Going to the Dentist With Diabetes

Let’s be real. Not many people like to go to the dentist. And I am one of those people.

I have not been to the dentist in a while, so I knew that it wasn’t going to be a fun appointment. Going to the dentist with diabetes requires a bit more planning than when I went to the dentist before I had diabetes.

I always have a fear of my blood sugar going low while at the dentist. I also didn’t want to wear my Dexcom because I knew that I was going to be getting x-rays done and I didn’t want any issues with that.

My BG was about 210 when I went into the office and I was fine with that. I didn’t want to be on the lower end of things and then go low during the appointment. 210 was perfect.

Once at the appointment, it’s always important for me to tell the dentist that I have Type 1 Diabetes. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to matter much because not many dentists know anything about it.

This particular dentist had mentioned that I “must have been diagnosed as a child” since I have Type 1. Mentioned that I am overweight and that can help with the diabetes and gum disease.

I didn’t get pissed off at the comments because I understand that the disease is extremely misunderstood, but I did try to educate him a little bit about what diabetes actually is and what it is not, more importantly.

After all the discussions of gum disease and how poor oral hygiene can actually cause Alzheimer’s, high blood pressure and other medical issues, it was time for the cleaning…..we will leave that part out.

During the whole appointment, I did not feel like my sugar was going low. In fact, it actually crept up because when I left it was 290.

After I got home from the appointment last night, I went online and bought a brand new electric toothbrush.

As I get older every day, I realize and understand how important it is to take care of every aspect of my life and health. Losing weight, exercising, eating healthy, taking care of your teeth, taking care of your feet, get your eyes checked, get your yearly checkups, keep blood pressure under control.

It’s a full-time job my friends, but it’s not a job I’m willing to get fired at.