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Location: Connecticut, United States

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Tuesday, December 06, 2005


Ed Kozinn: King of Connecticut Dentists


Candy-pants, scaredy-cat, yellow-bellied coward – I am all three when it comes to going to the dentist.

I shake; I get waves of nausea; I see black invading my peripheral vision. I need Valium, Petite Sirah and Stella Artois in heavy doses before I can even pick up the phone to make an appointment.

It’s a long story as to why my phobia is so powerful and so intractable. Lucky you, I won’t share the gory details that have led me to this lifelong fear.

But, have I set the scene for my recent dental appointment? Is your mouth dry, your palms wet, your lower lip aquiver?

If so, you are now in my shaking-shoes, walking into a very open, office with a pleasant person at the desk greeting you as if you were a normal patient and not a bowel-growling, eye-twitching, knee-knocking wreck.

Now imagine how happy I was to meet my newest hero, Dr Edward Kozinn. This man is so special. He listens; he is gentle; he talks with you -- not at you or down to you.

I’ve been to the office twice now and each time I’ve felt a sense of calm and safety. And best of all, what I didn’t feel was any pain.

I’ve been around the dental block. My records have been transferred from office to office, looking for someone who will allow me to ask questions and take part in decisions that affect my dental health.

I had all but given up hope, until I went to Dr. Kozinn’s office and found what I was looking for: compassion, caring, competence and cooperation.

Need a dentist? Scared out of your mind?

Go see Dr. Kozinn and if you need to get on a plane to get to his office, it’s worth it.

Note: I am including his website which contains directions to his office for all local candy-pants who, like me, had given up hope finding a dentist that would make them feel safe and in good hands. (http://www.drkozinn.com)

Also, I first contacted him through his website email address and almost immediately received a response by email plus a phone call – and it was his day off.

I told you he was special.

17 Comments:

Blogger WILLIAM said...

I glad it worked out for you. I had the same type of dentist when I lived in Philly. Now I live 1000 miles away. I plan to make a an appointment with him the next time I am in Philly.

8:05 AM  
Blogger mary bishop said...

HI William...I can understand waiting until you get back to Philly - it's so comforting to have both trust and confidence in a dentist - especially for somone like me who's so damned scared...

1:10 PM  
Blogger Irina Tsukerman said...

I can SO understand you! If I could, I would certainly tkae your dentist into consideration. Just the thought of those root canals makes me want to run away screaming...

3:02 PM  
Blogger dashababy said...

Mary, I was the same as you, scared shitless, until I met my dentist who has been my dentist for over 20 yrs now. Just walking into a dentist office and smelling that smell, not to mention the sounds, but I swear, sweaty palms, dizzy, borderline anxiety attack and now I go in a different woman. When you find a good dentist, well, it's almost as good as finding a good hairdresser :)

4:43 PM  
Blogger mary bishop said...

Irina, just take the train up to Connecticut!

Oh what is it about teeth that frightens us so?


Dashababy - new picture! Is that your baby - he/she's adorable.

I'm so glad you have a great dentist - everyone should have one they can trust and respect...

4:55 PM  
Blogger dashababy said...

:D Yes, that is my baby when she was a puppy.

I was so proud of myself that I figured out how to change the pic all on my own. I know, I'm a tard.

4:58 PM  
Blogger Echrai said...

I'm quite fond of my current dentist for a similar reason. I'm not good even with the toothcleanings because I'm so petrified and paranoid when it comes to my teeth. My current dentist understood and took it all in stride, saying it takes many good experiences to cancel out even one bad experience. I'm still not sure HOW good she is, but the first two visits have been okay. And one of them was two potential root canals...

6:57 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have a dentist - Dr. Duke, a very young Asian guy whose just starting his practice. He's got all the latest high tec gadgets... When he takes your x-rays you get to see them on a tv screen. While he's cleaning your teeth, you get to watch tv on that same screen.

I'm so sad though, b/c i just switched insurance and Dr. Duke isn't on my new list. It's so effing hard to find a dentist, and now that I have one, I can't use him. Oh bother.

7:56 PM  
Blogger mary bishop said...

Dashababy - you are shy and not a braggard...but you are brilliant, witty and one of the finest people on this earth...so there.

Echrai..you are always the voice of wisdom...so true..it does take a lot of good experiences to cancel out one horrid one...in dentists, in love and life in general. I hope your dentist doesn't turn out to be anything more or less, than the person who helps you...I'm out of the loop, are you divorced?

Hänni -- isn't effing insurance the death of all of us? My insurance has two dentists that it approves...of course they are all mill dentists in huge groups and who needs that? Plus they're 50 miles away...Americans are paying for their own medical care now...they just don't know it.

Sorry for you, for me, for all of us that health care of our choice is now, only for the uber rich.

PEE ESS --Dasha... what kind of dog do you have...I want one. She's too cute for words...good thing I'm typing these words otherwise my dogs would be jealous if they heard me say that!

10:07 PM  
Blogger dashababy said...

Well shucks Mare,,, that is too nice of you say such things.

As to the question of what breed Dasha is, I was told that she is daschund and llasa opso, LOL. I never try to spell these two breeds. Anyway, she has an adorable personality. I thought about breeding her but then when she came into her first um heat..... she was trying to get her sterile step brother, Auggie to hump her. I couldnt handle that behaviour and quickly got her fixed. Oh, just gross.
The guy at the pet store had said shes a dasha-opso so I named her Dasha before I left the store. I fell hard.

11:55 PM  
Blogger dashababy said...

is there a spell check thingy on here anywhere? i think i need it.
you know what i mean.

11:56 PM  
Blogger Steve said...

I am not a dentist fan.

Whenever I need anything, I get all the work done without the needle - just raw.

I find that they shove the needles so far down that it ends up hurting more when the freezing wears off than just putting up with the pain when the work is getting done.

Been like that since I was a kid.

*shrug*

My sister is worse - she would have major tantrums where they almost had to strap her down in the chair to get work done.

In fact, I would be sitting in the waiting room and you could hear her screaming and yelling.

This one time, a little girl was sitting across from me and getting paler and paler by the second as my sister went into her screaming act.

She turned to her mother and said that she was scared and that it sounded like it would hurt a lot.

Her mother replied, as cool as a cucumber, "No.. no.. no, don't worry honey. The dentist is asking her to scream so he can see right down into the back of her mouth. If you are lucky, he may ask you to do the same thing."

The little girl did not quite look 100% relieved, but it was damn funny nonetheless.

10:04 AM  
Blogger kristen said...

MMM, I'm your kindred spirit in dental fear. I've got terrible teeth and I've been around the block with dentists. I've finally found one that is literally around the block from my home and he's THE BEST!! Glad you're finding the experience less stressful.

11:19 AM  
Blogger Michelle said...

Dentists with websites are the bomb. I finally conquered my phobia by finding a dentist that sounds very much like yours. Congrats.

12:15 PM  
Blogger Ern said...

It's really pretty hard for them NOT to look down on you when they are leaning over you weilding their tools of mayhem.

3:45 AM  
Blogger mary bishop said...

Dashababy - you are no tard! I love your new picture and want to hug your doggie.


Echrai - I love that quote and it's true...it does take many good experiences to cancel out even one bad experience and I've had numerous bad ones when it came to teeth...

Hänni - insurance problems are at least 50 percent of the reason why I've had such a hard time finding a dentist. My insurance only will pay for dental mills that don't give a hoot about you and employ 66 grade C dentists.

JDJ - that is a funny story...somehow it reminds me of the young guy sitting on the couch with his date's mother, waiting for his date to come downstairs. He farts. The mom hollers to the dog vtulrf up by the couch and says Jasper, come here!

Phew, he thinks the dog's getting blamed so he farts again without fear. Again the mom says Jasper, come here right now!

He farts again and this time the mom is incensed.

Jasper, she screams at the dog -- come here right now before he shits on you!

4:14 PM  
Blogger mary bishop said...

AMK - glad you found a good dentist and don't have to travel far...what's better than that?


Michelle, I agree about a dentist having a website - for example - with a click or two I could find out where my dentist went to college - other dentists I've had I had no idea where they were educated.


Doc Ern - you so cracked me up - I wasn't expecting a joke during a tooth/dentsit conversation...very funny!!!

4:17 PM  

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