The Great Waterpik Experiment

As you may recall, I lost ten of my teeth to gum disease.  Fuck you, Doctor Cappadonna, for telling me that – and I quote – “Sometimes, gums just bleed!”
So I spent several years lacking eight front teeth, humiliated eating in public, getting multiple painful gum surgeries.
As a result, I floss.
Obsessively.
And every three months, I go into a dentist’s office, where they deep-clean my teeth and tell me that I’m not doing a good enough job.  There are still inflamed areas, deepening pockets.  And that’s hard to do, because teeth are crooked and getting in everywhere with the floss is difficult, and –
– hey, why not use a high-pressure hose to clean out my teeth?
I switched to Waterpik for a three-month period, just to see whether blasting my dental crevices with water did anything.  Which was an adjustment; Waterpiks are easier, but a lot messier, and unless you can swallow water at high speeds it all dribbles out into the sink like you’re some drooling maniac.  Plus, blasting chill water on your gums kiiinda hurts, so you gotta use warm water.
But I got my results in:
Dead even with flossing.
Which is great!  As noted, sticking a little tube into my mouth is way easier than using hooked bits of plastic to try to worm my way under my dental bridges.  And it’s quicker, and more convenient to take my travel Waterpik on the road.
This may even get better; I’m comparing novice Waterpik usage with years of flossing expertise, and I’ve started putting dollops of Listerine in the Waterpik.
So if you don’t floss, and you’re worried about your gums… try a Waterpik.  It’s working super-well for me.