Dental deviance

I am not generally an aggressive person. Nor do I generally permit myself to express anger.
In fact, mostly I get along with people, at least on the surface plane, and, let's admit, that is where most of our relationships reside. Just yesterday I was surprised and pleased by all my wonderful students coming in and handing me their final exams, smiling, thanking me. Thanking me! for making them write a grueling take-home exam.

There really is only one area of my life in which I find myself so disenfranchised as to express, albeit veiled, hostility. When my child's health is involved.

Now, I got off on the wrong foot with this dentist in the first place, let us recall, and though he tried to be amiable, I was unforgiving. My tone curt. My manner closed. What? (You can't imagine me being this way, I know, it happens so rarely, but it really sends a message). My baby still has an infected abscess, so he is going to pull the tooth. I am handed a paper by his assistant to sign, and I read, oh, cruel trick of nature, that I have to be my mother's daughter.

I begin to correct the typographical errors on the consent form. I am mildly peeved, and anxious and sympathetic resonances are humming between me and my little girl, five feet from me, looking frightened and sad. I blow her kisses and then before signing, ask the doctor to kindly explain what is going to take place. Now this may seem extraneous, really, I mean who am I the patient to deign ask for clarification when I am signing a sheet of paper, in all its grammatical glory, that states that I have been informed? I realize that it is a bit bold on my part to actually expect an explanation instead of just submitting to the will of "those who know," but there is a part of informed consent that presupposes that I actually obtain information.

HE grumbles, "this is just the form that we have people sign for every surgery, this is just a simple extraction... "
Ok. I still fail to see why I, the patient's advocate, should be begrudged this information, and if it is not pertinent, then why am I being asked to sign?
"There are a whole bunch of typos... I corrected them in blue." I state and his hackles raise.
"First of all, it isn't my sheet, it is the office's..."
"I'm just letting you know."
"Do you not want to do this because it seems you are unsure..."

Now, correct me if I am wrong, but wasn't there a point in time that we were taught that our presentation counted, and that if we were not careful with our periods and commas (never mind misspellings and errors that render ambiguous if not invalid the documents we seek to present) people might extend their impression of our carelessness to the imputed work that we do? Not to mention, since when is medical service denied based on the patient asking for clarification? I was not very popular, to say the least.

I. whimpered as he wrested a large baby molar from her mouth, and I tried to maintain my antagonism at a low hum. I thanked the doctor, free of irony, when he finished.

I indulged my kid by taking her to the store to buy baby food (don't ask). I feel very grumpy still. But there is more work to be done, so I am off to the races.