Wonder why anyone hadn't thought of this before - a water irrigator, coupled with a sonic toothbrush. But it seems to work.
Still trying to get used to working with the Water-Pik. Sometimes if I'm not careful, it feels as if I am trying to waterboard myself. Practice makes perfect, however, and I think I should get the hang of it if I use the device more often. If I had to complain about this device: the Water-Pik motor makes a heck of a racket - sort of a jackhammering sound. I have to take the device to another bathroom to use it when my wife's asleep.
The Water-Pik was recommended by my dental professional. She also recommended I use a competing device instead of the sonic toothbrush, saying that device was far more powerful than the Water-Pik sonic device. As far as I could research this, the competing device was only 1000 strokes per second stronger than the Water-Pik toothbrush. I'll stick with this device, for now, and see if my hygeine professional can tell the difference.
My main complaint: replacement brushes for the toothbrush are generally not available in stores - they have to be ordered online. The limited availability bothers me. We'll see if the ordering process is more efficient.