Not a complete geezer yet...
Okay, the good news is that I still have all my teeth (hence the subject heading). The bad news is that I also still have a major toothache. It turns out that the abscess isn't that big, and it's in the tooth next to the one the dentist worked on recently. So the root canal didn't really help, and I already had a root canal on the new problem tooth, so the only thing they can do is take it out. Since it's my big molar, and one of the few teeth I can chew with, that isn't a very appealing option. Fortunately, the dentist agreed, so he gave me antibiotics to try to calm things down. Unfortunately, antibiotics rarely, if ever, completely get rid of the bacteria with an abscessed tooth, so it comes back. However, we're hoping that it only got bad this time because of all the work on the tooth "next door" and that it won't become a problem again if we leave the area alone. Sounds good to me; I hope it works.
Of course, while I was driving home from that appointment, I bit down funny and the other side of my mouth now has a horrible toothache. This is more like a typical toothache, so maybe they'll be able to figure it out more easily. I just have to figure out which dentist is supposed to treat it. My "general" dentist is here in Kingston, but my insurance with him is very limited, and after that I have to go to the dentist that's 10 miles away, and has a less stellar reputation. Oh well, I'm sure I'll figure it out.
The other cause of all this pain is probably TMJ (as I've suspected for some time, and the third dentist, who I saw on Wednesday, confirmed). The treatment for that is braces. Um, no problem, except they cost thousands of dollars and the insurance doesn't cover them. Oh well, I'll deal with that once I take care of the other issues in my mouth. And getting new glasses.
On a happier note, I finally saw Juno last night and loved it. I really wasn't in the right mood for it when it came out, but I've been wanting to see it for a while now, so I checked it out at the library. And it's another beautiful day, so no more complaining.
Of course, while I was driving home from that appointment, I bit down funny and the other side of my mouth now has a horrible toothache. This is more like a typical toothache, so maybe they'll be able to figure it out more easily. I just have to figure out which dentist is supposed to treat it. My "general" dentist is here in Kingston, but my insurance with him is very limited, and after that I have to go to the dentist that's 10 miles away, and has a less stellar reputation. Oh well, I'm sure I'll figure it out.
The other cause of all this pain is probably TMJ (as I've suspected for some time, and the third dentist, who I saw on Wednesday, confirmed). The treatment for that is braces. Um, no problem, except they cost thousands of dollars and the insurance doesn't cover them. Oh well, I'll deal with that once I take care of the other issues in my mouth. And getting new glasses.
On a happier note, I finally saw Juno last night and loved it. I really wasn't in the right mood for it when it came out, but I've been wanting to see it for a while now, so I checked it out at the library. And it's another beautiful day, so no more complaining.