I had a dentist’s appointment for a cleaning this morning.
I’m cavity free and healthy, but I got the usual injunction . . .
You need to floss more.
I don’t floss. I don’t even try and pretend to the dentist that I do. I floss if I get something stuck in my teeth, I floss on Sunday night (yes, that’s right. I floss once a week). I hate flossing. I hate how it makes my gums bleed, I hate how it feels, I hate that squeaky noise (shudder) and I hate how the floss cuts off the blood flow to my fingers.
I’m 37 years old, and I’m not going to floss if I don’t want to. Clearly my teeth haven’t fallen out of my head, so I’m fine.
I think flossing exists solely because dentists and dental hygienists need something to lecture you about.
I do wonder though – have any of you ever been told by a dentist that you were a “good flosser?”
If you floss every day, your gums won’t bleed. 🙂
I never used to floss either… until about 10 years ago, our longtime dentist retired and the new dentist’s assistant recommended Crest Glide or Oral B Satin floss. It’s much easier to work between my teeth — but like you, I hated winding it around my fingers, etc. Then I discovered floss picks. I use GUM Eez-Thru comfort slide flossers (they are purple, but there are other kinds that are mint flavoured, etc.). They are often on sale at Shoppers. They work really well for me, and now I am a regular flosser. I guess it’s never to late for an old dog to learn new tricks. 😉 And a (above) is right; if you floss regularly, the bleeding will eventually stop.
You’re not alone. I like to think that one day I’ll be a good flosser, and go through phases. But I’m always told that I need to floss more, even when I’ve been flossing daily!
I also hate having the blood well up in my finger tips while I try to get my flossing done.
However, I’ve been told by two different dentists that if I had to choose between flossing and brushing, I should choose flossing. (I thought the first dentist must’ve been joking, so I asked the second, who instead of agreeing with me that it sounded nutty, agreed with the first dentist.)
So I now regularly contribute to the landfill by buying floss picks. (Someone really needs to invent one that is not disposable, that you just wind your floss onto.)
My husband is obsessed with flossing (and brushing, he does both 3+ times a day). That said, he has more gum issues than I do.
I found I can tolerate a WaterPik a whole lot better than flossing. It makes me and my dentist happy (unless I’m on steroids, then it is just bad).
I *have* had a dentist say that! Because I floss about 360 days a year. This is in consequence of a root canal/crown/oral surgery for which I had the pleasure of paying $3600 in cash. I get those flat-floss picks because they’re about $3.50 a package of 90 here, which amounts to something like 4000 years of flossing for the price of one nasty dental experience. But they tell me I brush too hard. I guess you can’t win.