Tooth

[vaneramos]

Today Dr. F. pulled my nasty tooth out for me. Wasn't that nice of him? My jawbone is pretty dense, so there was a lot of tugging involved. Plenty of work for him, and I'm very grateful.

Ouch.

What happened is, I was flossing my teeth last Thursday and it snagged a filling and pulled it right out. At first there was a dull ache, and I couldn't afford to go to the dentist, so I took Ibuprofen and hoped the pain would go away, but yesterday it escalated intensely. So my writing partner recommended her dentist, who works walking distance from where I live, and he was able to take me this morning.

The lost filling was a very deep one, below the gum line, and this being a wisdom tooth, it was not worth trying to save a second time. This is only the second tooth I have had extracted. The first, a premolar, was lost to a botched root canal in 1984.

As a teenager I needed a lot of dental work. Nice, straight teeth, but the enamel was not so good. My dentist at the time asked whether I had ever had a high fever. Yup, when I was seven I had pneumonia. That was just when my adult teeth were budding, and they all ended up with a weak line.

Because my wisdom teeth did not come in until I was 14, they escaped. My jaw is wide (my fingertip fits around the corner behind the teeth), and those four were straight, so there was no immediate cause to pull them. I believe the three remaining are the only teeth in my mouth that have never had a cavity.

I just hope no more fillings decide to fly the coop anytime soon. This was my first visit to a dentist in more than five years, and fortunately it was not too expensive. General anesthetic would have been nice, but I guess this way was more interesting.

Comments

[hickbear.livejournal.com]

Ouch. I had 6 different teeth filled on the 12th, and this coming Thursday (the 26th) go back for two inlays. It's apparently just Dentist Month. :-{{{{

{{{Hugs}}}, sweetie. I hope you're feeling better Very Very Soon!!!

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Yargh, sounds like you have had a rough few days. At one time in my teens I had fillings in practically every one of my teeth. I think I went to the dentist four times and had my mouth done in quarters!

It seems to me that when your diet changes a bit, your teeth have to go through some adjustment, so maybe that has been a factor since the move from Atlanta. Anyway, I hope your mouth is feeling better.

[e-musings.livejournal.com]

Ohh my! Ugh! Nightmare reading-lol--hope your jaw heals smoothly.

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Yeah, having a tooth pulled without more than local freezing was one of my nightmares, too, but having lived through it I'd say I could survive it again, if necessary. ;)

I'm still in a bit of discomfort six days later. Tylenol and Ibuprofen together work pretty well, but the penicillin has almost run out, so we'll see....

[threestarblue.livejournal.com]

i had two wisdom teeth pulled out without being knocked out - the tugging is indeed an experience not to be forgot.

glad it went well - good luck healing.

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Thanks. "Not to be forgot." Indeed! I guess I could survive it again if necessary, but I sure hope I don't have to.

The pain level has been pretty steady for the past six days. Tylenol and Ibuprofen deal with that pretty well, but the penicillin is about to run out, so I hope it is healing alright.

[threestarblue.livejournal.com]

hmmm well i don't remember how many it hurt but i did decrease each day but my dentist did not give me anything but advil. he told me to take 4 every 6 hours i believe. you'll be okay - if it keeps hurting i would question that - things like dry rot can occur which can be very painful.

[inishglora.livejournal.com]

Sounds rather unpleasant... :o(

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Yeah, profoundly tedious, and throughout the procedure I was worrying he wasn't going to be able to get it out and I would have to resort to a more expensive solution. It was a great relief when the thing came out.