Not a great 2012

I don't think 2012 has gotten off to a great start for me. I think getting old is really the pits and it is also when the body starts to break down.

Earlier in January, I thought my filling came out of the tooth or something as there was a sharp sudden pain which did not go away. I could not sleep and panadol did not work. Finally went to see the dentist a few days later for emergency check up. Turned out it was a root canal problem, the nerve pain was common and painkiller would not work.

The dentist said my tooth was cracked (worn out teeth from grinding) and bacteria from food probably got down to the root canal and infected it. So he performed a root canal treatment to remove the infected area. Shocker! I was so not prepared at all. Then he set me the options of treatments to arrest the problem.

1. See the root canal specialist to remove the last root canal (usually 4 root canals in the molar, and the 4th one is microscopic) and to check if the tooth can be saved.

2. If tooth can be saved, then I can do a crowning and then get mouth guard to protect the other teeth from future chips and cracks.

3. If tooth cannot be saved, extraction is need. Then I have a choice to get a) implant, b) bridging or c) denture.

Denture is not recommended as it is uncomfortable and not suitable for my age as I am still young.

Bridging will affect the other 2 neighboring teeth and 3 crowns are needed.

Implant is the best recommended solution for long term care, plus I still need to get my grinding under control.

So I was scheduled to see the root canal specialist yesterday. When I was in there, it turned out the crack had fractured the tooth. The specialist told me I would need to remove the fractured bit so that he could assess the tooth and how deep the crack was.

After the removal (just 1/4 of the molar and it left quite a big gap), he thought the tooth could be saved. But my dentist would need to reduce the gum space via surgery so that the crown could fit over the section. However when my dentist saw the damage and did his assessment, he said it was best not to save the tooth. Reason being he would need to shave a considerable amount of gum and expose the bone. There would be a gap between teeth which would be hard to brush and bacteria would infect the area in the long run. Plus it would also affect the neighboring teeth and might affect the bone density. So he recommended to extract the tooth.

What a blow. I was stunned to hear that and could barely think. So I was shuttled off to another dentist who specialized in extraction and implant. I could never deal with pain and everyone could tell I was really nervous and scared and tense.

I really did not want to extract my tooth as it is relatively healthy. The dentist tried to extract, I could feel him pulling and tugging with all his might. Every time he pulled, I thought he managed to get it out or loose, but he did not. In the end, he said the roots are too deep in and he would need to do a surgery to remove it.

He said I could do it then or do it another day. I opted for another day as I was just not prepared for it.

Thank God for the topical anaesthesia and 3 injections that I did not really feel the pain when the fractured bit was extracted and when the tugging was done. I could not imagine what the pain would be like without anaesthesia.

But once the anaesthesia wore off, the pain was unbearable. A dull throbbing pain and ache. To make matter worse, I lost the strong painkiller I was given. I had to go back to the clinic to get more arcoxia. Luckily someone was still around when I called as it was after office hours by then. I managed to get the painkiller and spoke to my regular dentist.

We decided to do a temporary mouth guard too as the implant will take 4-9 months to complete and I want something to protect my other worn out teeth after the extraction. With a big hole (the molar is super big), chewing will be tough as I will likely be using only 1 side of teeth to eat as per what I am doing now.

So yes, my dental work is going to occupy at least half the year for me.

Bottomline: Wear a mouth guard. I sure did not expect this to happen and it is like the worst thing to happen to me now.

Besides teeth, I think my eyesight is also getting worse. It could be due to work where I looked at computer screen whole day or from my ipad. I just feel I cannot see as well now.

The warning sign came when I realized I cannot see the signboards when I drove at night. What a danger it was. Thank God I managed to make it home ok, but after making some wrong turns.

So after the teeth, I will need to make an appointment with an eye specialist to check if my eyes are ok. I am so not looking forward to it.

The optometrist I went to for my last prescription said I could not see sharply because of my aging eyes. I am not sure I buy that theory but since I could still see with my old pair of glasses, I ignored it. Until now.

More cost to follow.

I wonder what other problems will start to surface too. It is just so terrible....to know the body is kinda falling apart after 30. And I thought getting grey hair was the pits after 30 :(