browser life

I woke up with the resurgence/continuance of the migraine that started a week ago (I'm not sure it ever went completely away). Was also still sore from the cleaning I've been doing in little bits and pieces (mainly to distract myself from the whole biopsy thing). And I had a terrible time getting out of bed.

So I knew that going to the dentist this afternoon for a crown would be rough on me. I'd been doing self-massage on my jaw muscles to try to get them loosened up since they were still sore from Thursday's root canal. But it usually takes me weeks after a root canal for the muscles to stop seizing up on me.

My first sign of real trouble today was that they couldn't get me numb enough. I required SIX shots, three of which were excruciating. And even after that, I could still feel pain on the right front quadrant of the tooth, but it wasn't severe, so I chose to put up with it rather than get another shot.

Sjogren's makes dentistry particularly painful. My mouth kept drying out so much that the instruments would stick to the insides of my cheeks, chafing and gouging them. And pieces of the tooth they were drilling would also stick to my cheeks and tongue, not rinsing away easily.

And then there was the problem with my gums. Although they are not receding because I take the best care of them that I can, they are weak and thin and particularly susceptible to damage. And they pretty much shredded whenever they came into contact with an instrument or when they were trying to fit me for the crown.

So I bled a lot, and because the tooth in question was in the very back of my small mouth, it was quite difficult for the dentist to get at what she needed to. And me having trouble keeping my mouth open didn't help. We did use one of those mouth rest thingies, but even then, the muscles in my face were twitching like mad.

The whole ordeal took two and a half hours! The dentist warned me that I would be extremely sore and recommended that I take a painkiller for awhile. Trouble is, with my gastroparesis, I can't take any narcotic without shutting down my entire digestive system and copious vomiting.

And since I am having my breast biopsy on Monday, I have to stop all anti-inflammatories three days prior. So I'm taking my usual Mobic and fish oil until Friday, and I hope like crazy that will help somewhat. Other than that and salt water rinses, I'm pretty much SOL.

Right now, I feel as though I have a dagger imbedded in my skull with the blade running from the top of the right side of my head and going straight through my mouth to the chin. I can barely open my mouth enough to get a spoon in there, and a huge area surrounding my right back tooth is throbbing wildly. And the entire inside of my right cheek is covered in blisters, gouges and even some loose skin.

To say it hurts is to say the ocean contains water: a gross understatement. I'd cry if I was able. And I'd medicate myself senseless if my body would allow it.

The final dental appointment is a week from Thursday. At least then that particular nightmare will be over.

Signing off not with a bang, but a whimper.