Back From the Dentist, One Tooth Fewer

Well, I'm down to 27 teeth. That's certainly better than the "worst case scenarios" that were rattling around in my head. When I was a teenager, I had two bicuspids removed, to make room for my eye teeth. Then about six years ago, I had my right wisdom teeth out (one was extruded, one was impacted). Today, it was the upper left wisdom that had to go.

It turns out that what I'd been supposing was true. My wisdom tooth was trying to extract itself. My mouth was never quite big enough for it, and it was crowded to the outer reaches of bone. It hung in there for a heck of a long time, but it just gave up. So, since it was trying to let go, and by closing my mouth I would push it back in, an abscess formed, which is what was torturing me.

I'm relieved to say that my dentist, Dr. David Mahon at Gentle Dental was very kind, and patient with my phobia, and he managed to live up to the name of the practice. The five or six shots I got were virtually painless, and the extraction itself? Except for a little pressure, no big deal at all. Really, there wasn't much to it. I'm back at home, and the bleeding has stopped. I feel some minor discomfort, but nothing too bad--certainly better than before. I've got some soft food lined up for today, and I am practiced at being very careful after having had previous extractions (though I was unconscious before) and periodontal surgery.

Now, mind you, I'm on hydrocodone at the moment, so things could change! But I have to tell you, dental-phobia is all about anticipation. During and after, it really isn't that bad. Periodontal-phobia? Whole different story. It sucks on every level. But thankfully, Dr. Mahon says I'm looking good gum-wise. Woohoo!

Blogger Down! Blogger Down! Crippled by Toothache!

My mind is not on blogging tonight, but on my current dental woes. I related last week that I was worried about one of my wisdom teeth. But after a cleaning on Friday that seemed to turn up nothing--though, to be honest I didn't press the issue--it started to hurt. A lot. And it's been a weird pain too, going from intense to annoying to nothing and back in odd cycles. Mornings have been the worst. Tuesday, things seemed to be getting better, and then Wednesday, full-on, skull-shattering pain.

Today hasn't been a picnic either, but I have to say, the sensation has been nearly entirely different each day. And oddly, though I'm pretty sure it's just one tooth that is the problem, the pain can extend across my top left molars, and occasionally the bottom ones too. I have a feeling that the pain from the one tooth is sort of sending out pain-waves that are confusing the rest of my mouth. Because the only pain I feel by actual stimulation is the one tooth.

It's kind of like when you have something lodged between your teeth, but can't find it with a toothpick. Confused mouth nerves. I don't know. I don't want to know. But I have a dental appointment in the morning, where I'm sure that the very best news I'll get is a single extraction. I won't be surprised to find that they want to take the bottom wisdom tooth too, which will make me unhappy. And if there's anything in addition to that? Well, I'll just be stone-cold terrified.

I hate dental procedures, even cleanings. Several years ago, I had lapsed in going to the dentist for a very long time. When I finally got back, I endured a very long cleaning, and surprisingly no cavities. The dentist told me that I had great teeth--and what a shame it was that they were all going to fall out. He was exaggerating, but it turns out I have periodontal disease, and bone loss.

So, I dutifully showed up for cleanings every three months for a year or so. And since I wasn't getting enough progress, I was sent to a periodontist. That evil man cut away and restitched my gums over three procedures. I went to see him a couple more times, but when it was time to transition back to the regular dentist, there was a scheduling snafu, followed by another lapse. As stupid as it was, procrastinating was easier than going back.

But that was a year ago. Since then, I've seen the dentist and the hygienist four or five times, most recently on Friday. So, you'd think that whatever is wrong, they'd have seen it coming. Not that any of that matters. My tooth hurts, and it must be addressed. I just wish I had some anxiety medication or something!

I'm sure--unless I'm too overloaded, or the news is too horrifying--I'll be back tomorrow afternoon with an update. For now, I can't promise any new posts unless I stumble upon something fun or interesting.

UPDATE: If you want to see how it all turned out, go here.