So one day while brushing my teeth I'm thinking how happy I am with my current combination of products* like toothbrush, toothpaste (keep your mouth closed cuz it REALLY foams!) and tooth-picking (this video is a RIOT! Been there! LOVELOVELOVE these little squishy things!)/flossing (this stuff is stretchy, just The Best!). And my discipline! Blue ribbon worthy, I'd say. I'm brushing up and down rather than side to side. I'm carefully making sure to reach every single spot. I keep the ab-fab floss by my lounge chair so during episodes of say Glee (I am a total Gleek), Yukon Man (fascinating) or House Hunters International (a girl can dream, can't she?) I can have at it.

Lately my teeth feel slick-clean and my gums are healthy. Nothing bleeds. Nothing hurts. No chunks of teeth have fallen into my mouth like ginormous glacier calvings. 

After I finish my brushing reverie, I put my face close to the mirror and pull my gums way back to have a validating look-see. This is when I notice: a flaming red spot on my gum right above my eye tooth, or canine (cuspid) as the chart says. Huh. Wassup with that?

The next day I check again. Still flaming. Not sore, but REDREDRED. 

The next day it's not quite as red, so perhaps whatever it is will go away.

The next day it's flaming again.

And so this goes for about six weeks when it's time to make an appointment for my annual teeth cleaning. (Okay, I'm not perfect.) Now I'm worried: I'm sure it's gum cancer or some other horrid thing.

"So, how's everything?" the hygienist asks.

"Oh, you'll see," I say, figuring the severe redness will cause her to gasp so hard she'll suck her entire protective mask down her throat.

"Right there?" she asks, putting her gloved finger on it.

"Yea." I want to say Yep but my lips can't close. 

She goes about her checking and cleaning, all the while giving me praise. "You're doing a great job!" she says. "No bleeding. No big pockets. Looks good."

The dentist comes in, confers with the hygienist. Everything is great. "But she does have a concern."

I look at him, heart racing. "You'll see!"

He pokes around The HORROR, asks me if it hurts. I give him my best mouth-pryed-open guttural response of a long O, which is a no-lipped No.

He sits back in his chair. I wait for biopsy instructions. "Are you right handed?" he asks.

"Es." What? Am I right handed? 

"Which side of your mouth do you begin brushing?"

"Eft."

"Right there?" he asks, touching The Spot again.

"Es."

"I think you've irritated your gum by applying to much pressure. It's not uncommon. We have a little more energy when we first begin to brush. From now on, either start on a different side of your mouth, or better yet,  gently use only the tip of your toothbrush bristles there, making sure not to scour. Give it a chance to settle down. I think that should do it. If not, let us know."

Magic. Within a week, the red spot is gone. I don't have cancer or any other mouth crud. I only suffer the results of my own aggressive hand. Overdoing a good thing, the consequence of using a terrific brush with long stiffer bristles at the end which are great for reaching the backs of those rear  molars. But not so great for tender gums.  

The moral of this story is ... um ... Sometimes we are our own worst enemy, even when we think we're Doing Good. We are not a victim; we are the perpetrator. Things that "go wrong" are not always the work of the devil, or the fault of "that other". Sometimes, it's just ignorant us.

Perhaps this is a good time for you to make a list of things that seem wrong in your life. (Just your top three, okay? Don't overwhelm yourself. :-)) Circle them with your mind's eye. Take a close and careful--and HONEST--look from all sides.    

Ask yourself this question: Are you perhaps what is known as AWFULIZING?  

The first time I heard this term I raised my hand, even though there wasn't a specific question. I knew AWFULIZING was far too often one of my default modes. To see a red spot on your gum and decide it must be cancer: awfulizing. Get it?  

Check your list again. Maybe you can cross something off because once you catch yourself awfulizing, whatever the "it" is no longer exists as a threat. Replace awfulizing with trusting: This too shall pass. 

I once saw a quote that said, "Worry is a misuse of imagination." Yessiree.

Is there something on that list you can instantly better? You'd be surprised how often one gentle positive action on your part (stop scouring the issue to death!) can heal a wound.  

*offer peace rather than friction

*let go of a grudge

*ask for help (give the self-sustaining ego a rest)

*listen without interruption

*find a new way

The Lord knows our thoughts, that they are but an empty breath. -- Psalm 94:11 NRSV

 *I receive NO KICKBACKS, coupons, credits or monetary compensation from these products. They are just my current favorites.  

Did this bring to mind a story you just have to share with me? Go right ahead: charlene@charleneannbaumbich.com 

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