The Dentist

My first recollection and probably the one that always comes to mind as a youngster being taken to the Dentist in Carlton near Nottingham.

We lived out in the sticks and it was first of all a long walk to the bus stop at the end of the farm lane and then a bus trip around all the villages to the big city where we only would go on special occasions or selling our dog's puppies.
Carlton is on a hill approaching Nottingham and is the first of the built up area.
The Dentist was a large Gothic, turreted building behind a large wall and up a winding path further up the hill.
Yes, you can indeed imagine the Draconian image before me ...
Remember, I had bad tooth ache and this was my first introduction to the Dentist.
The Chair was enormous and the Dentist was a large ugly woman who had an equally ugly assistant both wearing white gowns.
The Needle was about 2 foot long and entered from the inside back of my upper gum and penetrated through my neck, into my outer skull and stopped just short of it coming out the back of my neck.
It was in an eternity and I felt every inch of that enormous thick needle.
Eventually the tooth and area became numb. So numb that I couldn't swallow and all the water and blood accumulating in my mouth was suffocating me and I was gagging continuously.
She clamped on her pliers and began to rock the tooth side by side to loosen the double tooth but it wouldn't come.
I could feel the vibration of every move and the sound of the crunching of bone.
She held my head back with one hand and pulled so hard that my body rose from the seat with her efforts.
By this time the other uglier assistant came from behind and forced my head back into the Chair and together the Dentist continued to heave and the Assistant held my head back until finally the tooth gave in and the blood gushed into my mouth.

Eventually they cleaned me up and my Mother guided me down the lane through the heavy wrought iron gates onto the main road.
We had to wait ages for another bus home and of course my mouth was still numb and my head hurt.
I don't remember much of the journey home but I will always remember that house and that Dentist.

And truly I don't reckon Dental science has got much better and that Needle hasn't got much shorter or thinner.
So that is why I don't like Dentists!
Do you think I have a phobia?