When momma ain't happy. . . .

So, as I've mentioned before, which is actually below, so maybe you haven't read it yet, this month has brought an unexpected challenge, ok, really, it's just been a nightmare!! It's sort of a long story, and I'm not sure I dare post pictures, cause it really is horrid. So, here goes. . .

To set the stage, it's the first week of March, we've just closed on our new house and are anxious to start moving stuff over to the new house. The plan is to move slowly and methodically, alleviating the stress that inevitable accompanies moving. It's midterms at school, so both Bryan and I have classes that we are working on stuff for midterms, and Bryan is working on midterms for his classes he's teaching. He's also dealing with a major crisis at work and is called out of town to Minnesota to deal with what continues to be a tricky situation. I am have 3 midterm tests, an assignment to turn in, and a speech to give.

I develop a toothache the first couple days in March. Now, we're talking major toothache, keeping me up at night for nights on end toothache. It's so awful and it refers up my jaw to my ear. Now, I've had a similar toothache about 8 years ago. I went to the dentist 8 years ago and he said, nothing wrong with that tooth that I can tell, I think it's TMJ, but I don't treat TMJ. Went to a Dr. explained that the pain had referred and was in my TMJ joint, right by my ear. She agreed, sounds like TMJ, but I don't treat TMJ. I don't remember what happened, but it resolved itself. So, when the same ache starts, the same way, shoots up my jaw to my ear and TMJ joint, I don't think I need to see a dentist to have them tell me there's nothing wrong with the tooth.

Friday, March 7, I'm through with a lot of my midterm stuff, I've pushed through the pain, haven't slept much at all. I have a speech to give this morning, then I can focus on being sick. Bryan is out of town til Sunday afternoon. I'm sitting in my speech class, I'm done with mine (got an A, I might add) and I feel a bump forming on the outside of my jaw, just outside of the tooth in question. It's getting bigger and more painful by the minute. By the time class is over, I know I have to go to a dentist, and there's a bump the size of a walnut on my jaw. Keep in mind, it's a Friday afternoon, 2pm. Fortunately, I'm able to see a dentist after much juggling of childcare. I think I've stumped him, to be honest. He says, it's definitely a problem with this tooth, basically, the root canal done 15 years earlier, tactfully put, maybe wasn't done as well as it could have been. It's clearly infected, and the bone is damaged. Basically, worst case scenario: this is it. He says you can either re-do the root canal, probably won't work, or you'll just have to lose the tooth. On Monday, I'll set up a consultation with an oral surgeon. Here's some antibiotics and pain pills for the weekend, good luck.

I fill the scripts, get home and am so thankful for narcotics. Riley is so sweet, he can tell how bad I am feeling and he sternly sends me to bed and says he'll take care of the kids (remember Bryan is still gone). He does a great job keeping the kids occupied while I lay down and doze off a little. Kelly brings pizza over for the kids for dinner, (thanks a million Kelly!). I get the kids to bed and am ready to go to bed myself, it's around 10. The kids are all sleeping, but I can't sleep at all. The pain is getting worse and I've watched this bump on my jaw swell by the hour. By midnight it's the size of a baseball, no kidding. I'm seriously troubled, this just isn't right, but what do I do? I finally call the dentist on the "on call" number at 12:30, he doesn't answer. I leave a message that I'm worried and I wonder if I need to go to the ER. (He calls me the next morning, so apologetic, he had left his phone on and with him, wondering if I'd call, but didn't hear it. Said yes, going to the ER was the right thing to do. He felt terrible he missed my midnight phone call though.) I call Kelly, she doesn't answer. I poke around the neighbor's house, their lights are on, but I don't see them anywhere. Thought about calling my aunt and uncle and I know they'd come in a hearbeat, but knew they were a half hour away and I knew I couldn't wait. So, I wake the older kids and tell them I'm going to the hospital, give them the phone, and tell them to call if they need anything. Next morning, they don't remember any of this and slept through the whole thing. I wake up Easton and take him with me. Worked out OK, he had a great time with the nurses since it was a slow night and we were just about the only ones there. Anyways, the Dr sees me, says yes, that's a wicked infection, you need to see an oral surgeon to have the tooth removed. Novel. In the meantime, he gives me pain killers (thankfully, the first real relief in a week) and gives me IV antibiotics. Says I have to come back every 8-10 hours for more IV antibiotics. I do this all weekend until Monday night. The swelling and infection improves a little, and the pain is managed somewhat too.

Monday I meet with the oral surgeon, he says, it has to come out tomorrow and the best thing to do is eventually put in an implant, but the bone is damaged, so you may need a bone graft. Again, worst case scenario, and doesn't sound cheap either, but what choice do I have? Tuesday morning, they put me out and yank the sucker, drain a bunch of the infection, although it's another 2 weeks before I look mostly normal. I enjoy the conveniences of modern medicine and narcotics as I heal.

I must say, this has been just about the most horrific ordeal I've been through. I had no idea that a tooth could case so much trouble, and be so incredibly painful.

Now, nearly a month later, my face looks normal, I'm missing a tooth, it's a molar in the back of my mouth. It's healing quite well, he says. He says it will fill in with bone and doesn't think I'll need a graft afterall. Because my mouth has been through so much trauma, I have enormous canker sores in the back of my mouth and throat that hurt so bad. The surgeon won't really claim to know what to do with those, so I finally go see a Dr. who puts me on yet more meds, but at least they're clearing up. So, the worst of the ordeal is almost over. Except the implant, which involves screwing a titanium screw into my jaw in a few months. Oh, and the bills for all this. Turns out dental insurance really sucks and doesn't cover much of this at all.

Donations can be sent to our home.