The Magic Word

I went to the dentist a few weeks ago.

It was the first time that I have been in over a year, so I wasn’t expecting good news.

I got exactly what I expected. Two cavities.

Bummer, I know—but surprisingly cavities were not what I was dreading the most.

There are five words that send my heart racing at the dentist.

“How often do you floss?”

I consider myself a hygienic person (p.s. for those of you who have read the deodorant post, I think I have found something that is working—it’s still in my testing stage, so I’ll report on it soon). I brush my teeth twice a day—thoroughly and as an added boost I chew Epic Dental gum (with marvelous xylitol—if you don’t know anything about that product you really should read up on it—or call me, I worked there for a year).

But alas, I’m not a very good floss-er. My teeth are extremely close together and due to the xylitol (really, go read about it) plaque buildup is a thing of the past.

I’ve never been to a dentist that doesn’t drill you about flossing and so I spend the entire cleaning trying to decide how to answer the question. Should I be honest and say “rarely”? Or should I say “often” and then pledge to make that come true?

I’ve finally found the magic answer. The one word that fits the honesty bill, but didn’t get me the evil eye. I’m sharing it with all of you (on the off chance that a few of you are not *perfect* floss-ers either).

The magic word is…..

“Occasionally.”

Worked like a charm.

*I really am trying to be better about the whole flossing thing—it’s even one of my internal resolutions.