As things turned out, the oral surgeon was reluctant to do anything before I am seen by an ENT. That's fine with me-I wasn't super excited to have this done at the holidays. I'll still need surgery, but the priority right now is the damage done to my sinuses from the root canal last year. Apparently, I shouldn't have air and water whooshing out through my nose (or something like that).
The bone loss isn't as bad as feared, so that was good news. I was able to get an appointment tomorrow with the doctor that saw me last year after the root canal, so that was lucky too. I'm still going to need that tooth out, but I'm glad someone was paying close attention and didn't just go in there extracting teeth. Oh, and there's something horrible going on with my ear, but all he would say is, "It doesn't look good-have the ENT check it out."
I'm following Mim's advice and drinking my vitamin C supplement, and hoping they don't find anything too exotic in my ear or sinuses tomorrow. I'm always amused to visit this particular medical centre as it is adjacent to a very large cemetery. Imagine being in your hospital room and looking out over that!
I want to thank everyone for their encouragement. This has been an awful year, and I'm hoping it will be corrected soon. On a happy note-between this and the visit to the urgent care for my neck, I've probably hit my insurance deductible for the year, so I can afford to see as many medical professionals as need be before new year's. That's great, because I'm loooong overdue with a visit to the rheumatologist.
There is light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm really glad I have such wonderful friends to see me through. Thank you for all your comments and emails. I'm fairly stoic, but (understandably) I'm turning into a complete chickenshit when it comes to my teeth.
Take that vitamin C & B complex too!
ReplyDeleteGet your iron levels & vitamin D levels checked while you're visiting all those doctors.
Vitamin D levels are tied in to more than bone loss, they influence everything from mood to thyroid.
Dental/sinus/neck problems are the worst.
Take care, I'll be sending all the best positive karmic vibes your way during my daily meditation hour.
Ommmmmm mani padme hummmmmm....
It's good to know the bone loss isn't as bad as feared - and once everything's been treated properly, you might find it grows back; since having my root canals redrilled that summer I've regained bone mass in my jaw. Will you need a graft at all?
ReplyDeleteIs the ear trouble connected to the root canal/sinus problem?
I really do swear by vitamin C for keeping infection under control. (At worst it does nothing, but I believe it helps massively.)
As you say, it's an excellent omen that the oral surgeon made time to carefully evaluate your situation before making his moves. As a child I was treated by a clan of ENTs. On an interesting case, one could meet several generations of Spuths, small men wearing white coats and smelling Very Clean. I've since been told they were admired for their team efforts involving other specialties such as eyes and cranio-facial anomalies.
ReplyDeleteAll I remember is the oldest gentleman's gentle hands and minty breath as he murmured esoteric notes to the others. Long time ago, this was, before MRI's and 8th generation X-ray machines. Kids were knocked out with drops of ether administered to a gauze pad held over the nose. If we wriggled, we got a skin burn, so nurse held us down quite firmly. Aha! I just remembered the ether was called 'elephant juice' because you could hear the elephants coming down the hall -- nice way to tell a kid to expect a roaring in the ears and a thumping in the head.
I, too, will be sending healing intentions your way tomorrow. This is a good time to take all the supplements others have recommended! And, yes, do include your GP and rheumatologist in whatever group discussions of your situation can be arranged. This has worked to my advantage on more than a few occasions.
Oh, Goody, this sounds awful and convoluted, but at least they've got an idea of how to fix the ickiness. If I lived nearby, I'd take you out for grilled cheese sandwiches and hat shopping. (I also get the sense that you are not a hugger, so none of that. I do not hug either.)
ReplyDeleteIt sounds grim, all of it. I think you can be as stoical as you like, but some procedures just bloody hurt, and there's no denying it. Sending love. xxxx
ReplyDelete@Bibi
ReplyDeleteThanks, I can use all the positive vibes I can get.
@Mim
No one has mentioned grafts, so I'll hope that means no. I'm glad to hear your is coming back.
@Beth
"Elephant Juice" is quite imaginative-I like that. I have a vague memory of the smell of ether when it was still used in hospitals-I think. To the best of my knowledge, I never had it used on me.
@Propagatrix
Yep, not a hugger! I appreciate the kind thoughts.
@Curtise
Thank you. I really do hate dealing with stuff like this-I'm terrible at it!
Is that a depiction of your face swollen by tooth problems?? It just sucks that you are going through this. As someone else who has just hit her deductible I say woo Hoo. Let's go out and get blood tests to celebrate. Actually I found out that I can now visit a chiropractor and only pay 10%. I almost threw out my back with joy. Here's wishing you a super healthy pain free vintage clothing filled New Year. Xxxxooo
ReplyDelete@Connie
ReplyDeleteOh, you have REALLY good insurance if it pays for chiro!You be well and have a super new year too.