May 18, 2005 ~ Part of the Club
Wednesday.
It's not often that I am deeply touched during a routine visit to the dentist. In fact, I don't believe I ever have been before. That record changed during my appointment last week, though.
It was time for my routine six-month cleaning and yearly x-ray. Before I settled into the chair, I turned to the hygienist and said, "You should know that I'm pregnant, so I shouldn't have my x-rays. And, in case there's anything else I should avoid..."
A great big smile broke across her face. "Oh, congratulations! We won't do the x-ray then. Is this your first?"
And we were off, conversing throughout the half-hour appointment (though my responses were rather muffled and impeded by her instruments throughout). She told me about her pregnancies and children, and gave me tips. When she was finished, she gave the news to the dentist and two assistants in that small office, and they were full of stories and congratulations as well.
It was as if I'd suddenly been inducted into some exclusive club. For some reason, that hadn't happened at the doctor's appointment. I guess all of the nurses were trying to be "professional." But, having experienced what I did last week, I am looking forward to my midwife visits, where I caught a glimpse of that "club" during the short consultation visit. There is something extremely comforting about being in the caring hands of women who know motherhood, personally.
I have been quite isolated through this first trimester. None of my in-person friends or co-workers are pregnant or have ever had children. There in the dentist's office, of all places, I was coddled and questioned and cared about in a way wholly unlike anything that I have ever experienced before, by mothers and as a mother.
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