So It's Done

Warning. This post is kind of long and most likely will bore everyone. I promise there is nothing remotely graphic in here, but I want to vent, and it's my blog... so I will.

I have dentures now. I've had them for just over 24 hours. I had to be at the dentist at 7:45, so I set my alarm for 4:00, I woke up at 3:30. I got everyone ready, and packed the kid's e-book and Nintendo so that he wouldn't get bored in the waiting room.

We got there an hour early, because I didn't get lost this time, but I allowed enough time just in case I did get lost. I was the second one in the parking lot. When he got out of his car 15 minutes before they opened, so did I. There was no way that I was going to not have a place in line. The guy in front of me didn't have an appointment and had never been there before, so he had to fill out paperwork. That made me first in line.

They had to take impressions of my mouth. That hurt really badly. My teeth were all loose and all sensitive to cold, so that part made me cry. After the molds were done, the dentist came in. He gave me some tissues and told me that it's okay to cry. He said that people make light of this, because it's so common, but it's like losing both your legs as far as the emotional trauma. He also said it wasn't my fault, that there wasn't anything I could have done different, and that made me feel better. I've felt incredible guilt about my teeth ever since I got my first cavity when I was 18.

We had to wait around for an hour while the lab made sure that my impressions were clear enough. Thank goodness, they were. They had already had to do my tops two times, and it took about 8 tries to get an impression of my bite. I've been adjusting my bite for so long to compensate for pain, that it was almost impossible to get me to bite down normally.

Then on to some fun stuff. We went to the mall and my husband and son took me to Build A Bear. At first they were going to take me there for Valentine's, but then my husband said that I needed a new lovey for being brave at the dentist. Yes, sometimes I'm only about 8 years-old. And that's okay. I picked out a new bear. I already have two kitties from there... Tabitha (a kitty), and Emmett (named after Emmett Smith). My new addition is Tinker-Bear. My husband picked out a Tinkerbell outfit (hence the name), and my son picked out silver sandals to go with her outfit.

After that we went to pick up my prescriptions. I got some pain pills, a relaxant for before the procedure, and some antiobiotics. We went to Olive Garden for lunch, because when all you can eat is soup, you want GOOD soup. I took my relaxant halfway through lunch, and by the time we left the restaurant, my husband had to drive. I had the giggles, and Austin was having a good time making me laugh.

I signed in back at the dentist, and they called my name a couple of minutes later. They decided that I didn't need the 2nd relaxant (and told me to keep it in case I wanted it later), and got me settled into a chair. The procedure was not that bad. The dentist was really, really sweet (and very nice to look at), and everytime I so much as blinked he asked if he was hurting me. Halfway through numbing me up, I asked if my teeth were done, and he stopped everything to get them and show them to me. They are pretty. They are really white (but not unnaturally white.) They look like doll's teeth. Or little kid teeth.

I had buck teeth as a kid, so my two front teeth were always big and a little out of proportion to the rest of my teeth. My new teeth are all size-proportionate. Someday I will recognize my smile again. Right now, I cry everytime I practice my smile in the mirror. Part of that could be stiffness though.

I only took one pain pill when the novocaine started to wear off. I've only taken a few Advil since then. I have a bad headache and my neck is a little stiff. My mouth doesn't hurt. It's just stiff due to the swelling. I was looking at my driver's license yesterday while waiting for my prescription, and realized how much thinner my face is compared to just 1 1/2 years ago. Not so today. Today, it's right back up there. But swelling will go away.

So far I'm scared to eat. I've had a yogurt and about 1/2 a cup of mashed potatoes. I've had strawberry sugar-free kool-aid (no carbonation for 24 hours), and 1/2 of a Starbucks mocha (thank you, Austin), and about 1 liter of water. Writing this, makes me realize that I need to make an effort to drink more now that I can feel my face again.

I managed to work for 2 1/2 hours this morning. I do phone customer service, and surprisingly I was able to talk well enough that I didn't sound too awful. Only one person kept saying "What! I can't understand you!" I think she would have been rude anyway.

I'm going to take another nap until my husband gets off work. Then I am going to be brave and clean my teeth for the first time. Wish me luck, please.