Muffins with Mom – Dental hygiene product usage

How often do you read the manual that accompanies something new that you purchased –always, sometimes, seldom, never? If you did not answer always, there is the possibility that you could encounter a problem. That’s the way it happened for me.

At the suggestion of my dental hygienist, I purchased a Waterpik waterflosser. It was the Cadillac of waterflossers, not the very top of the line, but a good model. The flosser appeared fairly simple to assemble, I pressed a couple of parts together, then filled the reservoir with water.

Ready to test my new product, holding the handle, I turned on the power button that was located on the base of the flosser. A steady stream of water immediately shot from the handle that I was holding and onto my bathroom mirror. After a few seconds, I discovered I had to press the button on the handle to pause the water flow.

On my second attempt to use the water flosser, I aimed for my front teeth. I got some of them wet, but mostly my glasses were hit with the water…and it was cold. I screeched at the sudden temperature change in my mouth.

My teen son ran into my room find out what the commotion was all about. One look at my state of appearance and he thought this was a game in which he must play a role.

“Let me try it Ma.”

I turned the power button off and let my son go through the same process that I did. He did not disappoint me. My son turned the power button on and jet stream of water sprayed onto my mirror like a power washer. He thought this was funny, then turned the flosser toward me with the look of Dr. Jekyll in his eyes.

In the blink of an eye, water was all over my face. I opened my mouth like carnival game clowns where you have to shoot the water into their open mouths. As water streamed down my chin, I rinsed and took my flosser from my son. It was becoming dangerous in his hands.

At the end of my Waterpik initiation, I took out the dental floss and went to work on my teeth.

As I prepared to throw away the box the Waterpik came in, I looked in the bottom of the box. There lay a 5 x 7 piece of paper with the words “Quick Start Guide.” It contained the instructions I was supposed to read before using my new product.

The instructions told me to fill the reservoir with lukewarm water, not cold. It also said that first time users should set the pressure control to the lowest position. Finally, the directions said the water flow could be stopped by pressing the pause button on the handle.

How often will you read your user’s manual when you purchase a new product – always, sometimes, seldom, never?