cleaning

I finally got up the gumption to get in for a cleaning. Surprisingly, after a year and a half things looked pretty good. She wants me to focus on cleaning heavily around my built-in retainer along the bottom, but everything else is fine.

They have to do a crown on one of my teeth in February. I was so hopped up on the anti-anxiety medications I'm not clear on why or what other work they're doing (for 1,400 dollars... oye bye savings!), so I'm going to call in January to clarify (the offices are pretty much closed until the 3rd).

The anti-anxiety medications they gave me REALLY helped. I wasn't nervous at all, but I also don't remember anything at all... including the errands that my friend [who was driving me around] did, the lunch we went out to, the 5 hour nap I took when I finally got home... yikes. I do remember accidentally scaring my technician, who's having lower jaw surgery soon. I'm not sure what I said, but she said she was more nervous than before. Oops!

They're giving me something a little stronger for the next appointment, because they need me to be slightly sedated for the crown work.

crown, part 2

I got the crown placed today at the dentist. For once, the appointment went as planned and it only took around 20 minutes. The worst part was taking off the temporary crown, I had a few tears running down my cheeks. Once it was off the gum tissue around the crown was intensely tender and still is a few hours later.

My top retainers no longer fit so I went into my orthodontist's office (luckily right down the street). Since I have an appointment on Thursday morning for the impressions for my splint, they decided to just trim the back tooth off of my retainer, assuring me it wouldn't move in a few days. I sure hope not.

It's really odd to have a tooth back there! I got the root canal 8 months ago, and have just had a little post since. Feels nice.

dentist: crown, part 1

I'm fairly surprised I don't have an all-encompassing fear of the dentist by now. It seems every time I go something goes wrong and I'm stuck with my poor, inept jaw open for long periods of time, resulting in lots of pain.

Yesterday was no surprise - I went in to have two fillings replaced, as they were placed by a terrible dentist in my teens and were showing signs of infection underneath. Those went fairly painlessly - and now they're tooth-colored fillings, instead of shiny silver! Hooray! And all of that work took less than an hour - right on track (my dental assistant is an amazing woman who knows exactly how to treat my idiotic jaw).

Then... the crown prep. I was under the impression (excuse the pun) that it was only an impression - and I would come back in two weeks for the fitting. My dentist is placing a crown on the tooth that had to have a root canal shortly after jaw surgery - my very most rear tooth in the back upper right, of course the most difficult tooth to work on with limited jaw opening.

I'm not exactly sure what went 'wrong' - something wasn't done during or after the root canal, possibly because I was in such incredible pain and it was taking too long? Whatever the case, Dr. Nuttall dug around and took off the silver and shaped and smoothed and cut a bunch of gum tissue and... 2 hours later it was over. He was quite proud of whatever it was he accomplished in there, but I was seeing spots from pain.

The good thing that came from all of this? Dr. Nuttal, being the amazing dentist he is, took time to let my jaw rest during the treatment. He tried to cold-spray my jaw, which doesn't really help me. He then started a full neck massage - which, lo and behold, really helped! After 20 minutes of massage, I felt like I could open my jaw further and it hurt much less! Could it be possible that some of my ROM problems are stemming from muscular problems in my neck? I think I'll go to my acupuncturist to find out. I'm still really interested in a physiotherapist, as well, but am not sure how to find one.

The bad thing, of course, is insane jaw pain and a tooth-ache/gum-ache/face-ache that rivals post-jaw surgery. But without all of the cool painkillers.

Much love to all the recently post-surgery folks. It'll get better - I promise!

first cleaning post-surgery

I survived! Luckily, this time I got a much more gentle dental hygienist this time, who went very slowly and carefully around all of the metal and rubber and blech. I'm still missing a lot of feeling in my gums and teeth, but where I CAN feel is hyper-sensitive to anything and everything. Between that and my jaw opening MAYBE halfway, I was intensely nervous going in for the appointment today.

I haven't actually been in for a cleaning since June of 2008 - right about then the insane migraines started when propping my jaw open for long periods of time, and I chose to wait it out. I figured I'd be able to have one soon after surgery, making it only a year between cleanings, but I'm almost 6 months post-op.

However, despite having braces, having jaw surgery, AND not getting a cleaning for a year and a half, my teeth looked pretty good! She said I had deposits around the normal areas where the saliva glands are (on the back teeth and the front teeth, apparently?), but overall looked very good. I really work hard with the waterpik, floss, little brushes, and my sonicare to get everything nice and clean.

I have some receding gum stuff going on in the rear of my teeth - ironic, really, since I have so much puffy, extra gum up front from irritation from the rubber bands and being a mouth breather (though, much less of a mouth breather since surgery!). You'd think my body could just... well... even it out, right?

My jaw is pretty sore, and I'll end up taking a painkiller for it so I can sleep tonight - the pain is by far the worst when I'm sleeping anyway, and the few nights after my root canal I was waking up every half hour or hour. I'm calling my surgeon tomorrow to see if they're in the office and I can drop off the insurance payment and talk about that pesky right jaw joint.

Let me tell you, I can't stop running my tongue over my teeth now! They feel so wonderful and smooth :)

emergency dentist appointment

I would love for all of this drama with my mouth to be over.

As my teeth and gums are beginning to have feeling again, I noticed my back tooth on my upper left side has been especially sensitive. I've been ignoring it, as I figured it was all in the course of getting feeling back (just like my chin used to burn and have those weird shooting pains). Well... two weeks or so later, it's just getting worse and worse to the point of being unable to chew on that side so I called my dentist yesterday. They had me come in today (which worked out well because I was dropping the husband off at the airport for another round of military training)...

Two hours, four x-rays, 3 dentists opinions, and a lot of testing later they decided I needed to see an endodontist (which I had never even heard of) TODAY for my rear-most teeth on the top left. I drove straight to the endodontic office where they decided they were doing an emergency root canal - or, really, half of one. They cut open the tooth and pulled out all of the insides and stuck a cap over the top. They'll finish the root canal on December 28th.

It turns out that my roots are so shortened on those upper two teeth that it may have caused all of the sensitivity and pain. Since I can't feel the tooth in front of it, they think I might have to get another root canal on that tooth - since it's in the same boat. It sounded like I could have lost the tooth the roots were so short, and they're not even sure the tooth is completely viable.

Since I have such a limited opening, that was a terribly painful set of appointments. The endodontist prescribed me valium and percocet for the next appointment - I'm supposed to take one valium an hour before the appointment, and then another one a half hour before the appointment. I can also take a percocet. My jaw on the right side is now popping in a new way - almost like bone or cartliage rubbing against bone or cartliage, and it is INTENSE.

The GOOD thing about the appointment, though, was the numbing shots didn't hurt at ALL because I still have limited feeling in my gums/ upper palate. Whoo hoo!

I know this shouldn't upset me so much, but I spent the entire 35 minute drive from my dentist to my endodontist sobbing. Granted, part of that was the lack of sleep last night (helping Nick pack) and then my husband leaving for over a month during the holidays... but I'm pretty down about all of this. I am SO done with everything to do with my mouth.

Infection

Well, my jaw is feeling completely better, but on New Year's eve my left socket started hurting pretty badly. The next morning I woke up spitting blood and it hurt even worse than on the day before. It's progressively gotten worse and worse until I finally called my dentist yesterday (I was hoping to make it until my appt. on next Tuesday since he's out of the office and I had to call him at home).

He says he's pretty sure it's dry socket or some kind of infection, prescribed me more pain meds (ugh, I don't like taking them) and some crazy antibiotics.

So, I'm up at 3:30 am because I have to take them every six hours on the dot, and am not allowed to lay down within a half hour of taking them.

At least they haven't made me sick yet.

teeth extraction

Ugh, what a day yesterday. I went to my teeth cleaning on Wednesday, and they found the beginning of cavities between two different sets of teeth. He said that because my teeth are so crowded, and because they've been moving so much, the enamel is rubbing down and forming cavities. (No wonder I've had so many cavities as an adult, even though I take really good care of my teeth). They had an appointment open for the next day, though, so I was glad I could get it over with right away.

Zoom to following day [yesterday]. My ortho appointment went well, he confirmed everything the oral surgeon said, and said I was fine to get braces on January 21st, unless I didn't have my two teeth pulled by then. I flipped out a little bit (my dentist is really busy and I have a difficult schedule), so my receptionist called to see if I could get in over break. They said that if I could show up at 10am instead of 11:30 (my cavity appointment), I could have it all done at once.

Luckily, Heidi is amazing and gave up our day of Christmas shopping and cookie making and holiday movie watching to take me to the dentist, where we spent 3 and a half hours. Seriously. I was in the chair for most of that time. After one of the most horrific local anesthesia experiences ever (the needles were four inches long, just let me say), they drilled the cavities first, then pulled the two teeth, then filled the cavities. My teeth are so crammed together that it was almost impossible to fill the cavities, and the wedges to hold my teeth apart kept breaking off. Remember, also, that I have TMJ, and by the end of the appointment the pain from my jaw was shooting into my neck and back and right arm. I was numb until around 9pm last night (11 hours!!).

Today, other than speaking ("s" sounds are painful because they send my tongue into my open sockets), my teeth aren't really painful - it's my jaw that's out of control. I can't open my mouth more than about an inch, and that's a stretch. The joints are throbbing, I have a massive headache, ugh. Note to self: know what I'm getting into before I agree to anything like that again. Yikes.

cleaning

I'm getting my first teeth cleaning in almost three years tomorrow (I love having insurance again!), and I get to meet the dentist that's going to pull my bottom two teeth. He seems nice - he called me personally to confirm my appointment tomorrow - perhaps he realizes how much money he's going to make off me?

And Thursday's the appointment - the final consulatation with my orthodontist before braces!

I keep meaning to get the camera out of Nick's car so I can take my official "before" pictures. I'll make sure to do that this week sometime.