Dental Dilemmas and the Realities of an Only Child Life

Ever grappled with the aching dilemma of whether to endure toothache or brave the dentist's chair? I'm Brooke, and in my latest podcast episode, I'm laying bare my personal tribulations with a root canal gone awry. Buckle up for a raw account of my toothache saga, as I navigate the complexities of dental procedures, insurance headaches, and ultimately, choosing to prioritize my well-being. It's an odyssey of pain and persistence, and an eye-opener to the harsh realities of healthcare systems that may hit close to home for many.

Let's also peel back the layers of growing up as an only child—the myths, the truths, and everything in between. I'm dishing out the real scoop on life without siblings, debunking the stereotype of the spoiled and solitary only child. Through candid stories and reflections, I explore how this unique upbringing shaped my social dynamics and how I forged bonds akin to family. There's a sense of kinship in our shared experiences, and I invite you to join me on this journey of self-discovery and challenging familial misconceptions. No siblings, no problem—let's celebrate the only-child life and all its quirks.

Chapters

• 0:00 Intro
• 0:59 Dental Drama
• 3:32 Growing Up As An Only Child
• 6:32 Realizing The Realities
• 10:59 Ending Notes
• 13:48 Outro

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:07

Hey you guys, my name is Brooke and welcome to my podcast. A blogger with a twist, and I'm your host and the creator. So basically, on my podcast I'll mainly be talking about things relating to lifestyle, so anything from me ranting about my life or anything I see on social media that I want to talk about, or whatever. If you guys find that interesting, then subscribe, share my podcast with your family, friends or whoever you know that enjoy listening to podcasts, sit back, relax, get your little snackies, whatever you like to eat, and let's get this episode popping. Hey you guys, and welcome back to another episode and happy Thursday or Friday, whatever day you're listening to this episode, and hopefully you guys out there are doing good and you're having a good week. So far, as far as it goes. For me, you guys, everything is doing good.

Speaker 1: 1:22

I have an appointment with an oral surgeon this week to talk about my tooth. So to give you guys a little backstory, basically, about a year and a half ago I went to the University of Pendental School to get a root canal done on one of my back molars and, unfortunately, after I got the root canal done, I never got a crown, because at the time I could not afford a crown and that same tooth got reinfected and so for over a month I was dealing with a lot of tooth pain and a lot of back and forth of trying to find an endodontist that actually takes my insurance. Because unfortunately, when I did pick my insurance through my job, the plan that I have for my dental is a HMO plan and unfortunately the thing with HMO plans is that you have to find a specialist or whatever that is in network with your insurance and unfortunately the closest endodontist that will actually accept my insurance is all the way in like upstate Jersey and I'm all the way here in Philly. So I really do not want to make that drive and I just decided that I'm just going to get the tooth pulled because in the long run, even if I try to get the tooth retreated, there's no guarantee that the infection is going to go away completely, and I have definitely heard of stories about people dying from tooth infections. So just for my overall health, I'm just going to get it pulled. So when I talk to the oral surgeon this week we will go over everything and I'm just so happy to finally be getting out of pain and discomfort, and it has definitely been a journey.

Speaker 1: 3:32

But besides that today's episode, I thought I would come on and talk to you guys about my story of growing up as an only child, because I feel like being an only child sometimes get a bad rep. Some people feel like, oh, you probably was spoiled and you got everything you wanted. You don't know what it's like to work hard and all this negative connotation. So, that being said, if you guys want to know more about my story, then grab your little snackies and let's get this episode popping.

Speaker 1: 4:08

So when I was younger, I always wondered what it was like to have siblings or a sibling, or to have an aunt or an uncle, because, since my mom was also an only child, a lot of her friends that I was close with I considered them an aunt or an uncle, and a lot of my friends that I'm close with I considered them family, because I don't know what it's like to have blood related siblings, and so I always kind of envied my friends that did, because I felt like it must be so cool to have somebody to hang out with when you're not around your friends, or somebody to talk to, because I definitely do talk to myself a lot and I feel like that is something common amongst only children is that we do talk amongst ourselves, and I think that's just because growing up we did not have siblings to talk to, so we kind of learned how to make conversations with ourselves. But even so, I don't think I ever felt lonely you guys Like, even though, like I said, I wished I had siblings and stuff. I think because of my friends I just never felt like I was alone. If I needed to talk to one of my friends I could. And as far as was I ever spoiled by other people in my family, I will say my grandparents on my mom's side rest their soul and heart. They did spoil me. They gave me everything I wanted and I am so grateful that I had them in my life as long as I did. And as far as my mom, when I was younger, my mom did spoil me, but I'm not going to say she spoiled me rotten, because she did instill the value value in me that nothing in life is for free and you have to work for what you want in life. And I am just so appreciative that she did that for me, because I have heard so many stories of kids that were spoiled, rotten and in turn, some of them become like a menace to society. So I am just so happy that I did not turn out that way.

Speaker 1: 6:32

As I got older, I started realizing that there is more responsibility that you have to deal with as far as if your parents get sick or something, because when I was younger I never thought about, oh what if something happens to my mom? I have to take care of her. None of those thoughts really came to mind, but when I was in high school, around the time that my grandparents got sick, I noticed how my mom had to kind of jump in and take care of them and also still take care of me, and it really gave me a glimpse into what it's like being an only child and having to take care of your parents knowing there's nobody else that can take care of them. Even after my grandparents died, my mom still had to do some stuff, and so when I think about that, it just makes me realize that, wow, my mom is a really strong person having to deal with all of that. I remember when my mom got diagnosed with pneumonia about five or six years ago. At the time I was working at a different Starbucks location. I ended up having to take off of work, I think for like a week and a half. I used up some of my vacation time just to take care of her and I remember there were some days where I did break down and cry because I guess for me, because she's the only parent I've ever known for most of my life, I just don't like to see her suffer and I just want her to live out the rest of her life as comfortable and as pleasant as you know she can. So, even though I definitely wish I had a sibling to help with the responsibility of my mom when she does get sick every now and then, I will say that one of the biggest pros that I realized as I got older to being the only child is that when I was younger, my mom did take me on a lot of vacations inside the country not the country and I definitely felt like if I had a sibling or siblings, that probably would have never happened. So I was blessed to be able to see the world and I'm just so grateful that I'll always have those memories.

Speaker 1: 9:04

One thing I recently did find out about being the only child, which is another reality that I never really thought about it until I saw this video on TikTok. And the reality is that when that one parent or those parents pass away, those memories that you have with one another is only going to be with that parent or parents. You don't have nobody else to share those memories with. And at first I never really thought about wait, that's the reality. But really thinking about it and kind of me thinking wait, that is true, because all of the memories that I've had over the years have mostly been with my mom, with us going somewhere or doing something fun, and I don't have nobody else to talk about or share those memories with. And it is kind of sad because if I had siblings I could talk about these memories with my siblings, but I don't. And I guess just really thinking about that reality it does hurt a little bit because it's like dang like who I'm going to talk about when I went to Punacana or when I went to the Bahamas or when I went to Vegas, I don't know. It's just one of those things that it's just a bitter sweet pill about being only a child, like yes, it is good and everything, but there's also a downside.

Speaker 1: 10:35

But I can tell you guys, for the most part, growing up as an only child. I had a great childhood, you know, yes, I was spoiled, but I was not overly spoiled and I feel like y'all need to stop giving only children like a bad rep. Ok, like it's not our choice of why we are the only children, it's our parents. Ok, our parents do not want any more kids. So I guess I say this to say that being an only child isn't like the worst, because you have some people that have siblings and they do not get along and would more than happily want to donate them. Ok. So I feel like, whether you're an only child or whether you have siblings, I mean it's all a part of life and it is what it is. But on the upside you guys, like I said, I had a great time being an only child. I mean, yes, did I want siblings? But at the end of the day, I would have not been able to go on as many vacations and trips if I had siblings. So I guess in some ways it was kind of like a blessing in disguise that I did not have siblings.

Speaker 1: 11:53

And, that being said, thank you guys so much for listening to me and just my story about growing up as an only child and hopefully this was something that was relatable to some of you guys out there that did grow up as an only child. If you guys want me to know your stories because I would love to know what was your experience growing up as an only child Definitely send me an email. All of my information is in the description. And one last thing I just want to say thank you guys so much for listening and downloading my episodes, because my last episode, which was my first episode of the year, got like seven downloads and I know that's not like a huge number, but I'm just so appreciative of you guys downloading my episodes because it means to me that you guys still want to listen to my content and that just makes me super happy, super excited to keep moving forward.

Speaker 1: 13:02

So I just wanted to say I appreciate you guys support and I'm not trying to get my Kleenex tissues and have my crocodile tears, ok, because I'm a G. I just really wanted to say thank you to all you guys. Like really just supporting my podcast Just mean so much to me. I guess, because I took a long behind how it is longer than I expected. I just am so happy seeing that you guys really want to hear your girl. This makes me like hey, yeah, but anyway, like I said, thank you guys for listening to my story and if you want to share yours, send me an email and you guys have a great day. So you guys, that will conclude this week's episode. If you enjoyed it, like I say my intro, definitely subscribe, share the podcast. If you have any questions or inquiries, all of my information is in the description box of every episode and other than that, you guys stay blessed, stay positive, be safe and peace.