People encounter many emergencies (such as dental emergencies) in life. It can be very overwhelming to deal with these emergencies when they arise, so preparation is key. What kind of emergencies are there? What can we do to better prepare? Keep reading to find out.
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Example: Dental Emergencies
We never want dental emergencies to happen, but chances are they will at least once in our lifetime.
An emergency could be different depending on your definition and the urgency, but here are some commonly accepted dental emergencies:
- Broken tooth
- An adult tooth (otherwise known as a “permanent” tooth) fell out
- Impacted wisdom teeth
- Tooth abscess
- Jaw injury
Here are signs of a possible dental emergency
- Bleeding
- Painful swelling
- Intense toothache
If you are experiencing any of these, go to a dentist or oral surgeon immediately. What classifies a dental emergency is a rate at which it should be treated. The aforementioned signs and events should not be ignored and a professional should look at them immediately.
The key is not to panic. This is much easier if you are prepared in some way. No one can predict the future, but you can take steps to make sure that if a dental emergency does arrive, you and your loved ones are not panicking about what to do next.
Staying Prepared
Getting Mental Health Help
There are many types of therapy for anxiety if you are concerned about your mental health. Preparing for emergency situations can take a toll on you and your loved ones, so make sure you stay on top of your mental health.
Knowing Your Insurance Status
Find out if insurance is something you can get. Many times, salaried employees will receive benefits. Since employers and their insurance benefits vary, you cannot assume the kind of coverage you will get. Healthcare materials can be made available upon request from your insurer or employer. They should also be mailed to you at the beginning of every coverage period without you having to ask for them.
This can be an important thing to know because in the event of an emergency, you might not feel calm enough to look for that information when you need it — especially given the time-sensitive nature of an emergency. If your doctor or care provider wants to know your information, you should have it ready even in a panic. The best way to ensure that this happens is by having a plan when there is no emergency. In moments of anxiety and stress, we are not as collected as usual. We owe it to ourselves to prepare for some of these moments by gathering tools that will help us.
Help yourself by knowing important information about your healthcare plan. It could save you a lot of strife if anything were to happen that needed immediate attention.
Talking to Your Family
Have a plan with your family for what to do when a medical emergency arises. Have specific plans for different kinds of emergencies (a dental issue may not require the same resources or plan of action as, say, losing a lot of blood). Some things you can talk about are:
- Transportation plans for medical emergencies
- Where to send any billing
- Who to contact outside the family, if anyone
- Informing a school or workplace of this emergency
- How to deal with an emergency potentially impacting travel plans
- Follow-up care plans and regimens
It’s important to have these conversations because, again, when we are stressed it is easy to forget important things. Having a plan in place is sure to mitigate some of the worries that come with a loved one going through a medical issue. Additionally, even under duress, you and your loved ones will know what to do because you have talked about it before.
Again, we never know exactly what problems we are going to face in this world, but having a general plan for if something arises will always make these issues easier to deal with. It is a form of protection.
Having Dentists and Oral Surgeons You Trust for Dental Emergencies
Don’t wait until there is a time-sensitive emergency to get a dentist or find an oral surgeon. You should be going to a dentist regularly if you have the means. It is possible that people cannot financially afford recommended dentist visits, but there are many private and government-assisted insurance options that can ease the financial burden.
It’s important to have these oral care professionals because they can likely stop a problem from becoming an emergency in the first place. For example, if your wisdom teeth are hurting, you can go to a dentist to get them looked at. The dentist will likely recommend getting a mouth x-ray and possibly going to an oral surgeon to have it evaluated. These professionals will be able to evaluate how your wisdom teeth will come in, which means they can be removed before they become impacted and expose you to a higher risk of jaw degradation and infection.
The ultimate preventative care would be to have a dentist. If needed, they can direct you to another oral care professional and take care of your dental issues before they become emergencies.
Emergency Savings Fund for Dental Emergencies
Unfortunately, we cannot prevent every emergency from happening, and we certainly cannot make sure they happen when we can financially cover everything. This is why an emergency savings fund can be a life-saving tool for you.
There are many ways to become more financially experienced and diversify your portfolios, such as investing in real estate or trading in the stock market. What matters, though, is what you do with the earnings in your portfolio. If you can find some money to put towards an emergency fund, it could help you out greatly if unforeseen circumstances arrive.
For example, many people have experienced unexpected health-related costs over the last three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. People with emergency funds likely felt more financially secure and were able to cover more of the costs without feeling too much strain. While your income may be able to cover things, you never know when that can change. Additionally, some things (like medical care) can be too costly just for your salary to cover it with no problem.
An emergency fund could also be good to help victims of natural disasters if you end up never using yours. You can always leave the money behind for your family or for those affected by emergencies that need financial help. You can not go wrong here.
Photo by DDP