AGH!
This allergic reaction keeps spreading and getting worse. I'm itching all over. Seriously close to losing it. I'm on Benadryl and Allegra and Zantac (while it's most commonly used for stomach acid, it's an H1 blocker - that is, it blocks one of the receptors for histamine, which is the pathway for allergic reactions), along with hydroxyzine for the itching. I've got hives everywhere from the middle of the ribcage up, with the exception of the palm side of my hands. I'm totally miserable. Everything itches! The hydroxyzine does help a little bit with the being upset and agitated by all the itching.
As if that wasn't enough, I've got a broken tooth. I actually broke it a month ago, the night before we moved. It's one of my wisdom teeth, which I've been slowly working on getting removed*, so I didn't have the tooth repaired because it makes no sense to pay for expensive dental work on something that's just getting yanked out anyhow. itself didn't hurt for the first couple weeks, but it's got a very sharp edge that happens to press up against one of the muscles in my jaw. So it's making my TMJD much worse, to the point where it's really very painful and I have to ice down the side of my jaw multiple times a day. I bought some orthodontic wax to cover the sharp edge, and that helps a little bit, but it's still pretty painful.
I see the new oral surgeon on the 7th, and they can theoretically get me in to pull out the teeth on the 12th, so I just have to survive the next two weeks.
Ugh, I'm really regretting the years of putting off my wisdom tooth removal. I wish someone had explained to me when I was 18 that the surgery is typically easier the younger you are when it is done; I didn't realize that until I started moving towards taking care of this last year. And that's without factoring in this damn broken tooth!
*Getting my wisdom teeth removed has been a bit more complicated than I'd expected. The first oral surgeon I saw decided that because of my heart condition, he didn't want to do the removal outside of a hospital. Well, my dental insurance won't cover the hospital, and my health insurance will only cover the hospital if it's a Kaiser hospital. The surgeon is only willing to do it at the hospital he normally works with. I called and asked if he would do it in his office if a cardiologist cleared me for that. He said yes. So I booked an appointment with a cardio and then called the surgeon's office back asking for the soonest appointment after my cardio that I could get, because this damn thing hurts and I wanted it gone! The surgeon's office says oh, no, he'll only work on you in a hospital OR. So now I have to find a new oral surgeon who will do this in the hospital if my cardio clears me, or at a Kaiser facility if the cardio agrees that my heart is unstable enough that the surgery needs to be done in the hospital. Odds are very high that the cardio will clear me; my heart condition really isn't dangerous unless I get extremely dehydrated or extremely hot. As long as my hydration and my temperature are maintained at reasonable levels, I shouldn't be any more difficult on that count. They'll still be dealing with my connective tissue and my joints being more fragile than normal, so there is a possibility of my jaw dislocating or my mouth getting more torn up than expected, but I think that's the sort of thing the surgeon is supposed to be able to manage in office.
As if that wasn't enough, I've got a broken tooth. I actually broke it a month ago, the night before we moved. It's one of my wisdom teeth, which I've been slowly working on getting removed*, so I didn't have the tooth repaired because it makes no sense to pay for expensive dental work on something that's just getting yanked out anyhow. itself didn't hurt for the first couple weeks, but it's got a very sharp edge that happens to press up against one of the muscles in my jaw. So it's making my TMJD much worse, to the point where it's really very painful and I have to ice down the side of my jaw multiple times a day. I bought some orthodontic wax to cover the sharp edge, and that helps a little bit, but it's still pretty painful.
I see the new oral surgeon on the 7th, and they can theoretically get me in to pull out the teeth on the 12th, so I just have to survive the next two weeks.
Ugh, I'm really regretting the years of putting off my wisdom tooth removal. I wish someone had explained to me when I was 18 that the surgery is typically easier the younger you are when it is done; I didn't realize that until I started moving towards taking care of this last year. And that's without factoring in this damn broken tooth!
*Getting my wisdom teeth removed has been a bit more complicated than I'd expected. The first oral surgeon I saw decided that because of my heart condition, he didn't want to do the removal outside of a hospital. Well, my dental insurance won't cover the hospital, and my health insurance will only cover the hospital if it's a Kaiser hospital. The surgeon is only willing to do it at the hospital he normally works with. I called and asked if he would do it in his office if a cardiologist cleared me for that. He said yes. So I booked an appointment with a cardio and then called the surgeon's office back asking for the soonest appointment after my cardio that I could get, because this damn thing hurts and I wanted it gone! The surgeon's office says oh, no, he'll only work on you in a hospital OR. So now I have to find a new oral surgeon who will do this in the hospital if my cardio clears me, or at a Kaiser facility if the cardio agrees that my heart is unstable enough that the surgery needs to be done in the hospital. Odds are very high that the cardio will clear me; my heart condition really isn't dangerous unless I get extremely dehydrated or extremely hot. As long as my hydration and my temperature are maintained at reasonable levels, I shouldn't be any more difficult on that count. They'll still be dealing with my connective tissue and my joints being more fragile than normal, so there is a possibility of my jaw dislocating or my mouth getting more torn up than expected, but I think that's the sort of thing the surgeon is supposed to be able to manage in office.