn’t surprised either.
“I recommend that you eat fewer sweets and that you clean your teeth with toothpaste and dental floss every morning and night,” the dentist continues. “You need to take care of your teeth or you will have more serious dental problems.”
Silvia doesn’t want to have more serious problems. Her grandmother had dental problems. Now, her grandmother doesn’t have teeth. Silvia doesn’t want to be like her grandmother. She wants to have teeth when she is 60 years old.
Doctor Anderson leaves and Emma finishes her work by applying fluoride to Silvia’s teeth. The fluoride prevents cavities and Silvia doesn’t want more cavities – five is enough!
Finally, Silvia thanks Emma and walks to Mark to make an appointment for the fillings. When she goes home, Silvia wants to go to the candy store, but she decides that her teeth are more important than her sweet tooth.
The End.
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