Ouch Part II

I've been home from Kansas City for about an hour and a half now. In quite a lot of pain. Today didn't go as smoothly as I had hoped.

First, I want to recognize the doctor that is actually pulling my teeth. His name is Dr. Chris McDaniels. Can't remember if I mentioned this already, but last week was his first week of residency. In all honesty, I was a little unsettled when he told me that, but he truly is a very nice man. His attempts to make me feel comfortable, are genuinely sincere. Not sure how old he is, but I would say no older than 28.

Next week he has agreed to take a photo with me, as I didn't think of it until after he started working on me today. I asked if it would be OK to take one and post it in my photo journal and he was very pleased that I asked. He said it would be honor to pose with me and be a part of my story, as it makes him feel he's actually accomplished himself after 6 hard working years of college.

One thing that I really appreciate about him, is when things aren't going the way they should, or if he's having difficulty, he doesn't just cut corners and force it to happen. He stops and seeks assistance from a senior doctor. Such was the case today.

Today's trip was to have my bottom remaining teeth pulled. There were only 4 left, so I thought it would be much easier than last week. I don't recall exactly how many shots I got this time, but I estimate it was 6 or 7. Again, the middle center tooth was not numbing. I asked why that part of my mouth would not numb again and he said it had to do with my "midline". I'm not really sure what that means. I think he pulled that one first to get it out of the way. Seems like he got the first 3 out in less than 2 minutes. Very simple.

The last tooth left on the bottom, which was in the back of the left side, was not so easy. He could not loosen it at all. I had a root canal done on it several years ago, but half of the top had broken off. He tugged, pulled, twisted, and dug at that tooth for about 20 minutes or so. Nothing. He searched out help from another doctor, who took a look. The 2nd doctor threw on a mask and started helping Dr. McDaniels. I don't know exactly what they were doing, but the pulling was so hard, I thought my jaw would pop out of its socket! Literally! No pain, just alot of pressure and pulling, but they weren't seeing any results.

They decided they would have to drill it, to break it apart. Again, no pain, just pressure and vibration from the drill. The 2nd doctor would drill a little, then Dr. McDaniels would try to pull. They had to drill it about 5 times, then pull, dig, and scrape before they got it to loosen.

Finally it was out!! All my bottom teeth are gone. Now it was time for the stitches. I was doing good at first. They started from the back and worked up to the front. As soon as he got to the center middle, where they have trouble numbing, I felt the needle go in. "Owwwww!" They say, hang in there, your almost done. Pinch! Needle goes in again. Three times I felt the needle pierce my gums. I heard the sound of it poking through. I shut my eyes and all I can think about is a cow getting hung on a meat hook. He pulled on the stitches to knot it, and I can feel him pulling it tight. I even told them that was too tight. One of them, not sure which, just sort of chuckled.

All over, they are done.........until next Friday. That's when I go back to have my top teeth pulled. I only have 4, so I pray it goes much better than the last two trips.

The pain I'm feeling, now that all the Novocaine has worn off, is much worse than it was last week. Probably from the drilling and excessive pulling and digging on that final tooth. My gums on the right side look fabulous compared to the gums that were stitched today. It looks like chopped meat.

I have photos from today.....before and afters. The after photos are pretty graphic in my opinion, so I'm not sure if I should post them here or save them somewhere else with a warning before you look. What do you think? Leave a comment to help me decide if I should include them in my blog. It wouldn't be to done to sicken anyone, but it's a big part of my journey to smile.

Definitely won't be any smiling for now.................