Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Important Advice

I am just home from a nasty dentist appointment, and I have some important advice. DO NOT CHEW ICE. I used to do it all the time, and I cracked some of my teeth. If you have a tooth that’s cracked all the way down, they can’t do a root canal. (They only find this out after they’ve STARTED a root canal. ) If it’s cracked all the way into the root, they have to pull it. No fun. Then you have to figure out what you’re going to do about the missing tooth. I’m getting two implants. First they drill holes in your jaw and put in posts. Then you wait for three months and have screws put on the posts. Then you get the new teeth. This is a long process and no fun. But I’m now three weeks away from the actual new teeth. (Today they did the impressions. An ordeal ince my mouth is still sore from putting in the screws last week.)

Honk if you hate having your mouth worked on.

Ruth

15 comments:

felinewyvern said...

OUCH! I hope all goes well and that you are not in too much pain. Having broken a tooth whilst just brushing them yesterday I know about having problem teeth. Mind I never chewed ice I used to use them to crack nuts, but not brazils. LOL

Rebecca York said...

You broke a tooth while brushing? No fun at all!!
In general, I think teeth are not well designed. Or--they were designed for cave men, who were only going to live into their thirties.
Ruth

Jennifer Y. said...

I am honking!

I have had several root canals and crowns. I was on meds and was ill which ruined my teeth. My teeth are weak.

flip said...

you have my complete sympathy. It sounds painful.

robynl said...

Let's talk(not)about dentists, LOL. Dh and I are going through thousands of dollars to get teeth so we can chew properly (at least I hope). We know about the 'mouth open' too long thing, for sure. Best wishes to you.

Brandy said...

I have to have a 'realxer' to even visit the dentist. Dh had what you're having done. Except it was one of his front teeth, they said he'd probably hit it when he was a kid and it died (he was 30 when they did this). Did I mention this was a military dentist? And that they did it in less than a month? He came home with tears in his eyes afterwards.

Rebecca York said...

Billie, yuck! No fun.
Brandy--
Interesting that they could do it so fast. Tears in his eyes--because it hurt or because he was thrilled to get his tooth back?
Ruth

Pamk said...

ouch sounds painful. Hope all goes well for you. They are doing a crown for me next week. I absolutely loathed going to the dentist.

Anonymous said...

Ow! That sounds bad!
I had a crown put on one of my teeth 9 years ago and the dentist drilled the tooth down, made an impression and then sent me away for a week while he waited for the crown to come back from whoever makes them! He said the glue was only really guaranteed for 6 years, but it's 9 years and counting.(She says with crossed fingers!)

Anonymous said...

Ouch! I do, in fact, love to chew ice. Have you heard that chewing ice is a sign that you have an iron deficiency? I'm not sure if that's an old wives tale, or rooted in truth, but regardless, it's a hard habit to break. I suppose having to endure the pain of all that dental work, not to mention the cost, would be a good motivator. :-)

Rebecca York said...

Absolutely right. When your teeth start cracking, you stop chewing stuff that makes them crack. yes, it was a hard habit to break. The dentist told me years before to stop, and I didn't.

Jillb, if you got your crown that FAST, you were lucky.
Ruth

Unknown said...

Honk! I hate going to the dentist. Can't stand the sound of the drill.

Brandy said...

Tears because he was in so much pain! They rushed through everything. Granted the new tooth looks great, I can't get him to go back to the dentist now!! (and this was a little over 2 years ago)

Rebecca York said...

Thanks for the thoughts. I DO FEEL BETTER

Knitting Insomniac said...

Honking loudly here. I had a dentist once, when he went to freeze me, he stuck the needle through my cheek instead and went ahead and drilled and filled my tooth. I can't imagine what it must feel like having screws put into your jaw. OUCH. Hope you're feeling better soon and that getting the actual teeth doesn't cause you anymore pain