Sunday, February 14, 2010

Drawing and the Dentist




Like most people I know I hate the going to the dentist. I don't hate my dentist she is actually super sweet. It's the chair and holding my mouth open, people pulling at my lips and poking at my teeth. Basically the whole experience. Claustrophobia runs rampant over my body. I get the sweats, the shakes. It is awful.
I broke a tooth 6 years ago biting down on a cherry pit. It didn't hurt so my dentist agreed to let me wait on getting a crown until this year. She insisted that I get it fixed. So I made an appointment. Canceled that appointment twice. And finally I womaned up and decided to go. In preparation for the appointment, I was struggling to think of how to keep my mind occupied. It finally came to me...Drawing.
So I grabbed my ipod and sketch pad and went. It was tough to draw with my pad on my lap and me laying down but it really kept my panic in check. I won't lie, I still sweat. But it was better.
Here are the results. They make me laugh.

10 comments:

Caterina Giglio said...

oh I feel the same, awful to have to go to the dentist, but you really make the most of it and I love these drawings!

Anonymous said...

That's a great idea for taking your mind off the whole process!

I get the same claustrophobia thing...that inability to just get up when you want to. I could care less about the actual process itself though...when I had the surgery on my jaw last year, my Dr kept checking in with me about whether or not I was okay seeing all the implements (he had an intern there, and was trying to keep everything out my line of sight...but also show her stuff)...I was like "nope, completely fine hearing the descriptions/seeing the blood/etc...but I sure would like to get up now!"

Kathy L said...

Hi Leanne

I met you on OWOH...I know...hard to remember. I hit all 1088 of them! Anyway, I am following you now. Yea, about that dentist. I hate the dentist! Not personally, as you stated, but the sitting, the pain, the keeping my mouth open without talking. I have to try your little drawing thing.
k

ArtPropelled said...

Just reading this has made me break out in a sweat and my heart is trying to leap out of my chest. Pretty good drawings for someone who is lying down with a bunch of hands in her mouth.

rivergardenstudio said...

What a great story. I love your drawings and amazed that you could do them at the dentist! Also the peope on your vases are wonderful. roxanne

BLACK AND WHITE said...

Beautiful drawings, so strong! Great your story! :-)

MadSilence said...

The older I get the more I hate visiting the dentist. I'm turning into a woosy. The sketches are interesting, but why a rooster? The last sketch appears to have a dental orientation. Is that a molar being extracted? My daughter just had all four wisdom teeth extracted simultaneously...it seemed a good idea at the time.

Leanne Pizio said...

Thanks La Dolce Vita Robyn and Roxanne! We used to do these exercises in Art school where we would draw with our eyes closed. It really loosened us up. Maybe I should draw with my eyes closed more.


Hey Kathy!
OWOH? I am sorry. I am so terrible at abbreviations. What is OWOH? Do try the drawing thing at the dentist. It truly helped keep me from jumping out of the chair.

Hey Cynjon,
I feel like a wuss after what you went through. I remember reading your blog. You are so brave!!!

Thanks so much Black and White!

Hey MadSilence,
A rooster for my new pet rooster Frieda. We hatched 5 eggs, named most of them after women artists, and 4 of them turned out to be roosters. Frieda is my love.
The last drawing is of the evil Queen who is stealing trees from the world. She is actually holding an up rooted tree...but I like thinking of it as a tooth now.
Many wishes for your daughter to feel better soon. I had all four of mine out at the same time. YUCK!

Anonymous said...

Oh, there was no "brave" involved, just the knowledge that it had to be done! It didn't hurt that my dentist is quite the cute one!

ethanparker said...

Dentist is the one who can cure the decay problem and we should go to the dentist for our healthy smiles and lives. I had visited dentist torrance regularly.


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