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Healthcare...can't live with it....can't live without it
Beyond the Book: my current hell of health shit
ijeomaoluo.substack.com
This is supposed to be an article about how horrible and oppressive Healthcare is but it's just negligent parenting
I grew up on welfare and medicaid. As a small child, dentist visits were covered by government insurance. I remember my mom taking me to the dentist when I was little for cleanings and checkups. When I was around the age of 11, she stopped taking me. I later asked her why and she said that the dentist always made her feel like shit. They always talked down to her and complained about how much less money they got for treating welfare patients than other patients. She said that even though our teeth were always healthy, she was always made to feel like a bad mother whenever she took us in for checkups. So she stopped taking us.
I’m 41 years old and have only been able to eat on one side of my mouth for over twenty years. I have not been able to eat crunchy or very chewy foods in almost as long. I am missing at least ten of my back teeth. I don’t remember what it feels like to eat without discomfort. My lisp is exaggerated by the air that escapes around the sides of my tongue where teeth are missing. The shape of my jaw has changed and become lopsided due to bone erosion from the tooth loss and muscle atrophy from only chewing on one side of my mouth for decades.
I am embarrassed when I yawn and don’t cover my mouth quickly enough. My partner and kids are the only people who get to see me throw back my head in laughter. When I’m in public, I try to not lose myself in a joyous moment lest I smile too widely.