The female dentist pulled out a numbing needle to give the man a shot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo way! No needles! I hate needles!\u201d the patient cried, clutching the arms of the chair as if preparing for liftoff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The dentist calmly lowered the syringe. \u201cAlright,\u201d she said. \u201cLet\u2019s try something else.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She began hooking up the nitrous oxide mask, but the man immediately shook his head and waved his hands like he was directing airplane traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo way! I can\u2019t do the gas thing. The thought of having a mask on my face suffocates me!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The dentist exhaled slowly, trying to stay patient. She had seen difficult patients before, but this man was in a category of his own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Finally, she asked, \u201cDo you have any objection to taking a pill instead?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo objection at all,\u201d the patient replied with relief. \u201cI\u2019m fine with pills.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The dentist left the room for a moment. When she returned, she handed him a single tablet and said, \u201cHere\u2019s a Viagra.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The man blinked in confusion. \u201cWow, I didn\u2019t know Viagra worked as a painkiller!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t,\u201d the dentist said with a shrug. \u201cBut it will give you something to hold onto while I give you the shot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The patient stiffened in the chair, staring at the pill in his hand as if it were a live grenade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re joking\u2026 right?\u201d he asked, his voice trembling between fear and embarrassment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The dentist lifted one eyebrow. \u201cOnly one way to find out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The man swallowed so hard it echoed in the room\u2014then quickly tossed the pill into his mouth and washed it down with the small paper cup of water provided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGreat,\u201d the dentist said cheerfully. \u201cNow let\u2019s wait about five minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Five minutes felt like fifty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The patient sat awkwardly, gripping the armrests, avoiding eye contact with the dental assistant, who was biting her lip to keep from laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Finally, the dentist returned. \u201cAlright,\u201d she announced. \u201cLet\u2019s get started.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The man\u2019s eyes widened. \u201cWait\u2014aren\u2019t you going to check if\u2026 you know\u2026 it\u2019s working?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, I\u2019ll know,\u201d the dentist replied with a mischievous smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The assistant turned away, shaking with silent laughter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The man swallowed again. \u201cI can\u2019t believe this is happening,\u201d he muttered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While the patient squirmed in fear, the dentist casually picked up the numbing needle again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNow,\u201d she said, \u201cI\u2019m going to give you a shot\u2014don\u2019t move.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut I thought\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou thought wrong,\u201d she said, gently but firmly holding his jaw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And to his complete shock\u2026 he didn\u2019t feel a thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWait\u2026 did you already do it?\u201d he asked, blinking in disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes,\u201d she said. \u201cSee? It wasn\u2019t that bad.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The patient\u2019s jaw dropped. \u201cBecause of the\u2014you know\u2014Viagra?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo,\u201d the dentist said, chuckling. \u201cBecause you were too distracted imagining the worst.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The assistant whispered, \u201cActually, doctor, I think the Viagra<\/em> was the distraction.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The three of them laughed, the tension finally breaking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The procedure was completed without a single problem. The patient\u2019s tooth was fixed, his fear temporarily conquered, and the dentist was pleased to have survived the ordeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the real chaos began afterward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The man walked into the waiting room holding his discharge papers\u2014face flushed red as a firetruck. His wife stood up immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow did it go?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before he could answer, the assistant peeked out and chirped, \u201cHe did great<\/em>! The Viagra really calmed him down!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The waiting room fell silent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every head slowly turned toward the man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His wife narrowed her eyes. \u201cThe what<\/em> calmed you down?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The man froze like a deer in headlights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2014it\u2019s not what it sounds like\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, it\u2019s exactly what it sounds like,\u201d the assistant added helpfully. \u201cHe was terrified of the needle, so the doctor gave him something else to\u2026 focus on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The wife stared at him, speechless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The patient mumbled, \u201cCan we please leave?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The car ride was painfully quiet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, his wife spoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet me get this straight: you refuse needles, refuse gas, and your brilliant solution was to accept a Viagra?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt was a pill<\/em>,\u201d he said defensively. \u201cI\u2019m good with pills.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat sentence better never be repeated,\u201d she muttered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He cleared his throat. \u201cLook, it helped distract me!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, I\u2019m sure it did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n They drove another mile in silence before she added:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou realize the story is going to spread through that entire dental office, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He groaned. \u201cPlease don\u2019t remind me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A week later, the dentist\u2019s office called to schedule a follow-up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The moment the receptionist said his name, she burst out laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo,\u201d she said, \u201cshould we put you down for the usual\u2026 or should we set aside your special medication?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He hung up immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the universe wasn\u2019t done with him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three months later, he cracked another tooth. His wife insisted he go back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When he entered the office, every staff member looked up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A round of applause broke out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One assistant whispered loudly, \u201cThat\u2019s him!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another added, \u201cThe legend!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The dentist stepped out of her office with a grin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBack for round two?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He muttered, \u201cDo not<\/em> hand me another Viagra.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, don\u2019t worry,\u201d she said. \u201cThis time we have something better.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He looked relieved\u2014until the assistant handed him a stress ball shaped like a giant tooth with a winking face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGreat,\u201d he muttered. \u201cI\u2019ve been upgraded from Viagra to a flirtatious tooth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The dentist patted his shoulder. \u201cIt\u2019s progress.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n By the end of the appointment, the patient realized two important things:<\/p>\n\n\n\n He may never live down the story, but he left each visit smiling\u2014partly because his teeth were fixed, and partly because laughter became the best medicine after all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the dentist?<\/p>\n\n\n\n She still keeps an unopened bottle of Viagra in a drawer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not for medical use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But as a reminder:<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is always one<\/em> patient who will agree to anything\u2014just to avoid a needle.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The female dentist pulled out a numbing needle to give the man a shot. \u201cNo way! No needles!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4430,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4429"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4429\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4431,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4429\/revisions\/4431"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4430"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/states-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}THE AFTERMATH \u2014 AND THE UNEXPECTED SIDE EFFECT<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
THE DRIVE HOME<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
THE NEXT APPOINTMENT<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
THE DAY HE RETURNED \u2014 AND BECAME A LEGEND<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
THE MORAL OF THE STORY<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n