The Numbing Agent is Optional

Called my dentist’s office this morning. The last time I had a filling, they used a bright cherry red numbing product to make the gigantic Novocain needle less painful (not painless mind you, but less painful). I was already in the middle of a reaction from something else with red and/or fragrance in it so it’s hard to say how much that particular contact irritation added to the party, but it was not nothing. So this time I decided to get ahead of things (my face is, mercifully, reaction-free at the moment). I called and asked if they have/can get anything else before my appointment, 9 days from now. The receptionist went to ask the doctor and came back to say, that’s all they have. If they order something else, it won’t arrive in time for my appointment. They’ll call the other locations to see if they have a mint version (which, by the way, still doesn’t get me fully in the clear - reaction-wise, though is sure to be better than red). Also though, I have the choice to skip it altogether. He can “administer the Novocain without numbing the area first … that part is optional.” Ha. Yeah, right.